5 June 2004
Texas to get first non-fat airline
The pudgy will be prohibited
DETROIT, Mich. -- The first non-fat airline is poised to take wing. Beginning
next month, ThinAir will operate 55 daily flights between 17 cities all
within the state of Texas.
In what is
viewed in the industry as an unconventional business model, the Detroit-based airline will restrict
its customers to weight limits. Each passenger will be limited to a total weight of no more than 148 pounds—including the weight of the passenger, his
clothes, his carry-on luggage, and
his checked baggage. Scales are currently being installed at all 17
airport terminals to assure compliance.
 A
statement from the company describing the philosophy of restricting its
market to such a slender portion of potential customers, read in part,
"Our management knows well the relationship between weight and the cost
of getting that weight into the air and keeping it airborne. They see it
every day at our offices at Metro Airport. After all, according to Men's
Fitness magazine, Detroit is the fattest city in the U.S."
At a news conference held yesterday at the company's headquarters,
reporters asked if the current high price of jet fuel made for an
unusually challenging time to enter the extremely competitive commercial
airline business. Anna Rexia, vice president of product development,
responded, "It is
exactly the high price of fuel that will give us an edge. Our airplanes
and the passengers who fly in them will be significantly lighter and
therefore cheaper to operate than any of our competitors."
ThinAir has already taken delivery of six of Boeing's new narrow bodied 737-S
(Slender) aircraft and may add three more by year's end if passenger
loads meet expectations.
On why a Michigan-based airline would operate solely in Texas,
Ms. Rexia noted that while Detroit is the fattest city in the U.S., "Texas is home to five of
the other top ten fattest cities in America—Houston (#2), Dallas (#3), San
Antonio (#4), Fort Worth (#6), and Arlington (#8). What better place to
separate ourselves from the competition and be able to select-out
customers who are sinking other airlines in fuel costs."
ThinAir
flight attendants, who themselves are weight restricted to no more than
98 pounds, will be
sporting snappy uniforms designed by Lara Flynn Boyle. They will be serving passengers their choices of Melba
toast, celery, or Atkins lo-carb peanuts.
ThinAir investors are contemplating moving into other travel-related
businesses such as hotels and car rentals. In fact construction has
already begun on the first Thin Inn outside Abilene. The unique
structure features stall showers the size of broom closets and hallways
that are a mere 15 inches wide. "We can
accommodate nearly three times as many thin people in the same square
footage as an ordinary hotel," said Ms. Rexia.
ThinAir is also in talks with Frederick Wapsumski, Latvia's famous auto
designer to draw up plans for a "thin" car. Called the "Calista
Flock-car," Mr. Wapsumski contends that the auto will average 128 miles
per gallon and carry six passengers—though, Mr. Wapsumski himself is
unable to fit into the vehicle.
Related Travel Fox scoops:
Related Err Travel columns:
Related website
TraveLean - Weight management for
corporate travelers
© 2004 Applied Psychology
|
|
