Fri, May 29, 2009
"Skybus" Founder to Try It Again
If you want to travel between cities
like South Bend, Indiana or Toledo, Ohio, and places like New York
and Central Florida, JetAmerica may have your answer. John
Weikle, whose "Skybus" super-low-fare airline folded in May of last
year, is trying again with JetAmerica even as the airline industry
struggles for solvency worldwide.
For the traveler flying from a smaller city, or just looking for
an incredibly low fare, JetAmerica might seem like an attractive
option, but you have to book early. The $9 one-way seats will
be offered only to the first 9 people to book on a flight.
Fare will increase to an average of about $69 each way, and
passengers will pay additional fees to check bags or have a soft
drink. Four of the airports served by JetAmerica are
assisting the startup by waiving airport fees, according to the St.
Petersburg Times.
Weikle left Skybus shortly after it launched in 2007, and he
said he began plans for JetAmerica shortly after the company
folded. He said one of the problems with Skybus was that it
had orders for more than 60 Airbus A319s, and this time he plans to
start much more conservatively. JetAmerica will begin
operations with a single, leased 737-800, and has plans for as many
as 4 leased airplanes by next year. With the leases,
JetAmerica will not technically be an airline, but a public
charter, according to news reports.
In a pre-announcement written statement, Weikle said despite the
deep recession and a double-digit drop in passenger traffic, now
"is actually a good time for a start-up because airlines are
cutting flights." Vaughn Cordle, a former airline pilot
turned market researcher, didn't necessarily disagree. "His
timing is actually pretty good," Cordle told The Chicago Tribune.
But he added "Unfortunately, airlines serving those small markets
very rarely make it. He will not get economies of scale or
scope." Cordle thinks the uptick in consumer confidence
points to an airline industry rebound in 2010.
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