Complete Sun Country Ownership Guide [2026]

Last Updated on July 28, 2026 by Daniel Globe

Sun Country Airlines has moved from founder ownership to private equity, public markets, and now Allegiant Travel Company. Allegiant completed its acquisition on May 13, 2026. The deal ended Sun Country’s run as a separately traded public company, but passengers still see the Sun Country brand while integration continues.

Who Owns Sun Country Airlines Now?

Allegiant Travel Company owns Sun Country Airlines. The Las Vegas-based parent company completed the acquisition on May 13, 2026. The transaction brought Sun Country under Allegiant’s common ownership and ended public trading in Sun Country’s former SNCY shares.

Allegiant Travel Company is the corporate parent. Allegiant Air is its best-known airline brand. Sun Country continues to operate under its existing name during the integration period, so travelers may not notice an immediate change in how they search for flights, manage reservations, or check in.

Sun Country Ownership Timeline at a Glance

History of Sun Country Airlines

Sun Country Airlines was founded in 1982 by former Braniff International Airways pilots and flight attendants. Braniff had shut down earlier that year. Pilot Ken Sundmark worked with Bob Daniels of Mainline Travel Inc. to create a charter carrier serving leisure travelers from the Minneapolis area.

According to Sun Country’s official history, its first revenue flight departed on January 20, 1983. The flight traveled from Sioux Falls to Las Vegas. The young airline used a Boeing 727-200 and focused on affordable trips to warm-weather destinations.

Sun Country later expanded beyond charter flying. It introduced scheduled service on June 1, 1999, which gave individual travelers more ways to book directly with the airline.

Sun Country survived two bankruptcy periods and several changes in ownership before developing its current mix of scheduled passenger flights, charter work, and cargo service.

The airline stopped operating in December 2001 and filed for bankruptcy. A new investor group purchased the business, and flights resumed in 2002. Petters Group Worldwide and Whitebox Advisors acquired the airline in 2006.

Sun Country later returned to bankruptcy proceedings. In 2011, brothers Marty and Mitch Davis bought it for a reported $34 million. The airline continued to focus on leisure routes, charter work, and price-conscious travelers.

What Is Apollo Global Management?

Apollo Global Management is a global alternative asset manager and retirement-services provider. Leon Black, Joshua Harris, and Marc Rowan founded the firm in 1990.

Apollo invests through credit, equity, real-assets, and related strategies. Its private-equity funds often buy controlling interests in businesses and work with management on financing, operations, costs, and growth.

Sun Country fit that approach because it had an established brand and valuable operating assets but still had room to lower costs, update technology, and change how it scheduled aircraft.

How Apollo Acquired Sun Country

Funds managed by Apollo announced an agreement to acquire Sun Country from Marty and Mitch Davis in December 2017. The transaction closed on April 11, 2018, according to Sun Country’s later SEC filings.

The official Apollo acquisition announcement did not disclose financial terms. Later reporting placed the purchase price at about $188 million, so that amount should be treated as a reported estimate rather than an officially announced figure.

Apollo gained a controlling interest and worked with Bricker and other executives on a wider business transformation. The plan focused on peak leisure demand, lower unit costs, direct online bookings, aircraft ownership, charter flying, and new cargo revenue.

Sun Country’s IPO and Apollo’s Exit

Sun Country priced its initial public offering on March 16, 2021. It sold 9,090,909 shares at $24 each and began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker SNCY on March 17.

The offering generated about $218.2 million in gross proceeds. Sun Country’s shares closed at $36.38 on their first trading day, which was 51.6% above the $24 offer price. That first-day rise pushed the company’s public market value close to $2 billion, but it should not be confused with the original IPO pricing.

Apollo remained a major shareholder after the IPO and reduced its stake through several secondary offerings. On February 11, 2025, an Apollo affiliate sold all 6,346,105 of its remaining Sun Country shares. Sun Country confirmed that the sale completed Apollo’s exit from the investment.

The company remained publicly traded for another 15 months. SNCY shares stopped trading when Allegiant completed the acquisition on May 13, 2026.

Changes Under Apollo’s Ownership

Sun Country underwent a major operating and financial transformation after Apollo’s acquisition. According to its 2021 SEC prospectus, the airline invested more than $200 million in capital projects.

