Tag: new airlines View All Tags
Tags: Iberia / LCCs / Low Cost Carriers / New Airlines / Airline News / Airlines / → All Tags
Iberia Airlines Wants To Liven Up Its Brand With a New LCC
Like most airlines, Iberia Airlines hasn’t been doing that well. They’ve been in talks to shack up with British Airways for a bigger and brighter future, but for now they’re doing their best to shuttle travelers to and from Spain as best as they can. To make more cash the airline plans to focus on more long-haul routes, and will change up the way they deal with shorter flights: they plan to launch their own low cost carrier.
The cheap carrier Vueling already is owned in part by Iberia, but apparently this isn’t good enough for the suits in Madrid. According to officials within the airline a new carrier focused on domestic and European routes will allow them to change the operating model for these types of flights.
Tags: JetAmerica / New Airlines / LCCs / Airline News / → All Tags
Will JetAmerica Relaunch And Bounce Back From Disgrace?
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:
Tags: JetAmerica / New Airlines / LCCs / Airline Hell / → All Tags
The JetAmerica Failure Fallout Continues
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]
Tags: JetAmerica / New Airlines / Airline Hell / → All Tags
JetAmerica Will Not Be Jetting Anywhere Ever
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]
Tags: Pet Airways / Pet Travel / Airline News / New Airlines / Animals / → All Tags
Pet Airways Takes Off and 'Paws-engers' Seem Pleased
When we first heard of Pet Airways we honestly thought it was just a prank. We really wanted to believe, but were skeptical that we were being taken for a ride. That’s why we were actually pretty excited once we learned that it was the real deal, and yesterday, pets all over the country finally had their travel dreams come true. The pet only airline launched their first flights from Republic Airport on Long Island.
Although things just started yesterday, the demand for the airline seems to be pretty strong. The airline’s founders said that they’ve been overwhelmed with the public’s response to their new offering, and that flights had already been booked up for the next two months. Maybe it's time for them to add a second plane; for now, they're just starting with one that can hold about 50 four-legged friends.
Tags: JetAmerica / New Routes / New Airlines / LCCs / Delays / → All Tags
JetAmerica Doles Out A $600,000 Round Of Refunds
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]
Tags: JetAmerica / New Routes / New Airlines / LCCs / Delays / FAA / → All Tags
The Battle Rages: JetAmerica Versus The FAA
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.
Tags: JetAmerica / New Routes / New Airlines / LCCs / Delays / → All Tags
JetAmerica Has Sold Out Its $9 Fares to Those Who Still Want to Fly JetAmerica
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]
Tags: Pet Airways / Animals / Pets / New Airlines / Green Travel / → All Tags
Is Pet Airways A 'Frivolous' And Eco-Unfriendly Idea?
Although we've already covered the fact that Pet Airways will be the only new airline launching this month, and actually has planes unlike a certain other airline which will remain nameless (cough-JetAmerica-cough), we haven't considered the eco-impact of such a seemingly frivolous carrier.
And "frivolous" is exactly the stance that green blog Treehugger adopted earlier this week when they covered the airline. In response, Treehugger's readers surprisingly rose up in support of the idea and proved themselves to be not only eco-conscious, but pet-friendly as well.
To cover their bums in this matter, Treehugger has left the decision of whether Pet Airways is worthwhile use of a new airline or not up to a poll, currently being conducted here. "Frivolous" is winning thus far, but we're going to wait until the airline actually gets off the ground before making any judgments.
Related Stories:
· Is Pet Airways Un-TreeHugger? [Treehugger]
· UnTreeHugger: Pet Airways [TreeHugger]
· Pet Airways Will Be The Only New Airline Launching This Month [Jaunted]
· Pet Airways Coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: Pet Airways]
Tags: Pet Airways / Animals / Pets / New Airlines / → All Tags
Pet Airways Will Be The Only New Airline Launching This Month
The most exciting new airline of the year is Pet Airways, and unlike Jet America, they appear ready to fly starting next week. Suburban Air Freight operates their service, so we’re unsure if the pet planes will be covered in a unique pet-inspired livery, but they're worth looking out for anyway. The planes look like they’ll be Beech or Cessna aircraft, so the propeller noise may disturb Fido and Whiskers’ slumber during their trip.
According to their website, the first flights will start up next week on July 14, with service on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We tried booking a trip for our fictional office dog, and had no problem getting our puppy a seat aboard the airplane from New York to Los Angeles. We were even encouraged to upgrade his carrier size for an extra $50 or $100, and to purchase some insurance. Upselling—they even sound like a real airline.
Tags: JetAmerica / New Routes / New Airlines / LCCs / Delays / → All Tags
Breaking News: JetAmerica Delays Launch Date Until August 14th
Yesterday we got all sorts of worried that JetAmerica would not be taking off on July 13 as initially announced because we couldn't plug in any new flight dates until August. But a call to the reservations/marketing inquiries hotline let us know that the upstart airline's website was just having a bit of "server error" and that our reservation was still good.
Still, we remained skeptical and with good reason. Just as we were wondering why JetAmerica hadn't fixed its "server error," an email came in to us from a Jaunted reader booked on the inaugural flight out of Newark to Toledo. Jet America has now delayed their launch date by 30 days.
First, we thank you for your support in purchasing a ticket on Sun America d/b/a JetAmerica ("JetAmerica"). Unfortunately, however, you are receiving this notice to inform you that due to landing slot issues in Newark, that we are going to have to delay our first flights 30 days until August 14th.
We've posted the full letter after the jump but Jet America is willing to issue a full refund to all passengers within seven to 14 days. Additionally, passengers booked on this flight will receive "special incentives to rebook on future flights" when they call the reservations center after August 1. Those incentives include waiving the $20 reservations convenience fee and the $20 fee for the first checked piece of baggage and any seat assignment fees.
But what about all the fun things we had planned for Toledo on July 14th????
Tags: JetAmerica / New Routes / New Airlines / LCCs / Delays / → All Tags
Breaking News: JetAmerica Server Snafu or Pushing July Launch?
UPDATE: Jet America has been delayed until August 14th.
We were really banking on JetAmerica taking off on July 13 but perhaps the fact that the airline never even put out a real photo of its jet fleet, we should have known that their inaugural flight date was not sent in stone, or is it?
A tipster emailed us to say that it looks like JetAmerica cancelled all of their July flights. Sure enough, when we went to search for a flight on July 15 we were shown the next available date was August 14. Then when we tried again, the next available date was suddenly August 16. What is happening here?
Since we actually have a reservation on Jet America in July, we dialed their odd 727 area code reservations number hoping for answers. While we were on hold for over 10 minutes we were repeatedly prompted to email Michelle for "marketing inquiries", odd for a reservation number, right? Oh, and at the 11 minute mark we got our answers.
JetAmerica: There is a problem with our server, it is only booking flights for August and September, IT says all should be fixed by end of day tomorrow.Jaunted: So flights in July are still wheels up?
JetAmerica: As far as I know, yeah.
So is this just a server malfunction or is JetAmerica pushing their launch until August? Send us your tips if you got 'em.
