Ed. Note: Oregon has seen widespread protests against Avelo Airlines’ contract with ICE to operate flights deporting people from the United States, many of whom received no due process. Now, not only has Avelo canceled all its west coast flights, but also Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield has sent Avelo this outstanding letter.
DAN RAYFIELD
ATTORNEY GENERAL
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
July 28, 2025
Mr. Andrew Levy
Chief Executive Officer
Avelo Airlines
Re: Avelo Airlines in Oregon
Dear Mr. Levy:
As Oregon’s Attorney General, I am committed to upholding Oregon priorities and the rule of
law. In many cases, this means supporting businesses that promote tourism and invest in local
economies in our state. It also means stepping in when Oregon’s values are under threat.
Avelo has been a valuable contributor to Oregon’s communities and economies. In October 2023,
Avelo’s arrival at McNary Field (Salem-Willamette Valley Airport) brought commercial routes
back to the airport for the first time in nearly 15 years. Since then, Avelo has been the only
commercial airline offering flights to and from our state’s capital.
However, in recent months, our office has heard from hundreds of Oregonians in Salem, Eugene,
and surrounding areas expressing significant concerns that Avelo Airlines may have entered into
a contract to operate charter flights in service to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s
Immigration Control and Enforcement Agency. Reports of such flights are downright horrifying:
separating parents from children, deporting residents overseas in direct defiance of court orders
to return, transporting people in chains without measures to ensure basic safety. Such abusive
practices are not required to keep Oregon communities safe or enforce immigration laws.
Instead, they are cruel by design – not to mention incredibly wasteful of taxpayer dollars. No
business should be complicit in such action. The Oregon Department of Justice is prepared to
uphold the rule of law and hold accountable any business that is.
I am aware that Avelo recently announced its decision to stop service from Salem in August, and
to stop service from Eugene, Redmond, and Medford later this year. I am hopeful that this
decision means no unlawful, inhuman flights will depart from Oregon soil. At the same time, I
strongly encourage Avelo to immediately halt all such flights, even outside of our state’s borders.
Such cruelty has no place in Oregon – and no place in the United States of America.
The Office of the Attorney General is committed to protecting Oregon’s laws and values. Should
it come to our attention that our laws and values have been breached, we will investigate with the
full authority granted to us on behalf of all Oregonians.
Sincerely,
Dan Rayfield
Oregon Attorney General