- Smokers Express
Smokers Express (or Smokers Express Airlines) was a
Cocoa Beach, FL -based company that would have provided smoking flights to destinations within theUnited States . Founded in 1993 by William Walts and George "Mickey" Richardson, the company never received enough funding to begin operations.Concept
Upset not only by the non-smoking policy of most major airlines but by the quality of other amenities such as food and in-flight entertainment, Walts conceived the idea of a "smokers airline." His company would not only allow smoking on flights, but encourage it by handing out free cigarettes and "full-size" ashtrays during flight. The airline also advertised free headsets (for listening to in-flight entertainment) and "real food for real people," which consisted of
hamburgers ,pizza , andsteaks .BecauseFederal Aviation Administration restrictions prohibit smoking on flights within the United States, Smokers Express was a membership based airline. Customers were required to join and pay a $25 yearly fee, and only persons age 21 or older were allowed to join. A side effect to this policy was a promise that the flights would be free of "screaming babies."Aircraft
The company began by purchasing 3
McDonnell Douglas DC-9 aircraft, with the intention of leasing 27 additional DC-9s.The aircraft would have been renovated with a high-volume air recirculation system, as well as improved flame-retardant carpet.Routes
The airline originally intended to fly to 11 different destinations, adding more as additional funding enabled.The planned initial destinations were:
*Las Vegas, NV
*Dallas /Ft. Worth ,TX
*Houston, TX
*New Orleans, LA
*Oklahoma City, OK
*Tulsa, OK
*Newark, NJ
*Atlantic City, NJ
*Orlando, FL
*Titusville, FL
*Miami, FL The first flight would have taken place on
August 16 ,1993 .Company Structure
Smokers Express was designed to be an employee-owned company. It relied mostly on membership dues and ticket sales, however, no tickets were ever sold. The company did not advertise directly, but relied on word-of-mouth as well as various articles and TV news references. Despite what the company perceived as a positive response to their concept, they failed to raise enough funds to begin operations.
References
* [http://tobaccodocuments.org/landman/2024204411-4447.html?pattern=&ocr_position=&rotation=0&zoom=750&start_page=1&end_page=37] Archived documents pertaining to Smokers Express.
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