Skybus Airlines
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Founded | 2004 | ||||||
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Commenced operations | May 22, 2007 | ||||||
Ceased operations | April 5, 2008 | ||||||
Board of Managers) | |||||||
Founder | John Weikle | ||||||
Website | skybus.com |
Skybus Airlines Inc. was a privately held airline based in Columbus, Ohio, United States.[2] It operated as an ultra low-cost carrier modeled after the European airline Ryanair, and aimed to be the least expensive airline in the United States. The business model was heavily reliant on flying routes where other airlines did not have direct flights, as Ryanair did in Europe, thus keeping competition to a minimum, and on flying into secondary airports, rather than heavily trafficked ones.
The airline also sold advertising space on the interior and exterior of its aircraft, as well as selling merchandise on board. Skybus applied for operating approval on January 1, 2005,[3] received approval to operate on March 15, 2006,[4] and FAA certification on May 10, 2007.[5] It had been granted a waiver to begin ticket sales on April 24, 2007;[6] Skybus' first passenger flights out of Columbus began on May 22, 2007. Less than a year later, Skybus announced on April 4, 2008, that it would cease operations as of April 5, citing the lagging economy and rising fuel costs as causes.[7]
History
Taking advantage of America West Airlines pulling down its Columbus, Ohio hub, its founder, John Weikle, started raising capital to start the airline in that city. Two years later, the Skybus board hired Bill Diffenderffer as its CEO. Diffenderffer's prior airline experience was as in-house counsel for Eastern Airlines and CEO of Continental Airlines System One Reservations. At the time Skybus began operations it was the most heavily capitalized (funded) airline in US history. Its founder, John Weikle, resigned one day after Skybus began its first passenger flights.[8]
On April 24, 2007, Skybus Airlines announced their initial set of eight destinations, all of which originated from their hub at
The expansion plans were not envisioned in the original business plan, and, in some instances, it expanded to cities that management did not choose on the basis of computer models used with its initial destination cities (Chattanooga, TN, for example). As part of its business model, Skybus favored smaller, cheaper airports near major markets. To serve Boston, for example, Skybus chose Portsmouth (New Hampshire) International Airport. Skybus marketed itself as an ultra-low-cost carrier, selling ten seats on each flight for $10. The low fares came with a reduction of frills. There were charges for virtually everything else (see Skybus business model), including checked baggage charges, which were later implemented by other carriers such as Delta, Northwest and United.
On July 24, 2007, the U.S. Department of Transportation granted Skybus the right to fly international flights to
The airline made news during the Christmas 2007 travel season, when it encountered problems with two of its seven planes, resulting in the cancellation of about 25% of its scheduled service over a two-day period. As a result of not having de-icing contracts in place in advance of winter 2007–08, Skybus was forced to take significant delays and incurred thousands of dollars in additional de-icing costs.[11] On March 24, 2008, Skybus announced that chief executive Bill Diffenderffer had resigned to return to his previous occupation as an author.[12]
Destinations
As of Friday, April 4, 2008, its last day of operation, Skybus provided service to 17 destinations throughout the continental United States:
From
- Bob Hope Airport)
- Chattanooga (Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport)
- Chicago (Gary/Chicago International Airport)
- Springfield (Westover Metropolitan Airport)
- Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport)
- Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport)
- Kansas City (Kansas City International Airport)
- General Mitchell International Airport)
- Newburgh (Stewart International Airport)
- Oakland International Airport)
- Greensboro/High Point (Piedmont Triad International Airport)
- Pease International Airport)
- Charlotte County Airport)
- Richmond (Richmond International Airport)
- St. Augustine (Northeast Florida Regional Airport)
- Wilmington-Philadelphia Regional Airport)
From Greensboro/High Point (Piedmont Triad International Airport):
- Bob Hope Airport)
- Chicago (Gary/Chicago International Airport)
- Chicopee (Westover Metropolitan Airport)
- Port Columbus International Airport)
- Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport)
- Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport)
- Newburgh (Stewart International Airport)
- Pease International Airport)
- Charlotte County Airport)
- St. Augustine (Northeast Florida Regional Airport)
- Wilmington-Philadelphia Regional Airport)
Timeline
Skybus conducted its inaugural flight on May 22, 2007, when the airline began flights from the Port Columbus, OH base. The first service that did not have a Columbus end point began December 17, 2007, when Skybus began flights between Portsmouth and St. Augustine as well as Punta Gorda, Florida.[13]
On October 16, 2007, Skybus announced it was eliminating service to San Diego and Bellingham, and cutting one flight a day to Burbank. The cuts were made due to rising fuel costs as it was more cost effective to use the current fleet on shorter and more profitable runs.
