Low-cost airline Independence Air, which some AU students said was doomed from its beginning two years ago, permanently grounded all flights last week, disrupting travel plans for some students returning from the winter holiday resulting in fewer travel options and higher prices on other airlines.
Nicole Vitale, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, was forced to return to AU early on Independence Air's last flight out of Pittsburgh to D.C.
"I took the last flight out on Jan. 5 and when the woman called us to board, she started crying," Vitale said. "The airline was cheaper than Greyhound ... Now I am probably going to have to drive to and from home. T.his is a very big issue."
Financial problems have continued to plague FLYi, the airline's parent company, which filed for bankruptcy protection in November.
FLYi is seeking bankruptcy court approval to automatically refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart after Jan. 5, according to an article from MSN News.
Independence Air's grounding also leaves many students with fewer options for affordable future travel.
"There are less choices when [Independence takes] those fares away because there are less seats. And after they sell so many seats at each price, it's going to go up to the next price. So that's going to raise that price," said travel agent Susan Redmon in an article from www.wbir.com, a Tennessee-based news station.
Mike Inganamort, a senior in SPA, flew the airline once.
"I liked it, especially the price," Inganamort said. "It's too bad they're going out of business, but with their prices so low, I don't know how they stayed in business as long as they did."
"The fares were just too low," said Terry Trippler, a Minneapolis-based airline expert with Cheapseats.com. According to a Detroit Free Press article, while popular among passengers, the low-cost carrier's fares weren't high enough to keep the company running.
Flights from Southern states to Washington, D.C. have increased about $25, according to an article from www.wbir.com, but students in other areas are affected as well.
"I'll miss Independence Air - they really seemed to care about their passengers, and their fares were
always cheaper than their competitors," said Brian Conway, a junior in the School of International Service who frequently traveled home to Pittsburgh on the airline.
According to The Washington Post, Independence Air's best bet would be to serve as a feeder for other airline companies such as Delta and United.
With Independence Air folding, Washington airline passengers will lose one of the main reasons that fares here are lower than the national average, said Keith Alexander of www.washingtonpost.com. In 2006, industry observers think the airlines will have more pricing power and begin raising fares. Without Independence Air, fares in the Washington area could go up significantly.
FLYi was hoping an investor would buy the airline, but according to Independence Air Chief Executive Kerry Skeen, to date there has not been an acceptable offer that would financially allow Independence Air to continue operations as is.
"While we've been clear in reminding everyone that this was a possibility, we remained optimistic that there would be a way to avoid reaching this juncture," Skeen said in an MSN news article.
