Airbubba
13th Jun 2003, 23:07
I think we've seen a few of these vaporair operations puffed here on PPRuNe over the years...
Maybe his inspiration was the Guvnor...
___________________________________
AG says teen ran bogus airline
By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff, 6/13/2003
It seemed like a pretty good deal: Luxury flights from Los Angeles airport to Honolulu and back for as little as $89 each way, starting July 3.
Called Mainline Airways LLC, the online venture created by Luke R. Thompson, a Babson College student in his freshman year at the Wellesley institution known for its entrepreneurial studies, promised ''personal TVs in all classes of service as well as a very affordable first-class cabin.'' Another online pitch to consumers described Mainline as a discount provider with all of the amenities of more traditional competitors.
The company website, www.mainlineairways.com, also offered a cancellation and reservation change policy, links to other companies like Southwest Airlines, and two roundtrip flights daily from Los Angeles to Honolulu.
But six months after the 18-year-old from Yardley, Pa., launched his website, he and his business were slapped with a Suffolk Superior Court order Wednesday barring advertising, selling tickets, or making reservations for air travel. The restraining order obtained by Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly also prevents Thompson from withdrawing money from any of his bank accounts.
''In effect, [Thompson] has been grounded,'' Reilly told reporters at his office yesterday. ''He has been prevented from doing business as Mainline Airways. Our investigation indicates that this was not a legitimate business, a legitimate airline. ... It had no planes and no pilots.''
An investigator for Reilly, Dante Annicelli, bought a $428.92 round trip ticket from Los Angeles to Honolulu, but allegedly found that Mainline was unregistered at Los Angeles International Airport. Violation of Massachusett's consumer laws carries a maximum penalty of $5,000 per charge.
Thompson did not return telephone calls to his home in Pennsylvania yesterday.
A spokesman for Babson College said the college, which offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in business, could not comment on Thompson's actions. Babson is also investigating the student's business venture.
Consumer advocates said yesterday the case highlights the potential of Internet fraud. They maintained that as Internet use has grown, so have fake auction sites and bogus online service centers whose discount offers to shoppers are used to steal credit card numbers and, in some cases, personal identities.
''My guess is that this is the tip of the iceberg,'' said Deirdre Cummings, consumer program director at the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group. ''It is very easy to start a website. For a $50 fee and an annual renewal rate of $25, you can start.'' She noted that a hosting company will provide a website for between $10 and $50 a month.
Court records indicate that Thompson registered his site with a company called Hosting-Network Inc. of Fort Myers, Fla. Authorities said they tracked down the hosting site by contacting a website registration listing service known as Network Solutions.
Meanwhile, Hawaii state officials are probing Thompson's business activities as well. Last week, they obtained a temporary restraining order against the teenager barring him from advertising his firm, selling tickets, or using any money he may have acquired through Mainline Airways' transactions.
Stephen Levins of Hawaii's Office of Consumer Protection in Honolulu said the investigation began after Thompson spammed the wireless carrier, T-Mobile.
''He sent e-mail messages to people touting $89 and $99 fares from Los Angeles to Honolulu and back,'' said Levins. ''Our investigation revealed that [the company] did not appear to be much more than a website. The website was detailed and comprehensive and told about the aircraft, leather seats, and individual viewing monitors.''
Levins said investigators grew suspicious when they discovered that Thompson had not filed any of the required documents with the state of Hawaii or with the Federal Aviation Administration. ''There was no prospectus,'' Levins noted. ''Even if you are running a charter operation you have to file with the FAA and you must comply with requirements here concerning our charter law. ''
On June 10, four days after Hawaiian officials slapped him with a restraining order, Thompson faxed a two-page letter to the consumer protection office there, denying any wrongdoing. The letter said Mainline Airways ''has decided to go beyond simply complying with the order you obtained to put a temporary hold on our sales. ... We have decided to voluntarily and permanently cancel all plans of chartering aircraft between [Los Angeles and Honolulu airports]. ... At this point, we feel that we will actually achieve better public relations by canceling our plans and insuring that all credit card authorization transactions are reversed rather than by continuing operations as planned.''
