Rude Awakening for Skybus

More broadly, the experience also embodied the ugly reality of the airline industry, where the timeliness of 30,000 daily departures constantly faces challenges that are often uncontrollable. In fact, the industry's vast array of challenges is often overwhelming. Since deregulation in 1978, the Transportation Department has certified nearly 200 airlines to begin flying that have since ceased to exist.

Many observers believe Skybus could join them because it charges such low fares -- at least 10 seats on every flight sell for $10 -- and it operates from secondary airports. Skybus announced Wednesday it will serve Chicopee, Mass., St. Augustine, Fla., and San Diego. They join a list of five destinations, including Bellingham, Wash., and Portsmouth, N.H, all served from Columbus.

The skeptics include Jim Dent, founder of the original Skybus, which flew between Florida and the Northeast between 1992 and 1993. Like its successor, the first Skybus charged for extras such as drinks and luggage. It even charged $25 to apply for a job, and it charged for crew training. It failed, Dent said, because it didn't get paid by the travel agency that processed its credit card transactions.

Dent, now retired, said the new Skybus markets don't have enough origin and destination traffic.

"You have to go where the passengers are when you start," he said. "The first six months is your toughest time to make money in the airline business, and you can't take the losses." However, while Dent started with limited funds, the new Skybus raised about $160 million.

In the Skybus view, the airline industry is committed to a flawed model. American(AMR Quote) flies its planes an average of 11 hours a day, while Skybus hopes to fly 15. United(UAUA Quote) and Continental(CAL Quote) have huge shares of their daily operations at delay-plagued airports in Chicago and Newark, while Skybus uses speedy airports like Greensboro.