At the same time, Skybus said it would add a second daily flight to Greensboro, North Carolina, which was now its second focus city, and a third seasonal daily flight to Punta Gorda, Florida.[14]
On October 22, 2007, Skybus announced the opening of a new hub at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, North Carolina.[15]
On January 8. 2008, Service began in New York (
On February 6, 2008, Skybus announced that it would end service to the West Coast effective in June, except for a single daily nonstop to Burbank.[16]
On March 8, 2008, Skybus landed its first flight at
On April 4, 2008, Skybus announced the cessation of all flights effective with the last scheduled departure of the day. Service was set to begin on June 1, 2008, between Boston (
Business model
Attempting to emulate Ryanair's business model and Southwest's people-friendly attitude (often considered at odds in comparisons of the two airlines), Skybus had committed itself to be the least expensive airline in the industry with a projected CASM 28% lower than Southwest. To achieve this, Skybus planned to utilize multiple measures designed to increase revenue and decrease costs, many of which are now used by Spirit Airlines.
Fares
Advertised fares to all of the former target cities began at
Additional charges
Skybus charged extra fees for almost everything other than the ticket itself. This is common among European low-cost carriers, but was almost unheard of at the time among major US carriers. Carry-on baggage (one bag plus one personal item) was free, but checked bags incurred an additional charge. The first two bags less than fifty pounds were $10 each online or $12 each at the counter, with each additional bag after two incurring a charge of $50 per bag. Overweight baggage, those weighing over fifty but under seventy-five pounds, was charged an extra $25, and all bags over seventy-five pounds were not accepted.[19] Skybus did not through-check luggage onto connecting flights. Customers connecting on Skybus flights in Columbus were required to collect any checked luggage, then re-check it in Columbus for the second flight. Even though Skybus did not through-check luggage, delayed luggage was a continuing problem for its outsourced ground crews.[20]
Seating was first-come, first-served. Passengers paid an extra $10 per person per direction for priority seating, which allowed a passenger to board right after passengers with disabilities.[21] On board, everything from food and drinks to pillows had an additional charge; once purchased, items did not need to be returned. In order to maximize revenue from these fees, Skybus attempted to strictly enforce its no outside food and drink policy. The airline required passengers dispose of food and drink before boarding the plane. Exceptions included baby formula or baby food, special food for those with a medical condition such as diabetes or severe food allergies, or those with dietary restrictions (Kosher, Halal, etc.).[22]
Cost reduction
In an effort to keep maintenance and operating costs to a minimum, most equipment purchased was uniform. This covered the full range of equipment, from engines, to electrical components, to personnel gear. Because of this, Skybus planned on paying significantly less on employee training and for equipment service.
Another major method of cost reduction was to utilize secondary airports, which are generally less congested and charge less to lease space though they may be farther from the advertised destination. To save even more money at the airport, passengers boarded directly from the
Employee wages
Flight attendants were paid $9 per flight hour, and were not paid a per diem. While this was considerably lower than competing airlines' wages, flight attendants also received 10% of all sales made during the flight, splitting all commissions evenly among all flight attendants on board.
