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Sun Country Airlines

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Sun Country)

Sun Country Airlines
Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737-800
IATA ICAO Call sign
SY SCX SUN COUNTRY
FoundedJuly 2, 1982; 44 years ago (1982-07-02)
Commenced operations
January 20, 1983; 43 years ago (1983-01-20)
AOC #SCNA220K[1]
Operating bases
Cincinnati
Minneapolis/St. Paul
Sun Country Rewards
Fleet size67
Destinations172[2]
Parent companyAllegiant Travel Company
Traded asNasdaq: SNCY
HeadquartersMinneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Key people
RevenueIncrease US$1.1 billion (2025)
Operating incomeDecrease US$101 million (2025)
Net incomeDecrease US$53 million (2025)
Total assetsIncrease US$1.7 billion (2025)
Total equityIncrease US$625 million (2025)
EmployeesIncrease 3,281 (2025)
Websitesuncountry.com
Notes
Financials as of December 31, 2025.
References:[3]

Sun Country Airlines is an ultra-low-cost airline in the United States. Based at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport with headquarters on airport property, Sun Country flies to around 140 destinations in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. The airline also runs significant charter operations and operates cargo for Amazon Air.[4]

Allegiant Travel Company acquired Sun Country on May 13, 2026, and plans to fold all operations into the Allegiant Air brand while maintaining a significant presence at Minneapolis–St. Paul. Allegiant and Sun Country continue to operate separately while working toward a single operating certificate.

History

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One version of Sun Country's early logo used from 1996–2001.
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 at Miami in 1998

Early years and bankruptcies (1983–2001)

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Sun Country was incorporated on July 2, 1982,[5] and received its certificate of public necessity and convenience from the Civil Aeronautics Board on January 17, 1983.[6] The airline began charter operations shortly afterward, with its first revenue flight operating on January 20, 1983, between Sioux Falls and Las Vegas using a Boeing 727 leased from Air Florida.[7][8]

The airline's original staff included 16 pilots, 16 flight attendants, three mechanics, and one office employee. Several early employees had previously worked for Braniff International Airways, which ceased operations in 1982.[9] Captain Jim Olsen served as the company's founder, president, chief executive officer, and chief pilot, while his wife Joan Smith-Olsen led inflight operations.[10]

By 1988, the airline's headquarters were located at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport.[11] Scheduled passenger service began in 1995 with flights from Minneapolis to several major cities. Financial difficulties led the airline to suspend operations in 2001.[12]

Petters Group Worldwide ownership (2006–2008)

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Sun Country was acquired out of bankruptcy in 2006 by Petters Group Worldwide and Whitebox Advisors.[13] Stan Gadek, the former CFO of AirTran Airways was named CEO. The airline faced financial strain during the Great Recession and after revelations that Petters Group had operated a $3.25 billion Ponzi scheme.[14][15]

Rising fuel costs led the airline to furlough 45 of its 156 pilots and reduce its summer schedule in 2008.[16] The airline also reduced service to San Francisco and Los Angeles and introduced fees for checked bags.[17] Later that year, Gadek requested a 50 percent pay deferral for remaining employees.[14] In September 2008, Petters Group CEO Tom Petters resigned after an FBI investigation uncovered large-scale financial fraud involving Petters Group.[18] Sun Country filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for a second time on October 6, 2008.[19]

Rebuilding and Davis brothers ownership (2011–2017)

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Boeing 737 in the 2001–2016 livery at Denver

The Davis family, owners of Cambria, acquired Sun Country out of bankruptcy in July 2011 for $34 million.[20][21] Cambria chief executive Marty Davis became chairman.

Sun Country appointed Zarir Erani as president and CEO in 2015.[22] The airline reported net income of $27 million in 2015, followed by a decline to $16 million in 2016.[22]

In July 2017, after more than a year of missed earnings projections, Erani was replaced by former Allegiant Air executive Jude Bricker as CEO.[22][23] Under Bricker's leadership, Sun Country began shifting toward an ultra-low-cost carrier model.[24]

Apollo Global Management ownership (2017–2025)

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A Boeing 737-800 in the 2016–2018 livery at Indianapolis

Under Bricker's leadership, Sun Country transitioned from private to public ownership, navigated the COVID-19 pandemic, and shifted toward an ultra-low-cost carrier business model.[24] During this period, the airline improved its profitability, expanded its scale of operations, and pursued strategies intended to reduce exposure to the volatility of the airline industry.[25]

