In 1994, Casino Express was operating scheduled weekend only flights non-stop between Elko (EKO) and Portland, Oregon, (PDX) and Seattle (SEA) with McDonnell Douglas MD-80 jetliners.

Casino Express quickly expanded its customer base to include sports teams, government agencies, foreign dignitaries, press corps, other gaming properties, and other types of public and private charters.

[11] From 2007 through 2012, Xtra Airways dedicated two Boeing 737-400 aircraft to fly for Direct Air, an airline business based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

[12] In September 2016,[13] it began operating a Boeing 737-800 (registration: N881XA), repainted in a sky-blue and white livery with "Stronger Together" titles, for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.

The same month, the company raised US$125 million in funding and received its first airplane from GE Capital Aviation Services ahead of its original plans to launch scheduled operations later in 2020.

[9][21] Avelo's announcement of its entry into scheduled flight operations was met with competitive response initially from American and Alaska Airlines, with American upgauging[clarification needed] the aircraft on its existing route between Phoenix Sky Harbor and Burbank, while Alaska announced a new service between Burbank and Santa Rosa to start on June 1, 2021.

Following the airline's California launch in late April, Avelo announced on May 6, 2021, that it would open a new base at Tweed New Haven Airport in Connecticut during the third quarter of 2021.

Levy stated the airline had found a niche primarily serving passengers travelling to visit friends and relatives seeking non-stop flights.