Airlines: Competing with the Freeways

Clotted traffic on the ground often forces today's air travelers to spend as much time struggling to the airport in their cars as flying to their destination. For passengers from California's suburban Orange County, the frustration of an hour's drive to Los Angeles International Airport to catch an hour's flight to San Francisco seemed particularly ridiculous. County officials pleaded in vain with major airlines for direct service from Santa Ana to upstate points. Then, where the established carriers feared—or at least failed— to go, five young men with no aviation experience dared to start an...