PEOPLExpress

PEOPLExpress (Code AITA: EP ) was one of the first American airline companies low-cost which developed with the hope to revolutionize air transport on the other side of the Atlantic.

History

The company was founded by Don Burr in 1981 which left Texas International Airlines, a regional company then directed by Frank Lorenzo. As of the beginning, was rented a space in the Northern terminal of the International airport Newark Liberty (New York, E. - U.), then vacant since several years. The seat of the company was installed in the upper floors of the terminal in order to make savings in money. Don Burr succeeds in convincing many his/her former colleagues of Texas International Airlines to join its incipient company.

The new company then needed apparatuses. It is T as were bought with Lufthansa, 17 Boeing 737-100 for 4,1 million $ each one. These apparatuses, brought into service in 1968 and 1969 belonged to the restructuring plan of the fleet of the German conveyer. The paid price for these planes included/understood the painting of the fuselages to the colors of PEOPLExpress and the conversion of the cabins of high-density. However, the contract was not signed yet, Boeing and American Airlines having made a proposal for a resumption of the old planes of the Lufthansa. Burr took then go with the airframe manufacturer of Seattle and threatened it to buy in the future only McDonnell Douglas DC-9 for her company. Finally Boeing withdrew its offer for American Airlines and PEOPLExpress was seen gaining the contract for its planes.

The company accepted its license for the domestic flights the October 24th 1980 while the first 737 was accepted the March 25th 1981 before being registered N407PE . It is the April 30th 1981 which the company was officially launched with the interior connections between Newark and towns of Buffalo (New York), Columbus (Ohio) and Norfolk (Virginia). After this date, the reception of the other apparatuses was done quickly and the company made a success of a good launching.

PEOPLExpress developed quickly, opening connections towards the Florida before the end of the year. The May 26th 1983, a transatlantic connection was even inaugurated between Newark and the Aéroport of London Gatwick with a Boeing 747-227B ( N602PE ) rented which belonged before to Braniff International and then configured in version 490 seats. The flight which was then invoiced a 149$ known broad success and was very often complete. However, a first class was founded in the Boeing 747 of the company and for 349$, a customer could then have the same service at PEOPLExpress as at his competitors for his transatlantic flights. A 747-143 and 2 747-243B were bought with Alitalia thereafter and were placed on the roads California towards Oakland and Los Angeles. These flights cost 119 and 149$ respectively. A connection charter towards Tahiti was also operated, on request of a tour operator. In this same year, by company 50 Boeing 727 of 185 seats with Delta Airlines and Alitalia were bought. Competition with the other American companies on certain roads then started to be felt and some internal dissensions with the company appeared. The company passed from 250 employees and 3 planes in 1981 to 4000 employees and 71 apparatuses end 1984.

In the beginning, the system of reservation operated by PEOPLExpress was simple and economic: it was enough for the customer to invite the customer service in order to hold his vol. directly But when the company grows, this system quickly showed its limits vis-a-vis the strong demand. Each day in 1984, nearly 6000 customers could not hold their tickets because of saturation of the network.

In 1985, PEOPLExpress repurchased Frontier Airlines, a company based with Denver (Colorado, E. - U.). The PEOPLExpress group then became the fifth larger company American and added new destinations, such as for example, the connection with Brussels. Thereafter, PEOPLExpress also made the acquisition of Britt Airways and Provincetown-Boston Airlines, two small interior companies. The Northern terminal of Newark was then largely saturated. PEOPLExpress obtained the construction of a new terminal within the airport. With its 41 access doors and its own customs authorities, the new terminal of PEOPLExpress had as an ambition to be the largest terminal dedicated to only one company with the the United States. It was expected that it opens in the year 1986, but finally he will not open before 1988…

All this expenditure will weaken the budget of the company. Moreover, the network of Frontier Airlines recovered by PEOPLExpress then was very competed with by Continental Airlines and United Airlines. The former customers of Frontier disapproved the system low-cost and a social conflict burst among the employees. In 1986, the company sought a partial or complete transferee then. The sale of Frontier to United Airlines failed, and PEOPLExpress was then obliged to be sold itself in Texas Air Corp. PEOPLExpress ceased existing as airline company the 1987 when its roads were taken again by Continental Airlines, another subsidiary company of Texas Air Corp.

Philosophy low-cost

Even if Burr took as a starting point Southwest Airlines much to develop its model, him and its company belongs to the pioneers of the use of the low-cost in aviation. For him, it was simply a question of transporting a passenger of a point to another on an aircraft. Any service or extra additional is then invoiced with the customer wishing it (for example drinks during the flight or the recording of the luggage). Thus 3$ each luggage and 50¢ were invoicees the drink. The suppression of the hot meals, also made it possible the company to gain place on its aircraft, by removing the majority of reserved spaces to the kitchens in order to replace them by seats for the passengers. Thus the 737-100 of PEOPLExpress could be prided to have a capacity close to 25% in more than when that they belonged to the Lufthansa (with 96 seats). The tickets were even sold on the aircraft, in order to earn time and money with respect to the expenditure as a personnel.

External bonds

Historical detailed of PEOPLExpress.

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