More than a hundred people gathered at the entrance to the Portland International Jetport on Saturday to protest a commercial airline that has been working with immigration officials.

Avelo Airlines has been carrying out deportation flights in Arizona for U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement since May. Before then, the Houston-based company was better known for offering budget flights in small and mid-size town airports.

A week after starting their flights for ICE, Avelo began offering a limited number of nonstop flights between New Haven, Connecticut, and Portland.

A spokesperson for Avelo said Saturday they’re not carrying out deportation flights anywhere other than Arizona. Their CEO, Andrew Levy, told media outlets in April that the company’s agreement with ICE would help protect jobs and fund future expansions.

Still, protesters on Saturday said they were upset that Avelo is making money in Maine. Debra Bellare from Indivisible Greater Portland, one of the protest organizers, said the event’s purpose was two-fold: the group wants to spread awareness for their boycott and they want to urge public officials to take a stance against Avelo.

“We just don’t believe that’s the way to make money in this country, by violating due process,” said Rachel Weinstein, another member of Indivisible Greater Portland.

Weinstein said she’s heard that conditions on Avelo’s deportation flights are inhumane. She and other protesters also said Saturday they believe many who are being removed from country have been denied access to attorneys and day in court.

Protesters were also concerned by an incentive program that Portland offers some airlines at the jetport.

Neither the city nor Avelo have shared what Avelo has been paid, despite previous requests from the Press Herald.

An Avelo spokesperson said in an email Saturday that the airline offers seasonal flights in and out of Portland twice a week to southern Connecticut’s Tweed-New Haven Airport. (Protesters in New Haven have also been gathering at their own airport since May, when Avelo started its deportation flights.)

“We did receive waived terminal fees for a limited time, as all initial carriers receive, but for more information on that you will need to speak to the airport,” spokesperson Courtney Goff wrote.

A spokesperson for the Jetport did not immediately respond to a request Saturday.

According to the jetport’s policy, an airline is eligible to have 100% of its landing and terminal use fees waived for the first year of a new nonstop route.

The policy states that terminal use fees for 2025 are around $220 per flight. Landing fees for a Boeing 737 — which make up Avelo’s entire fleet — typically come out to about $400 per flight. Since the airline flies in and out of Portland twice per week, the waived fees would total roughly $1,200 per week.

Additionally, the airline is eligible for the city’s marketing incentive program, through which it can receive $3 per available outbound seat up to a total of $100,000.

City councilors, who discussed the issue during a meeting in early July, have said their legal options are limited.

Protesters Saturday said they hope their demonstration will apply even more pressure.

“If not the city, somebody has to be able to do something,” said organizer Sophie Garner, a co-chair for the Maine Democratic Socialists of America. “We don’t want them here, operating here.”

Garner and others often had to shout over loud planes taking off and landing at the jetport. (Avelo had no scheduled flights in Portland Saturday afternoon.)

Several cars honked as they drove past the group, some in support, some in opposition. Many protesters carried colorful signs, including one shaped like an airplane, calling on flyers to “boycott Avelo,” and criticizing the company and the Trump administration. There was also a small marching band playing music throughout the event.

The Portland protest was part of a national effort to spread awareness for an Avelo boycott. Organizers in other states have achieved varying levels of success.

In New York, state Sen. Patricia Fahy, a Democrat, has introduced legislation to rescind jet fuel tax exemptions to airlines who work with ICE. In California, the Eureka City Council voted unanimously to stop using Avelo flights for city business.