Those projects included new cabin interiors, updated seats, in-seat power, streaming entertainment, aircraft purchases, a new website, and the Navitaire reservation and distribution system.

Sun Country also changed its network strategy. Instead of flying the same schedule throughout the week and year, it placed more passenger flights on days and during seasons when leisure demand was strongest. Aircraft could then be used for charter work or other opportunities during quieter periods.

In December 2019, Sun Country signed an air-transportation services agreement with Amazon. It began operating Amazon cargo flights in May 2020. The contract provided revenue that did not depend on ticket sales from leisure passengers.

The cargo operation later expanded well beyond the 12 aircraft used in the early contract. Sun Country placed eight additional Boeing 737-800 cargo aircraft into service during 2025, bringing the Amazon operation to 20 aircraft. In early 2026, it agreed to operate two more aircraft. Those two had been received by March 31, 2026, and were expected to enter service by the third quarter.

Impact on Day-to-Day Operations

Apollo-era management changed how Sun Country measured routes, assigned aircraft, sold tickets, and controlled costs.

The airline reported that it reduced unit costs by 19% from 2017 to 2019. It renegotiated contracts, increased direct website bookings, changed aircraft financing, adjusted staffing, and introduced other cost-saving measures.

Sun Country also used demand data to decide when and where to fly. A route did not need to operate every day to remain useful. The airline could concentrate flights on high-demand dates and reduce service when expected revenue was weaker.

This flexible scheduling model became central to Sun Country’s leisure strategy. It helped the airline move aircraft among scheduled service, charter work, cargo operations, and aircraft leasing based on expected returns.

Financial Performance Under Apollo

Sun Country’s results depended on more than passenger ticket sales. Its scheduled service, charter contracts, ancillary fees, cargo operation, and aircraft transactions created several revenue streams.

Sun Country reported full-year revenue of approximately $1.13 billion for 2025, its highest annual total at that time. It also remained profitable for the full year.

The cargo segment became more important as the Amazon operation expanded. Charter work also remained a key part of the business, with customers that included casinos, sports organizations, colleges, and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Lower costs did not remove all financial risk. Sun Country remained exposed to fuel prices, maintenance expenses, labor costs, seasonal travel demand, aircraft availability, and economic conditions. Those risks continue under Allegiant’s ownership.

Expansion and Growth Strategies

Sun Country added scheduled routes to leisure destinations in the United States, Mexico, Central America, Canada, and the Caribbean. Its network focused heavily on travelers visiting beaches, warm-weather cities, entertainment markets, and outdoor destinations.

The airline also offered vacation products that combined flights with hotels, rental cars, or other travel services. These packages gave Sun Country another way to earn revenue from each booking.

Charter and cargo flying reduced the airline’s reliance on scheduled passengers alone. That mixed business model was one of the main features Allegiant highlighted when explaining the value of the 2026 acquisition.

Customer Experience Improvements

Sun Country updated its passenger cabins during the Apollo period. Its Boeing 737 aircraft received reclining seats, full-size tray tables, seat-back power, and complimentary entertainment that passengers could stream to their own devices.

The airline also replaced its website and reservation technology. The Navitaire system made it easier to sell tickets and optional services directly, manage passenger data, and process post-purchase changes.

Sun Country still follows a low-cost pricing model. The base fare may not include every service a traveler wants, and customers may pay separately for bags, seat selection, priority service, food, or other extras.

Allegiant’s Acquisition of Sun Country

Allegiant Travel Company announced its agreement to acquire Sun Country on January 11, 2026. The cash-and-stock transaction valued Sun Country at approximately $1.5 billion, including about $400 million of net debt.

Under the merger terms, each eligible Sun Country share was converted into the right to receive:

• 0.1557 shares of Allegiant common stock; and
• $4.10 in cash.

Shareholders of both companies approved the transaction, and Allegiant completed the acquisition on May 13, 2026. Sun Country’s common stock stopped trading on the Nasdaq that day. Allegiant continues to trade under the ticker ALGT.

At closing, Allegiant reported a combined fleet of 195 aircraft serving nearly 175 cities across more than 650 routes and approximately 22 million annual customers.