Funds affiliated with the private equity firm Apollo Global Management acquired Sun Country in December 2017 for an undisclosed amount.[26] In December 2019, Amazon Air purchased a minority stake in the airline from Apollo and announced plans for Sun Country to operate cargo flights on Amazon's behalf.[4] Sun Country initially operated ten cargo aircraft for Amazon and launched its first cargo flight in May 2020.[27][28][29]

Sun Country became a publicly traded company on March 17, 2021, listing on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol SNCY.[30]

By June 2024, the airline operated 12 cargo aircraft under contract with Amazon Air. The two companies later extended their agreement through 2030, with Amazon agreeing to transfer eight additional Boeing 737-800BCF aircraft to Sun Country, increasing the cargo fleet to 20 aircraft.[31]

Apollo Global sold its remaining shares in Sun Country through a secondary public offering in February 2025.[32]

Acquisition by Allegiant Travel Company (2026)

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Boeing 737-800 in the 2018–2026 livery at Phoenix–Sky Harbor in 2026

Allegiant Travel Company, parent company of Allegiant Air, announced on January 11, 2026, that it had reached an agreement to acquire Sun Country for approximately $1.5 billion.[33] Under the agreement, Allegiant would assume Sun Country's operations, including its employees, aircraft, routes, charter operations, debt obligations, and cargo contracts. The combined airline would operate under the Allegiant brand.[34] The combined airline would maintain significant operations at Minneapolis–Saint Paul.[35]

The United States Department of Transportation approved the merger on April 15, 2026,[36] and shareholders of both airlines approved the transaction on May 8, 2026.[37][38] The transaction closed on May 13, 2026.[39][40]

Following the merger, Allegiant shareholders owned approximately 67 percent of the combined company, while Sun Country shareholders owned the remaining 33 percent.[41] Sun Country CEO Jude Bricker and chairwoman Jennifer Vogel joined the board of directors of the combined company.[42]

Allegiant and Sun Country will continue to operate separately while working toward a single operating certificate.[41]

Corporate affairs

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The key trends for Sun Country Airlines were (as of the end of the calendar year):

Notes
  1. ↑ 2018: Because of the restructuring of the business, financials for 2018 were reported as 'Predecessor' activity (January 1 through April 10) and 'Successor' activity (April 11 through December 31)
  2. ↑ 2020: Activities in fiscal 2020 were severely reduced by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic

Services

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Sun Country previously offered two classes of service with First Class and Economy seats, but when the airline was sold to Apollo Global Management, it became an ultra low-cost carrier with aircraft operated in an all-economy configuration. Sun Country now offers three variations of economy seats: Best, Exit Row, and Standard.[52][53]

Sun Country Rewards, the airline's frequent-flyer program, was established in 2018, replacing an older program called Ufly.[54] In 2023, Sun Country was named the best low-cost carrier in North America at the Paris Airshow's World Airline Rankings.[55]

Destinations

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As of January 2024, Sun Country Airlines flies to 81 destinations and operates more than 100 routes throughout the Caribbean, United States, Canada, Mexico and Central America.[56][57] Many Sun Country destinations are seasonally served as demand grows and falls throughout the year.

The airline additionally provides charter service for the United States Armed Forces[58] and NCAA football teams.[59] The airline has provided charter service to Major League Soccer teams since 2020 and became the league's official carrier in 2022.[60] Sun Country has a number of casino charter contracts.

Top domestic markets (August 2024 – July 2025)[61]
Rank Airport Passengers Market share (%)
1 Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota 1,874,450 11.71%
2 Orlando, Florida 160,090 0.68%
3 Fort Myers, Florida 159,230 3.04%
4 Phoenix, Arizona 157,350 0.63%
5 Las Vegas, Nevada 147,500 0.58%
Other markets 1,364,620 0.15%

Interline agreements

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Sun Country also has interline agreements with the following airlines:[62]

Fleet

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Current fleet

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Boeing 737-800 wearing the newest livery, affectionately nicknamed the "Tide Pod" livery
Boeing 737-800BCF operated for Amazon Air, with Sun Country titles behind the cockpit windows

As of December 2025, Sun Country Airlines operates an all-Boeing 737 fleet composed of the following aircraft:[3][63]

