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The risky business of discount air travel"DISCOUNT AIR TRAVEL" Can't find what you need? Try a Google Web Search in the box below!
10/4/2004 Braniff: Known for aiming to fly anywhere with a landing strip, Braniff was the first (but not the last) major U.S. airline to go bankrupt in the wake of deregulation in '78. Braniff never recovered, but its influence persists: the latest discount air travel carriers all place a premium on style. Southwest: The original. Founded in '71 by two quirky Texans, Southwest (think wisecracking attendants and ticketless travel) soared in the de-regulated market. Laker Airways and Skytrain: On Sept. 26, 1977, Laker Airways launched Skytrain--the first no-frills round-trip discount air travel transatlantic service. Offering nothing but transportation, Skytrain got you from New York to London and back for $236 ($400 less than the going rate). Breakfast was $1.25 extra. Laker soon went belly-up. Can't find what you need? Try a Google Web Search in the box below!
People Express: Of all the postderegulation upstarts, it flew the highest--and crashed the discount air travel hardest. Founded by Donald Burr in '80, PE offered regional flights for the price of an intercity bus ticket. But its unprecedented growth led Burr too overextend; by '86, PE was out of business. Frontier: This tiny, Denver-based carrier debuted in '94 with two planes. Now it has 46. The secret? Slowly and steadily, Frontier cut costs but kept some frills. Jetblue: The prodigy. With $130 million in capital funding and the guts to start a hub at New York's costly JFK, David Neeleman announced in July '99 he would bring "humanity back to air travel." Since then his JetBlue has been riding its DirecTV-equipped, all-leather seats straight to the bank--and the "legacies" have been playing catch-up. Can't find what you need? Try a Google Web Search in the box below!
Song: Hoping to cut into a leisure market dominated by JetBlue, Delta premiered its own discount air travel carrier in April '03 (United launched a budget rival, Ted, in Feb. '04). With Kate Spade uniforms and a trendy N.Y.C. shop, Song harks back to the heyday of Braniff. But a slow start has earned it the nickname "Swan Song." CAPTION(S): That's the ticket: JetBlue has stayed in the black, even after 9/11..... Compare tickets for discount air travel here /cheap airfares home |