Monday, March 03, 2008
Pan Am R.I.P.... again.
No, this post does not take place in 1999. Over the weekend, Pan Am airlines shut down, again. The airline that shut its two routes down at the end of February was a far cry from the high flying airline that became ubiquitous in airports around the world. Instead of having an international bent, Pan Am "Clipper Connection" was a service of Boston-Maine Airways and flew to Trenton, NJ, Portsmouth, NH and Bedford, MA. At one point, it also flew to other exotic locations like Gary, IN and Sanford, FL.
Even though Pan Am Mark II was nothing like its legendary predecessor, it is sad to see the name disappear. It's also sad to see another smaller airport lose its last regularly scheduled air service, as Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) now sits without an airline, after Delta Connection (Big Sky) stopped serving the airport last year.
With the price of fuel getting higher and higher, we will likely see the end of other airlines this year. At least one of the big American airlines - United, Delta, Continental and Northwest - will dissolve into another, and other low cost carriers like JetBlue, Frontier and Skybus are facing some serious challenges on the financial front. As air travel starts to get more expensive, and the airlines networks start to contract somewhat, is this the end of the golden age of cheap travel? I hope not. I still have lots of places I want to jet off to. 2008 could be a watershed year for the industry, though, and the next few months will be ones to watch both on and off the tarmac.
Even though Pan Am Mark II was nothing like its legendary predecessor, it is sad to see the name disappear. It's also sad to see another smaller airport lose its last regularly scheduled air service, as Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) now sits without an airline, after Delta Connection (Big Sky) stopped serving the airport last year.
With the price of fuel getting higher and higher, we will likely see the end of other airlines this year. At least one of the big American airlines - United, Delta, Continental and Northwest - will dissolve into another, and other low cost carriers like JetBlue, Frontier and Skybus are facing some serious challenges on the financial front. As air travel starts to get more expensive, and the airlines networks start to contract somewhat, is this the end of the golden age of cheap travel? I hope not. I still have lots of places I want to jet off to. 2008 could be a watershed year for the industry, though, and the next few months will be ones to watch both on and off the tarmac.