Starting
Skybus was one of the few 100% non-union airlines in the United States at the time of its shutdown (among mainline airlines, only
Ancillary revenue
While cutting costs was a high priority for Skybus, revenue was their primary focus. Skybus aircraft were outfitted as flying gift shops, selling soda, food, perfumes, handbags, jewelry, watches, clothing, and toiletries. Customers could purchase these items duty-free on board the aircraft. Seen in this photo is a flight attendant during the gift sales portion of a flight.[22]
Advertisements could also be seen throughout the cabin and exterior. This could include overhead bins, carpet, tray tables, and full-body exterior advertisements (see below). The price for interior advertisements was not released, though a company who purchased a full-body advertisement could also buy all interior advertisements for a small increase in price. A complete list of where advertisements were to be placed was not released.[26]
Shutdown and bankruptcy
Soon after the departures of several top managers, on April 4, 2008, Skybus announced they were shutting down all flight operations. The airline also said it would seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[7][27] A statement on its website regarding the shutdown said that "Skybus struggled to overcome the combination of rising jet fuel costs and a slowing economic environment. These two issues proved to be insurmountable for a new carrier." Skybus was the fourth United States-based airline to shut down or announce future plans to shut down the week of March 31, 2008, following Aloha Airlines' passenger operations, ATA Airlines and charter airline Champion Air.[7] At the time of the shutdown, Skybus employed about 450 people, mostly in the Columbus, Ohio, area. Almost all were immediately laid off. Passengers were also left stranded before they could complete their round trip flights.[28]
Port Columbus did not face harsh losses from the airline's shutdown, because the vacant space allowed existing airlines at Port Columbus to expand and add more service. With the addition of a nonstop flight from Columbus to Los Angeles operated by Delta Air Lines, Columbus now had non-stop flights to all of the major airline hubs in the United States. Their vacancy also made room for AirTran Airways.
Fleet
On October 26, 2006, Skybus announced a deal with the European
On February 14, 2007, Skybus announced they had chosen the CFM56-5B engine built by CFM International to power the 65 A319 aircraft on order from Airbus. The actual price Skybus would have paid for the engines was not disclosed, but the list price for the order is estimated at over $750 million.[30] As of April 2008, the Skybus Airlines fleet consisted of 13 Airbus A319 aircraft (out of a total order of 63), 12 received in December 2007 and one in March 2008, two of which were leased from Virgin America.[31] The average age of the fleet was 4.3 years.[32]
Livery and advertising
Original images of a livery design described by some as "psychedelic" emerged on the internet, but since then the all orange design displaying the butterfly logo on the tail made its appearance on the Columbus
The first leased aircraft for Skybus that came from Virgin America, had 144 seats on board, and flew with three flight attendants. Flight attendant uniforms were also used as a means of advertising. The uniforms for both male and female flight attendants consisted of black shoes, black casual dress pants with black long sleeve T-shirts. The front and back of the T-shirts would advertise a Skybus focus city, along with an advertising slogan specific to that city or a generic Skybus ad phrase. Flight attendants purchased their own uniforms and were allowed to choose and wear the T-shirt style of their choice. Captain and First Officer uniforms did not have advertising and were of traditional airline style (olive green shirts with epaulettes and black ties).
Criticisms
Skybus hubs (CMH and GSO) did not provide connection opportunities for passengers. Skybus highly discouraged connections; as such, passengers wishing to interchange at hubs would have to move bags between flights (on their own) as bags could not be checked on a multi-segment itinerary.[34]
Startup incentives
In an effort to attract the airline to the city, as well as support its growth early on, the city of Columbus, along with the Columbus Regional Airport Authority, had offered incentives totaling over $57 million. These incentives included a twelve-year tax credit, promised airport improvements, business loans, and marketing support. Most of the incentives were performance-based, which required Skybus to create 1000 jobs and complete other milestones to receive the incentives.[35] Incentives such as airport improvements, however, were already completed. When Skybus began operations, they took advantage of $11 million of improvements to their gates in Concourse B at Port Columbus.
Financing
Skybus was financed by numerous high-profile companies nationwide and locally. As of April 2, 2007, Skybus had raised an estimated $160 million in startup capital which includes $72.7 million in their second round of fund raising.
Investors
Skybus Airlines' startup finances were provided by a number of large investors. These included
Financial performance
Skybus reported a loss of $16 million during its first three months of operation. A Skybus spokesman said that these results were "in line" with expectations for an airline startup. During that period, Skybus planes were 79% full, placing the airline sixteenth highest among 96 reporting airlines. Passenger yield for the quarter was 5.08 cents/mile, compared with Southwest's 12.50 cents/mile and the 13.00-cent/mile average among major national carriers.[39]
See also
References
- ^ "Airlines Remembered" by B.I. Hengi, 1999 Midland Publishing
- ^ Home. Skybus Airlines. February 7, 2006. Retrieved on May 20, 2009.
