Over two months after booking a flight on start-up LCC JetAmerica, which, if you recall, went belly-up in early July before even getting off the ground, we finally received our refund. Of course the little airline that could (but didn't) won't simply die; oh no no no, it's all about keeping the rumors out there that perhaps one day they will pop up again.

JetAmerica isn't Jesus though, and like Doubting Thomas, we're highly suspicious of any resurrection whispers. CrankyFlier agrees that they should just let it go, but points to the hopeful single statement left on the JetAmerica website, where CEO John Weikle hints at a future: ]]> JetSetCD 2009-08-10T11:29:32-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/20/84415/5412

Well, we've survived the weekend after hearing—last minute on Friday, of course—that beleaguered LCC start-up JetAmericahad crashed without ever getting off the ground. Although we've always preached caution in believing that they would ever hit the skies, it's still difficult to watch a potential airline fail, especially one touting such low fares.

In response to JA's pulling out of their operations and Toledo airport, Toledo Port Authority board member Jerry Stabler told the Blade that their calling it quits doesn't surprise him: "It's the other shoe dropping, there's no question about it. The fact that [John] Weikle was involved with SkyBus should have been a heads-up for us." Chabler actually echoed our sentiments back when JetAmerica canceled their first bunch of flights; we're betting he didn't book a flight like we did, though.

Which brings us to our next point: refunds and a possible JetAmerica rebound. We're still waiting on our refund, but many other would-be JetAmerica passengers are worrying about more than this; they now have to replace their JA plans with expensive tickets on legacy carriers, and travel through Detroit versus Toledo. The Lansing's WLNS spoke with a woman who had purchased $700 in non-refundable Broadway tickets because she had saved so much on airfare. The dilemma is now to book flights that cost the same amount and double the vacation budget, or stay home and sacrifice the tickets.

Knowing the ups and downs of JetAmerica, and its final fatal denouement, would you consider flying on them in the future, if they regroup and relaunch? Do you think John Weikle, founder of both failed SkyBus and failed JetAmerica, should maybe find a new career? More importantly, for those booked on JetAmerica, have you received your refund yet? Let us know in the comments!

Related Stories:
· JetAmerica Will Not Be Jetting Anywhere Ever [Jaunted]
· Customers complain about flight cancellations [WLNS]
· JetAmerica cancels entire route network; Toledo flights grounded [Toledo Blade]
· All JetAmerica Coverage [Jaunted]
]]> JetSetCD 2009-07-20T11:09:20-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/17/17570/6229

What we all suspected would happen has finally happened today: JetAmerica has officially folded. From the AP:

JetAmerica, a fledgling discount airline that garnered attention with $9 promotional fares, has folded without ever getting off the ground.

The Clearwater, Fla.-based company says it's suspending sales to all markets and will immediately begin to process refunds to customers.

CEO John Weikle says:

We are reluctantly suspending our public charter operations effective today,” said John Weikle, CEO, who has been with the company since April. “Finalizing the slots required to support our charter program at Newark has taken longer than expected and we have decided to suspend our flights in order to refocus on different markets.

And company spokesman Bryan Glazer added:

It is unfortunate that so many consumers' will be affected. This was unavoidable. I worked closely with the executives of JetAmerica for several months and know they did their very best to overcome the challenges that the slot situation posed. But in the end, the business plan never called for paying for more than a half million dollars for slots.

The problem? The airline couldn't secure landing slots at Newark Liberty International Airport. So once again, JetAmercia will need to reissue refunds for any of the passengers who had booked flights after the inaugural July 13 flight was delayed. As we were writing this, the JetAmerica website was still loading and advertising fares. However, booking a flight was not possible.

Still, this really stinks. Yes, we were mad at JetAmerica for not taking off as initially planned on Monday but we were still looking forward to flying one of their $9 fares. Oh well, we'll just wait for the next reincarnation to surface.

In the meantime, if you are part of the $900,000 pie that needs refunds, here is what Mr. Glazer says:

All customers will receive automatic refunds within 7-14 business days. Any customer not receiving a full refund in 14 days should call 727-451-3970.

