Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., Chair of Allegiant Travel Co., Feb. 10, 2026
Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., UC Davis alumnus and chairman of Allegiant Travel Co., returned to campus as the featured guest for the Graduate School of Management’s Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series. A true airline industry maverick, Gallagher transformed Allegiant into a niche travel agency with wings. A recently announced $1.5 billion deal to acquire Sun Country Airlines would further expand its reach. Speaking to a standing-room-only audience, Gallagher traced his 40-year journey from airline deregulation in the late 1970s to building three ventures—WestAir, ValuJet, and Allegiant. He sh…