Skybus flying into Chicopee
Skybus Airlines, the new super-cheap discount carrier with $10 tickets, is coming to Chicopee July 16.
The Columbus-based airline last week began service between its Ohio hub and metropolitan Boston through Portsmouth International Airport in New Hampshire, the former Pease Air Force Base. It began selling tickets today for flights from Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee, next to the Air Force Reserve base, that will begin operating July 16.
It also announced two other new destinations this summer out of Columbus: San Diego starting July 16 and St. Augustine, Fla. starting July 18, and a second flight starting July 16 from Columbus to Fort Lauderdale.
Skybus's ultra-low-fare business model relies on using not just second-tier but third-tier airports well outside metropolitan areas. It's billing Chicopee, which currently serves private planes but has no regularly scheduled domestic service, as a cheaper alternative to Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Conn. for travelers heading to Springfield and Hartford. Skybus flies to airports an hour's drive or more outside Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, as well as the main airports in Richmond, Va.; Greensboro, N.C.; and Kansas City.
Skybus promises at least 10 $10 one-way tickets on all flights and keeps fares low by making passengers pay for everything else -- checking bags, food, blankets, pillows, and waiting at the front of the line to get a good seat.
Bill Dieffenderffer, Skybus chief executive, said in a statement: "Demand for tickets to our original eight destinations has exceeded all of our expectations. As additional aircraft are added to our fleet throughout the year, we will announce both new destinations and additional service to our existing destination markets.”
(By Peter J. Howe, Globe staff)