Related Stories:
· JetAmerica coverage [Jaunted]
· Discount air carrier JetAmerica folds [AP]
· Minister, Hopeful Lawyer and Others Forced to Pay More Thanks to JetAmerica [Jaunted]]]> juliana 2009-07-17T18:01:21-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/13/222419/638

If we had a nickel for every time there was news about the delayed JetAmerica, we'd have enough cash to buy a ticket on the airline. The most recent update, aside from their continued issue with the FAA and the almost complete lack of the once-touted $9 fares, is that the refunding of customers is apparently going smoothly.

Since JetAmerica announced their month delay, moving the start of flights from July 13 to August 14, affected customers have cried out for more than just a refund, but a refund is what they're going to get. Oh yea, and some minor fees waived if you opt to actually travel on JetAmerica in the future, when they get off the ground.

According to the Dayton Daily News, JetAmerica has already refunded $600,000 to over 6,400 passengers. After checking our credit card activity today, we can say that are not among the refunded...yet. Here's hoping it arrives before something crazy happens, but if we've learned anything after the Clear debacle, it's not to trust any company ever.

Related Stories:
· $600,000 refunded to customers, says JetAmerica [Dayton Daily News]
· The Battle Rages: JetAmerica Versus The FAA [Jaunted]
· All JetAmerica News [Jaunted]
]]> JetSetCD 2009-07-14T09:29:17-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/9/214426/4893

And the JetAmerica drama continues, as more details about their issues with the FAA emerge, and the struggle for landing slots continues. An article published yesterday in the Toledo Blade not only names the dates when JetAmerica's web began to unravel, but also quotes the Port Authority as being "not that optimistic" about the carrier.

So remember back when JetAmerica boasted of selling 20,000 tickets in their first 48 hours of having their website active? It turns that this publicity, and their May 27 press release even announcing their ticket sales, were the straws that broke the camel's back; they caused the FAA to contact JetAmerica and inquire about exactly what their plans were for landing slots, since they now needed them as an obviously regularly-scheduled carrier. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-07-10T09:04:19-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/9/1861/00503

JetAmerica is extremely unpopular these days after pulling the plug on passengers just 11 days before the JA flights were expected to take off. (We keep getting upset letters from passengers and we're updating them here.)

But apparently, some people are still willing to give them another chance. JetAmerica has sent us this statement saying they have removed advertisements for its $9 one-way fares from its website. And why?

"The reason is because we are sold out of $9 fares in all but the Toledo, Ohio market for all future flights through September 2009. However, there are still plenty of one way seats available at fares starting as low as $19 one way," said JetAmerica spokesperson Bryan Glazer.

The $9 one-way fare ads have been replaced by a box that says "Ultra-low fares. Every Day. Every Flight." So we guess the sell-out bit is good news for the airline and $19 is still low. But what about when these flights will actually take off? That's still not known as there was no comment from Glazer about "slot issues or regulatory matters."

Meanwhile, here's a snippet of a letter from a once and former JetAmerica customer:

As far as I am concerned, I'll walk, hitch-hike, ride a bike, or drive before I will ever consider flying Jet America. They could give me free tickets, free hotels, etc ... I WON'T FLY WITH THEM ... EVER! They can take their 'discounts' for future flights and shove them. I'd join a class action suit if there was a chance of sticking it to them, but I don't see any chance of that.

Related Stories:
· JetAmerica stories [Jaunted]
· Minister, Hopeful Lawyer and Others Forced to Pay More Thanks to JetAmerica [Jaunted]]]> juliana 2009-07-09T18:14:35-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/7/6/123719/9606

UPDATE: More new "grievances" have been filed below.

Last week when we broke the news that JetAmerica would be canceling its flights, less than 11 days before they were scheduled to take off, we asked readers who had booked a JetAmerica flight how this delay would affect them. And several of you wrote in to tell us just how inconvenient this all was.

We'll be posting some of the letters after the jump, but before we get into that we are thinking that JetAmerica's refund of the passengers' flights is not enough. Because flights typically tend to be more expensive when you book under 14 days before your desired departure date, we think JetAmerica should refund the passengers' difference in price for the new flight as well.

For example, if you paid...oh let's say...$89 for a flight on JetAmerica but because of the cancellation, you had to pay about $250 on another airline, JetAmerica should pay the $89 and the difference which would be $161. Just something JA should think about. Now onto the stories....]]> juliana 2009-07-06T13:01:40-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/