- ^ "Proposal to DOT" (PDF). United States Department of Transportation. January 7, 2005. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "DOT Approval" (PDF). United States Department of Transportation. April 14, 2006. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Wolf, Barnet D. (May 10, 2007). "Skybus gets OK from FAA to start flights on May 22". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Skybus gets OK to sell tickets early". The Columbus Dispatch. April 12, 2007. pp. Business F1. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c "Low-cost carrier Skybus calls it quits". NBC News. April 4, 2008. Retrieved April 5, 2008.
- ^ "The final days of Skybus". Columbus Monthly. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
- ^ "Notice of Action Taken - Docket OST-2007-28587" (PDF). United States Department of Transportation. July 24, 2007. Retrieved July 25, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Skybus Airlines official web site". Skybus Airlines LLC. 2007. Archived from the original on July 10, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (December 26, 2007). "Skybus cancellations causing turbulence". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
- ^ "Skybus's chief executive Diffenderffer resigns". The Columbus Dispatch. March 24, 2008. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2008.
- ^ Gardiner, Gary (September 20, 2007). "Skybus adding four new destinations". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 24, 2007. Retrieved September 20, 2007."Skybus Airlines official web site". Skybus Airlines LLC. 2007. Archived from the original on March 31, 2008. Retrieved September 25, 2007.
- ^ Matzer Rose, Marla (October 16, 2007). "3 or 5 West Coast flights cut". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
- ^ Matzer Rose, Marla (October 22, 2007). "Skybus to make Greensboro, N.C., second hub". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved October 22, 2007.
- ^ Matzer Rose, Marla (2007). "Skybus trims West Coast coverage". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on February 6, 2008. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
- ^ "First Skybus Flight Lands in Delaware". March 8, 2008. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2008.
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Martha (April 24, 2007). "Skybus starts selling tickets today, with some one-way fares for $10". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business A1.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Many other airlines in the United States have since followed the trend of charging for checked luggage, with some notable exceptions such as Southwest and jetBlue."Skybus - Baggage Rules and Info". Skybus Airlines LLC. 2007. Archived from the original on July 8, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ "Skybus to add 4 cities, 2 planes in December". Columbus Dispatch. 2007. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved September 20, 2007.
- ^ "Skybus - Priority Boarding". Skybus Airlines LLC. 2007. Archived from the original on July 15, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ a b "Skybus - During Your Flight". Skybus Airlines LLC. 2007. Archived from the original on July 29, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ "Major-National-LCC: Skybus". Airline Pilot Central. August 4, 2007. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved August 4, 2007.
- ^ Ferenchik, Mark (May 9, 2007). "Skybus hires employees as it gets ready for departure". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Metro and State C8. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "May 2005 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates". U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May 1, 2006. Retrieved April 8, 2007.
- ^ "Skybus Update". airliners.net. 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ "Skybus Airlines Voluntary Petition" (PDF). PacerMonitor. Retrieved June 7, 2016.
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (April 5, 2008). "Skybus folds". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. A1. Archived from the original on May 10, 2010. Retrieved April 5, 2007.
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (October 26, 2006). "Skybus orders 65 jets from Airbus". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business F1. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (February 14, 2007). "Skybus puts $750 million order in for engines". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business D1. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Skybus Fleet Detail Archived March 10, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Skybus Fleet Age Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (April 11, 2007). "Nationwide takes to the air with Skybus ads". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business D1. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Skybus - Where We Fly Archived March 31, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "City of Columbus offers major incentives". Skybus. 2006. Archived from the original on July 10, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ "More cash raised for Skybus". The Columbus Dispatch. April 2, 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ "Inflation Rate in Percent for Jan 2000-Present". InflationData.com. 2007. Retrieved July 23, 2007.
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (April 3, 2007). "Investor support buoys Skybus". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business C1. Retrieved July 23, 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Matzer-Rose, Marla (December 18, 2007). "Skybus in the red by $16 million". The Columbus Dispatch. pp. Business C1. Archived from the original on July 23, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2007.