Gregory C. Anderson serves as chief executive officer of the combined company. Robert Neal serves as president and chief financial officer. The corporate headquarters remain in Las Vegas, while Minneapolis–St. Paul remains an important operating center for Sun Country and the combined business.

What the Acquisition Means for Passengers

The acquisition did not immediately change existing Sun Country reservations, flight schedules, or travel plans. Allegiant said customers should continue using the airline with which they booked.

For a Sun Country booking, passengers should continue to:

• Manage the reservation through Sun Country’s website or app.
• Check in through Sun Country.
• Contact Sun Country customer service for booking help.
• Use their existing Sun Country Rewards account.
• Follow Sun Country’s current baggage and seating rules.

Allegiant Allways Rewards and Sun Country Rewards remain separate in the near term. Allegiant also said existing points, benefits, and account status would retain their value during this stage of integration.

Integration Plans and Open Questions

Sun Country and Allegiant remain separate carriers under common ownership while they work toward a single FAA operating certificate. That process brings operating procedures, safety systems, training, aircraft oversight, and other regulated functions into one framework.

Management said airline integrations often take roughly 14 months, but that was an estimate rather than a guaranteed completion date. FAA review, technology work, labor coordination, and operational complexity can change the schedule.

After a single certificate is obtained, the combined airline is expected to use the Allegiant name. Until then, both brands continue to operate separately.

Allegiant projects approximately $140 million in annual synergies within three years. The company expects those benefits to come from purchasing scale, fleet use, wider customer choice, and other efficiencies. The amount is a forward-looking company target, not guaranteed savings.

The integration also carries risks. Technology migrations can disrupt customers, combining workforces can be complex, and expected savings may cost more or take longer than planned. Fuel prices, maintenance, labor costs, and economic demand will continue to affect results.

The U.S. low-cost airline market also changed after Spirit Airlines ceased operations on May 2, 2026. That closure reduced one source of low-fare competition while creating new opportunities and pressure for the remaining leisure airlines.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who owns Sun Country Airlines now?

Allegiant Travel Company owns Sun Country Airlines. Allegiant completed the acquisition on May 13, 2026. Sun Country continues to use its own brand and customer systems during the integration period.

Does Apollo Global Management still own Sun Country?

No. Apollo-managed funds acquired Sun Country in April 2018 and retained a large stake after the airline’s 2021 IPO. Apollo sold all its remaining 6,346,105 shares on February 11, 2025.

What happened to Sun Country’s SNCY stock?

SNCY stock stopped trading on May 13, 2026, when Allegiant completed the acquisition. Each eligible Sun Country share was converted into the right to receive $4.10 in cash and 0.1557 Allegiant shares under the merger terms.

Will the Sun Country Airlines name disappear?

Not immediately. Sun Country and Allegiant continue to operate as separate brands while working toward one FAA operating certificate. The combined airline is expected to use the Allegiant name after operational integration, but no exact brand-conversion date has been announced.

Are existing Sun Country reservations and rewards points still valid?

Yes. Allegiant said existing reservations, flight schedules, rewards points, benefits, and account status would not change immediately. Customers should continue managing Sun Country bookings and rewards through Sun Country’s existing channels.

Does Sun Country still operate cargo flights for Amazon?

Yes. Sun Country had 20 Boeing 737-800 cargo aircraft operating for Amazon during 2025. It agreed to add two more in early 2026, with those aircraft expected to enter service during 2026. Allegiant has retained cargo as part of the combined company’s diversified business.

Sources

1. Sun Country Airlines: Our Story — founding, first flight, ownership milestones, IPO, and Apollo exit.
2. Sun Country Airlines 2021 Final Prospectus — Apollo acquisition, operating transformation, costs, technology, cabins, and business model.
3. Sun Country IPO Pricing Announcement — $24 offer price and 9,090,909 shares offered.
4. Reuters: Sun Country’s Nasdaq Debut — first-day closing price and percentage increase.
5. Sun Country 2026 SEC Filing — Amazon cargo agreement, 20 aircraft added by 2025, and two planned additions.
6. Allegiant Completes Acquisition of Sun Country Airlines — closing date, leadership, customer impact, combined network, and projected synergies.