We learned earlier this week that Allegiant Air plans to purchase six Boeing 757-200 jets for the sole purpose of flying to Hawaii. Late yesterday Allegiant made the news public in a press release. The other airlines providing Hawaiian service must be hyperventilating…

This move is a huge step forward for Allegiant, the small, low-cost airline that specializes in providing service between small cities and major vacation destinations (Allegiant provides our service to Los Angeles, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Orlando and Tampa/St. Petersburg). Why a huge step? Because it’s the first time the airline has broken with it’s business model of using MD-80 jets. MD-80s are long out of production and can be purchased for a song and dance. Buying them is is one of the ways Allegiant has kept it’s operational expenses and fares so low. The 757 is a larger plane, a more expensive one to buy, and a more expensive one to maintain.

So why buy them? Very simply put, because the MD-80 doesn’t have the range to get to Hawaii.

Okay, Okay, I know what you want to know, but I don’t know. I Don’t know if Allegiant will provide service between Springfield and Hawaii. I don’t know, but I’m inclined to doubt it. 3400 nautical miles lie between here and there. That would/could be pushing the maximum range of a 757–especially one that’s packed to the gills with passengers, baggage, and the required fuel. There are a lot of variables and questions that play into such airline decisions and we don’t know how Allegiant will deal with them. Regardless, it will be very interesting to see how this new Allegiant chapter plays out!

A Wall Street Journal column provides a good overview of the new federal laws concerning airline customer service. The only thing we’ll add is that the author gives a free pass to the government for the role it plays in delayed and canceled flights.

The current air traffic control system (run by the Federal Aviation Administration) is woefully inadequate and is one of the main causes of delays and cancellations. The FAA has been attempting to fix it for years and years with a new system called NextGen. Read an overview of NextGen here. 

Read about recent NextGen efforts here.

We came across an unusually lucid piece of business reporting the other day. The Secrets Behind Crazy Air-travel Prices cuts through the muck and gives a very good overview of how airlines price tickets. Read it once, then read it again. You won’t like it, but it will start to make sense.

Here are some important takeaways—if you don’t remember anything else, remember these points…

• Operating an airline is very expensive
• Its source of revenue, the airline seat, is highly perishable. The moment the plane takes off, that revenue opportunity is lost forever. It is often compared to a rotting banana
• Your seat might look the same as the guy’s in 15F, but he actually bought a different product. Most likely, so did everyone on the plane
• The landscape is littered with failures

United Airlines says it plans to fly between Washington, DC and Accra, the capital of Ghana. The service begins June 20 with once-a-day service.

The service opens with special fares for travel between June 20 and August 29, 2010:

• From Washington Dulles – $706
• From, San Francisco/Los Angeles – $879
• From Denver – $865
• From Chicago – $738

For more information visit the airline’s website.