Low-cost airline with familiar name hopes to fly - The News Journal

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Low-cost airline with familiar name hopes to fly - The News Journal

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"I think we can build a very nice operation serving dozens of cities and never really encroach on some of the major hub cities that other carriers are dominant in," he said in an interview.

Newport News is losing AirTran service next month as AirTran's parent Southwest Airlines Co. redirects flights to other cities. The region has also offered financial incentives for new airlines to roost.

But although some bigger carriers have left room for new airlines to start service, the industry remains highly competitive. If one airline sees another building up business, it's likely to target those cities, and try to win them back.

"New airlines tend to underestimate the degree and gravity of that competitive response." airline consultant Robert Mann said.

Morisi, who lives in Chesapeake, Va., said he thinks PeoplExpress can beat the odds and become successful through a combination of factors. Among them, he said the airline aims aiming to have a non-union workforce of employees a strategy employed by the old PeoplExpress.

Southwest, which flies more passengers than any other airline, is also an influence: PeoplExpress said it won't charge for checked bags. It also plans to buy only Boeing 737s just like the original PeoplExpress did to keep maintenance costs low. That was Southwest's only plane until it bought AirTran last year.

Also, by using airplanes that have 158 seats, Morisi said he can offer lower fares than regional airlines that may only have 70 or 80 seats.

"There's no question. We will be significantly lower-priced than our competitors," he said.

He said the new airline plans to have an initial public offering to raise about $50 million sometime this spring.

Morisi said the airline is also planning on offering unique foods on board flights that will highlight the regional fare of


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