The letter also said the airline was canceling its operations because of ''negative public sentiment that has been received because of this action preventing us from engaging in any transactions with customers ... as well as lackluster sales.'' The fax said the firm had received ''just 120 prereservations'' from customers.
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/164/business/AG_says_teen_ran_bogus_airline+.shtml
__________________________________
College student accused of creating fake airline
Friday, June 13, 2003 Posted: 1:33 AM EDT (0533 GMT)
BOSTON, Massachusetts (AP) -- A college freshman created a fake airline that offered bargain-priced tickets on flights between Honolulu and Los Angeles, authorities said Thursday.
Luke Thompson, of Yardley, Pennsylvania, incorporated Mainline Airways in Pennsylvania, established a business address in the Boston suburb of Wellesley and set up an elaborate Web site, according to Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly.
Thompson, who attends Babson College in Wellesley, offered fares as low as $89 one way between Los Angeles and Honolulu, Reilly said. Flights were to begin July 3, but Mainline had neither planes, crews nor the required permits and approvals as recently as a few weeks ago.
Thompson told The Associated Press that the allegations were "absolutely untrue," but he did acknowledge that he was the only person behind the company, other than a consultant and an investor he did not identify.
"We had every intention of doing this operation," he said. "We had 15 airlines we had contacted or were in serious negotiations with, regarding the actual providing of the (air) service."
He offered no details on which airlines were involved.
Babson College student Luke Thompson
Thompson's Web site, which has been taken down, described the company's "fleet," outlined various policies and answered travelers' questions.
Reilly won a temporary restraining order Wednesday that keeps Thompson from using any Mainline bank accounts for anything other than providing refunds. A judge in Hawaii last week ordered ticket sales halted.
Thompson faxed letters earlier this week to Hawaii officials, promising refunds by the end of the week to 120 "pre-reservations" and maintaining that Mainline Airways was "only to be the tour operator."
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/13/phony.airline.ap/index.html
Maybe his inspiration was the Guvnor...
___________________________________
AG says teen ran bogus airline
By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff, 6/13/2003
It seemed like a pretty good deal: Luxury flights from Los Angeles airport to Honolulu and back for as little as $89 each way, starting July 3.
Called Mainline Airways LLC, the online venture created by Luke R. Thompson, a Babson College student in his freshman year at the Wellesley institution known for its entrepreneurial studies, promised ''personal TVs in all classes of service as well as a very affordable first-class cabin.'' Another online pitch to consumers described Mainline as a discount provider with all of the amenities of more traditional competitors.
The company website, www.mainlineairways.com, also offered a cancellation and reservation change policy, links to other companies like Southwest Airlines, and two roundtrip flights daily from Los Angeles to Honolulu.
But six months after the 18-year-old from Yardley, Pa., launched his website, he and his business were slapped with a Suffolk Superior Court order Wednesday barring advertising, selling tickets, or making reservations for air travel. The restraining order obtained by Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly also prevents Thompson from withdrawing money from any of his bank accounts.
''In effect, [Thompson] has been grounded,'' Reilly told reporters at his office yesterday. ''He has been prevented from doing business as Mainline Airways. Our investigation indicates that this was not a legitimate business, a legitimate airline. ... It had no planes and no pilots.''
An investigator for Reilly, Dante Annicelli, bought a $428.92 round trip ticket from Los Angeles to Honolulu, but allegedly found that Mainline was unregistered at Los Angeles International Airport. Violation of Massachusett's consumer laws carries a maximum penalty of $5,000 per charge.
Thompson did not return telephone calls to his home in Pennsylvania yesterday.
A spokesman for Babson College said the college, which offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in business, could not comment on Thompson's actions. Babson is also investigating the student's business venture.
Consumer advocates said yesterday the case highlights the potential of Internet fraud. They maintained that as Internet use has grown, so have fake auction sites and bogus online service centers whose discount offers to shoppers are used to steal credit card numbers and, in some cases, personal identities.
