Growing Allegiant to buy six more Airbus A319s

Allegiant Air is again expanding its fleet, announcing on Monday that it has reached a deal to buy six used Airbus A319s from Manila-based Cebu Pacific Air. Delivery is expected to begin late this year and run through 2017.

The deal comes as the Las Vegas-based leisure carrier has been increasing its fleet of Airbus jets amid a broad expansion in the U.S. The company announced last summer that it would purchase 14 Airbus aircraft, most of which are the smaller A319.

The airline said it anticipates operating a fleet of 44 A320-family aircraft -- including Monday's announcement for the A319s -- by the end of 2018. Allegiant left the door open for adding more down the road.

"We continue to be able to find high quality, used A319s that fit our specification...and will remain active in the used A320 [family] market," Jude Bricker, Allegiant's SVP of Planning, said in a Monday statement. Allegiant will configure the jets to seat 156.

The airline is likely to use the newly added jets to expand its network, particularly since it has not announced plans to reduce the 53 MD-80s in its fleet. Allegiant's fleet also includes six Boeing 757s.