AirTran expands service to Columbus offering another way south

by Jamie Rhein on

Finally, a less expensive airline has decided that Columbus has a gaping hole to fill–two in fact. After first Skybus and then Jet Blue pulled out of Columbus, and other carriers cut down their service, the options for heading out of Columbus have become more expensive and less frequent.

AirTran Airways’ non-stop flights to Ft. Meyers, Orlando and Atlanta that began this week are an answer to people who want to get out of central Ohio for warmer climates, or to visit their relatives who have moved south. I know a few people who were disappointed with Skybus’s demise because their options for visiting loved ones on a regular basis had ended. There are several other flights to other destinations, but those require a plane change in Atlanta.

Unlike Skybus, that fair weather airline that overextended itself, AirTran’s reputation is one of a cautious, steady airline that is not likely to leave Columbus in the lurch.

AirTran is not one to offer less expensive seats and then charge people for every little item either. The first checked bag is free. The second costs $25. Flights also have complimentary non-alcoholic beverages and snacks. Hooray!

Another detail I noticed is that the airlines seems to understand that Columbus has something to offer people looking for an affordable getaway. The AirTran Airways’ Website page for Columbus has a photo of one of Columbus’s gems–the Columbus Museum of Art, for example and there is also a link to Columbus’s GoGuide that lists where to sight see, shop and eat. I second the recommendations.

JetBlue includes a little extra treat in their Halloween goodie bags

by Scott Carmichael on

Halloween may be over, but please don’t let that stop us from posting one more piece of airline related Halloween news.

Kids at a Halloween party sponsored by JetBlue received an unexpected surprise in their baskets when parents discovered bags of candy tied shut with an ad containing links to an adult toy party Internet site.

The parents were naturally livid, and JetBlue has fired the employee responsible for the ad, making this the second story about fired airline employees this weekend!

I’m a bit at a loss as to how this could happen, unless the employee in question thought this was an adults only shindig. Of course, even if the bags were originally intended for the adults, I’m not sure it’s the kind of product you want to be advertising at a Halloween party.

JetBlue airfare sale from the new T5 terminal at JFK

by Jerry Guo on

To celebrate the opening of their new terminal at JFK, the marketing gurus at JetBlue are launching an across-the-board sale on airfare out of New York. One-way flights to Orlando start at $79 and West Palm Beach at $89.

And Aruba is only $169. Pretty low I would say, but it can’t beat Grant’s find earlier this week of $150 tickets to Belize. Since I go to Pittsburgh quite a bit, I plugged in some dates and the fares were actually dramatically lower than they usually are (by 40%).

Good luck in your hunt. And since I’m all about shameless plugs, here’s my review of the new terminal.

My take on JFK’s new JetBlue T5 terminal

by Jerry Guo on

I just flew JetBlue yesterday from their new “T5” terminal in New York’s JFK airport to Pittsburgh. If you missed my live tweeting (boy that’s a weird verb on paper), check it out here.

If you’re rushed on time, basically my conclusion was that this terminal is a great improvement–it’s the “space age”, consumer-friendly type of decor and approach that JetBlue has become known for. However, there are a few hiccups here and there, for instance, in having only 5 of the 20 security lines open (and this was on a Friday afternoon, one of the busiest times of the week). The lines in general were long for everything–security, the food court, all except the checkin counters because JetBlue was clever enough to put in a bajillion automated checkin machines.

One of the biggest features that the company is trying to play up, and that I agree with, is the utter selection and hipness of the food. No grimy MacDonald’s here; the burger joint I went to even had a wine selection, which was a first for me. However, the actual burger was quite dry and obviously grilled hours earlier. Plus it was something like $8 for a 7 oz “medium”. Ouch.
But don’t worry, this terminal has plenty of stuff to distract you from the pricey food. There’s just lots of little amenities that add up to a big deal. For instance, the counter you see on the left (where you can plug in your electronics or pay for Internet usage on their machines) are all over the terminal. There’s also free wireless that’s blazing fast, even though I saw hundreds of passengers on their laptops and I’m assuming busy clicking reload on JetBlue’s “live-blogging” efforts.

Then there’s just the sheer availability of seating. You won’t have to fight for a seat by the gate anymore, as the terminal is arranged in such a way that it’s a short 2-min walk to any particular gate from the central food court area. And the brilliance of this arrangement can be seen in the almost library-like atmosphere here, with plenty of super-clean tables in all sorts of manners (and plenty of seats left … have I mentioned the spaciness!?)

Overall, the place is very airy and quite reminiscent of Norman Foster’s new Terminal 3 at Beijing International Airport. Except it won’t take you 30 minutes to walk from one side to the other (not an exaggeration at all). So kudos to the architects for creating a dual sense of intimacy and space here. The only downside is the walk to the Air Train will in comparison seem like a death march. It took a whole 4-5 minutes for me. Yikes!

So the next time you fly out of JFK, try to score a seat on JetBlue. Just come a few minutes earlier to get a grip on the extra-long security lines and if you’re hungry for food / all sorts of alcoholic options. But I did overhear one JetBlue rep say that the wait should decrease in the weeks to come.

Gadling Twitters Jetblue’s T5

by Grant Martin on

With all of this buzz that we’ve been hearing about the new Terminal 5 that JetBlue opened up in JFK this week, we just had to get down there and take a look.

So we sent one of our east coasters, Jerry Guo, out to check out the digs. He’ll be twittering his experience on Gadling’s feed where you can tune in, follow along, and salivate as Jerry checks out the sweet food court, marvels at the tall celings and hobknobs among the culture in the airport bars.

And ladies, ladies, please put your 8 x 10″ black and white glossies away. Mr. Guo will be busy absorbing his surroundings in a spongelike manner as soon as he sets foot in the building, so he won’t be able to sign any autographs for you. If you’d like your picture taken with Jerry, we’ll have a cardboard cutout of him at SXSW next year and you can snap a photo next to that.

Otherwise, you can stay tuned to the Gadling Twitter feed to keep up to snuff on Jerry’s thoughts of T5. He should be there around noon.