Aircraft In service On order Passengers Notes
F Y+ Y Total
Passenger fleet
Boeing 737-800 43 1 — 27 159 186
1 — 68 — — 68 VIP charter configuration.
Boeing 737-900ER 3 2 — 27 159 186 To enter service through 2026.
Cargo fleet
Boeing 737-800BCF 20 — Cargo Operated for Amazon Air.[64]
Total 67 3

Historical fleet

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Sun Country Airlines historical fleet[65]
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Boeing 727-200 42 1983 2002
Boeing 737-700 9 2008 2023
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 6 1993 1998
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-15 4 1994 2001
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30F 2 1995 1997 Leased from Gemini Air Cargo.
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-40 1 1986 1991 Transferred to Northwest Airlines.

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "Federal Aviation Administration – Airline Certificate Information – Detail View". av-info.faa.gov. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Sun Country Airlines on ch-aviation.com". ch-aviation.com. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "Form 10-K". Sun Country Airlines Holdings, Inc. February 12, 2026.
  4. 1 2 Cameron, Doug (December 17, 2019). "Amazon Looks to Sun Country to Boost Its Cargo Unit". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Minnesota incorporation record for Sun Country Airlines, Inc". Open Corporeates. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Sun Country Airlines, Fitness Investigation". Civil Aeronautics Board Reports. 100. Civil Aeronautics Board: 69–91. February–March 1983. hdl:2027/osu.32437000534103.
  7. ↑ "12 pilots grounded by Braniff shutdown start own airline". Argus-Leader. Sioux Falls, South Dakota. January 20, 1983. p. 15. Retrieved August 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Ex-Braniff crew part of new charter airline". Minneapolis Star Tribune. January 13, 1983. p. 27. Retrieved August 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "About Sun Country Airlines". Sun Country Airlines.
  10. ↑ "Sun County Airlines". Braniff Pages. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  11. ↑ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. March 26, 1988. 117.
  12. ↑ "The Braniff/Sun Country Connection". The Braniff Family. Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Petters Group Worldwide and Whitebox Advisors Acquire Sun Country Airlines" (Press release). Sun Country Airlines. October 31, 2006. Archived from the original on November 14, 2006. Retrieved January 21, 2007.
  14. 1 2 Fedor, Liz (September 28, 2008). "Sept. 29: Sun Country workers face temporary 50% pay cut". Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  15. ↑ Hughes, Art (December 2, 2009). "Tom Petters found guilty of Ponzi scheme fraud". Reuters. Retrieved November 17, 2024.
  16. ↑ Muehlhausen, Nicole (August 6, 2008). "Sun Country asks MAC to help keep company flying". KAAL. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  17. ↑ "Sun Country trims flights, and fares push higher". September 8, 2008. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  18. ↑ Dunbar, Elizabeth (September 30, 2008). "Petters resigns amid fraud investigation". International Herald-Tribune. Associated Press. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  19. ↑ Fedor, Liz (October 6, 2008). "Sun Country Airlines files for bankruptcy". Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  20. ↑ David Phelps (July 21, 2011). "Cambria deal gives new life to Sun Country". StarTribune. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  21. ↑ "Cambria Holdings paid $34 million for Sun Country Airlines". The Mankato Free Press. August 3, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  22. 1 2 3 4 5 Painter, Kristen Leigh (July 6, 2017). "Sun Country Airlines CEO Ousted; owner Davis steps in as he seeks successor for Erani". Star Tribune. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
  23. ↑ Painter, Kristen (July 10, 2017). "Sun Country names Jude Bricker as new CEO". Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
  24. 1 2 Moseley, Jace (December 16, 2017). "Sun Country Airlines Sold to Investment Giant Apollo Global Management". airlinegeeks.com. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  25. ↑ Platt, Adam (May 8, 2026). "Q&A: Sun Country's Outgoing CEO Jude Bricker". Twin Cities Business. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
