storminpilot
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http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=19698
New start-up airline proposed for Rockford
By Lorene Yue
March 01, 2006
(Crain’s) — A new low-cost carrier will begin flying out of Chicago/Rockford International Airport later this year if a group of businessmen, some tied to the airline industry, can get their idea off the ground.
The goal of Chicago-based Festival Airlines will be to operate fewer than a dozen non-stop flights a week to common U.S. vacation destinations.
“We will focus on vacation flights, not business flights, and not at busy hours,” said Carl George, a software developer who is Festival’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Leisure travel is the largest part, 65%, of ticket sales.”
Several things could keep the airline grounded. It has not been cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration - initial flights will be operated on a contract basis under the Festival name - and doesn’t have a date or destination for its inaugural flight. Even up in the air is when tickets will go on sale.
That kind of uncertainty concerns Michael Boyd, president of airline industry consulting firm the Boyd Group. “This is not a well thought-out plan,” Mr. Boyd said. “All the danger signs are here.”
He points to Hooters Air’s recent pullout from Rockford and the demise of Atlanta-based TransMeridian Airlines.
“There is no major opportunity out there, especially out of Chicago,” Mr. Boyd said.
Still, the minds behind Festival are determined to see their plans through.
They intend to operate out of 35 cities in the next three years and offer tickets priced between $150 to $350. And they plan to start flying Boeing 757 jets out of Rockford, Midway International Airport, Detroit and Cleveland by the end of the year.
Rockford currently has limited service from United Airlines and two other flyers.
Festival’s principals include a former senior vice-president of operations for FedEx, the former chief operating officer for Spirit Airlines and a lead pilot for Northwest Airlines.
A privately financed project, Festival Airlines intends to roll out in three phases over the next three years. Fifteen cities are in the first phase and 10 each in the second and third. Ideally, each city will have its own plane shuttling between destinations, which Mr. George said would change based on the season.
http://www.festivalairlines.com/index.htm
New start-up airline proposed for Rockford
By Lorene Yue
March 01, 2006
(Crain’s) — A new low-cost carrier will begin flying out of Chicago/Rockford International Airport later this year if a group of businessmen, some tied to the airline industry, can get their idea off the ground.
The goal of Chicago-based Festival Airlines will be to operate fewer than a dozen non-stop flights a week to common U.S. vacation destinations.
“We will focus on vacation flights, not business flights, and not at busy hours,” said Carl George, a software developer who is Festival’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Leisure travel is the largest part, 65%, of ticket sales.”
Several things could keep the airline grounded. It has not been cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration - initial flights will be operated on a contract basis under the Festival name - and doesn’t have a date or destination for its inaugural flight. Even up in the air is when tickets will go on sale.
That kind of uncertainty concerns Michael Boyd, president of airline industry consulting firm the Boyd Group. “This is not a well thought-out plan,” Mr. Boyd said. “All the danger signs are here.”
He points to Hooters Air’s recent pullout from Rockford and the demise of Atlanta-based TransMeridian Airlines.
“There is no major opportunity out there, especially out of Chicago,” Mr. Boyd said.
Still, the minds behind Festival are determined to see their plans through.
They intend to operate out of 35 cities in the next three years and offer tickets priced between $150 to $350. And they plan to start flying Boeing 757 jets out of Rockford, Midway International Airport, Detroit and Cleveland by the end of the year.
Rockford currently has limited service from United Airlines and two other flyers.
Festival’s principals include a former senior vice-president of operations for FedEx, the former chief operating officer for Spirit Airlines and a lead pilot for Northwest Airlines.
A privately financed project, Festival Airlines intends to roll out in three phases over the next three years. Fifteen cities are in the first phase and 10 each in the second and third. Ideally, each city will have its own plane shuttling between destinations, which Mr. George said would change based on the season.
http://www.festivalairlines.com/index.htm
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