''My guess is that this is the tip of the iceberg,'' said Deirdre Cummings, consumer program director at the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group. ''It is very easy to start a website. For a $50 fee and an annual renewal rate of $25, you can start.'' She noted that a hosting company will provide a website for between $10 and $50 a month.
Court records indicate that Thompson registered his site with a company called Hosting-Network Inc. of Fort Myers, Fla. Authorities said they tracked down the hosting site by contacting a website registration listing service known as Network Solutions.
Meanwhile, Hawaii state officials are probing Thompson's business activities as well. Last week, they obtained a temporary restraining order against the teenager barring him from advertising his firm, selling tickets, or using any money he may have acquired through Mainline Airways' transactions.
Stephen Levins of Hawaii's Office of Consumer Protection in Honolulu said the investigation began after Thompson spammed the wireless carrier, T-Mobile.
''He sent e-mail messages to people touting $89 and $99 fares from Los Angeles to Honolulu and back,'' said Levins. ''Our investigation revealed that [the company] did not appear to be much more than a website. The website was detailed and comprehensive and told about the aircraft, leather seats, and individual viewing monitors.''
Levins said investigators grew suspicious when they discovered that Thompson had not filed any of the required documents with the state of Hawaii or with the Federal Aviation Administration. ''There was no prospectus,'' Levins noted. ''Even if you are running a charter operation you have to file with the FAA and you must comply with requirements here concerning our charter law. ''
On June 10, four days after Hawaiian officials slapped him with a restraining order, Thompson faxed a two-page letter to the consumer protection office there, denying any wrongdoing. The letter said Mainline Airways ''has decided to go beyond simply complying with the order you obtained to put a temporary hold on our sales. ... We have decided to voluntarily and permanently cancel all plans of chartering aircraft between [Los Angeles and Honolulu airports]. ... At this point, we feel that we will actually achieve better public relations by canceling our plans and insuring that all credit card authorization transactions are reversed rather than by continuing operations as planned.''
The letter also said the airline was canceling its operations because of ''negative public sentiment that has been received because of this action preventing us from engaging in any transactions with customers ... as well as lackluster sales.'' The fax said the firm had received ''just 120 prereservations'' from customers.
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/164/business/AG_says_teen_ran_bogus_airline+.shtml
__________________________________
College student accused of creating fake airline
Friday, June 13, 2003 Posted: 1:33 AM EDT (0533 GMT)
BOSTON, Massachusetts (AP) -- A college freshman created a fake airline that offered bargain-priced tickets on flights between Honolulu and Los Angeles, authorities said Thursday.
Luke Thompson, of Yardley, Pennsylvania, incorporated Mainline Airways in Pennsylvania, established a business address in the Boston suburb of Wellesley and set up an elaborate Web site, according to Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly.
Thompson, who attends Babson College in Wellesley, offered fares as low as $89 one way between Los Angeles and Honolulu, Reilly said. Flights were to begin July 3, but Mainline had neither planes, crews nor the required permits and approvals as recently as a few weeks ago.
Thompson told The Associated Press that the allegations were "absolutely untrue," but he did acknowledge that he was the only person behind the company, other than a consultant and an investor he did not identify.
"We had every intention of doing this operation," he said. "We had 15 airlines we had contacted or were in serious negotiations with, regarding the actual providing of the (air) service."
He offered no details on which airlines were involved.
Babson College student Luke Thompson
Thompson's Web site, which has been taken down, described the company's "fleet," outlined various policies and answered travelers' questions.
Reilly won a temporary restraining order Wednesday that keeps Thompson from using any Mainline bank accounts for anything other than providing refunds. A judge in Hawaii last week ordered ticket sales halted.
Thompson faxed letters earlier this week to Hawaii officials, promising refunds by the end of the week to 120 "pre-reservations" and maintaining that Mainline Airways was "only to be the tour operator."
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/06/13/phony.airline.ap/index.html