  26. ↑ "Funds Managed by Affiliates of Apollo Global Management to Acquire Sun Country Airlines". Apollo. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  27. ↑ Josephs, Leslie (December 18, 2019). "Amazon picks low-cost airline Sun Country to expand its cargo business". CNBC. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  28. ↑ "Sun Country Airlines starts cargo operations for Amazon". Air Cargo News. May 11, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  29. ↑ "The Amazon and Sun Country Partnership". AVIATION A2Z. May 24, 2021. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  30. ↑ Kilgore, Tomi. "Sun Country Airlines' IPO prices above the expected range, to value company at more than $1.3 billion". Marketwatch. Dow Jones. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  31. ↑ "Amazon transferring Boeing 737-800 cargo jets to Sun Country Airlines". Yahoo Finance. June 20, 2024. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  32. ↑ "Sun Country Airlines Holdings, Inc. Announces Pricing of Secondary Public Offering of Common Stock and Concurrent Share Repurchase". Sun Country Airlines. Retrieved June 1, 2025.
  33. ↑ "Allegiant to Buy Sun Country for Around $1 Billion". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 11, 2026.
  34. ↑ "Allegiant to acquire Sun Country for $1.5 billion". Travel Weekly. Retrieved January 14, 2026.
  35. ↑ "Allegiant Air and Sun Country". www.soaringforleisure.com. Retrieved January 14, 2026.
  36. ↑ "Allegiant and Sun Country Achieve Key Regulatory Milestone with DOT Approval". Allegiant Travel Company. April 15, 2026. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
  37. ↑ "8-K" (PDF). Allegiant Travel Company. May 8, 2026. Retrieved May 8, 2026.
  38. ↑ "8-K". Sun Country Airlines. May 8, 2026. Retrieved May 10, 2026.
  39. ↑ Josephs, Leslie (May 13, 2026). "Allegiant CEO makes case for low-cost airline model as Sun Country acquisition closes". CNBC. Retrieved May 13, 2026.
  40. ↑ Allegiant completes Sun Country acquistion Airliner World July 2026 page 14
  41. 1 2 Velotta, Richard N. (April 30, 2026). "Allegiant remains on track with $1.5B merger with Sun Country". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
  42. ↑ "Allegiant Announces Future Board Composition Following Sun Country Acquisition". Allegiant Travel Company. April 20, 2026. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
  43. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "After 15 years of turbulence, Sun Country finding clear air". MinnPost. October 31, 2014. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  44. ↑ "U.S. Domestic Airline Fuel Efficiency Ranking, 2017–2018" (PDF). International Council on Clean Transportation. September 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  45. 1 2 3 "OST_R BTS Transtats". www.transtats.bts.gov. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  46. 1 2 "Bureau of Transportation Statistics". Bureau of transportation. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  47. ↑ "Former Sun Country owner learned a lesson: 'Don't fly under the radar'". Star Tribune. September 15, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  48. ↑ "An IPO for Sun Country? The airline's owner explores options". Star Tribune. August 28, 2019. Retrieved December 8, 2019.
  49. 1 2 3 4 "United States Securities and Exchange Commission Form S-1 Preliminary Prospectus". Sun Country Airlines Holdings, Inc. 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  50. 1 2 "Sun Country Airlines Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results".
  51. 1 2 "Form 10-K". Sun Country Airlines Holdings, Inc. February 12, 2025.
  52. ↑ The Sun Country Airlines Baggage Rules, Retrieved August 13, 2021
  53. ↑ "First Look at Sun Country's New, Smaller Seats". Thrifty Traveler. December 11, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  54. ↑ "Sun Country is Overhauling its Rewards Program: What You Need to Know". Thrifty Traveler. November 2, 2018. Retrieved November 2, 2018.
  55. ↑ Tribune, Gita Sitaramiah Star (June 21, 2023). "Sun Country Airlines named best low-cost airline in North America". Star Tribune. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  56. ↑ Sun Country Airlines | Destinations, suncountry.com
  57. ↑ "Sun Country Destinations". SunCountry.com. Sun Country Airlines. March 20, 2019.
  58. ↑ "Sun Country Airlines – Company History". FundingUniverse.com. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  59. ↑ "Sun Country CEO: Future Growth Plans Travel Beyond Leisure flights". BizJournals.com. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  60. ↑ Sitaramiah, Gita (October 27, 2021). "Sun Country Airlines to be official carrier of Major League Soccer". Star-Tribune. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  61. ↑ "OST_R | BTS | Transtats". www.transtats.bts.gov.
  62. ↑ "Airline Partners". SunCountry.com. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  63. ↑ "Global Airline Guide 2025 - Sun Country Airlines". Airliner World. September 2025. p. 83.
  64. ↑ Josephs, Leslie (December 18, 2019). "Amazon picks low-cost airline Sun Country to expand its cargo business". CNBC. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
  65. ↑ "AeroTransport Data Bank". AeroTransport.org. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
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