A flight from a Los Angeles-area airport -- passengers can pick the most convenient one -- to a San Diego-area airport can range from about $110 one way to $338. A passenger who initially booked a flight for $338 would pay $110 if two other people eventually got on the same flight.
The online booking system is similar to EBay, McAfee said, with Miwok acting as an intermediary between the passenger and an airplane operator. Miwok itself doesn't operate the airplanes but contracts the work to aircraft charter companies that fly Cirrus planes. Travelers can begin booking flights in mid-October.
The company has lined up an operator and is in talks with five others. For the start-up, Miwok will have four planes, each capable of handling five flights a day. In all, the planes will be able to pick up and drop off passengers at 40 airports in the region, Barnea said.
If the Southern California market is successful, Barnea envisions starting up the service in the Bay Area and possibly in the Chicago and New York areas.
Eventually, the service areas could be connected by longer-range jet planes, ultimately creating a national carrier.
"We want to focus on the very short-haul market. It's the most lucrative and the most under-served," Barnea said. "We'll have limited capacity initially, but if the demand is way beyond, it's easy for us to get additional airplanes."
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peter.pae@latimes.com
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A trip from Santa Monica
Miwok Airways hopes to provide a more efficient alternative to traveling within Southern California. Here are some comparisons of various modes of travel for a Santa Monica resident planning a trip to San Diego on Monday. Prices represent last-minute fares, and distances don't include travel to a train station or airport.
*--* Mode Cost Trip length Amtrak $29 one way 2 hours and 50 minutes (L.A. Union Station) American, United $515-$517 one way 55 minutes and Alaska airlines (LAX) nonstop Miwok Airways About $110 to $338 one way, 40 minutes Santa Monica depending on number of passengers Airport) Personal car Mileage cost at 50.5 cents a mile: 2 hours 13 minutes to 3 hours (Santa Monica) $67.67 (134 miles) 10 minutes, depending on traffic *--*
Sources: Miwok, airlines, Amtrak, Internal Revenue Service and Google Maps
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How to book on Miwok
Booking a flight on Miwok Airways will be similar to reserving a taxicab but with a twist -- the ability to tap into an Internet social network.
When the reservation system goes online in mid-October, registered passengers will first see a screen with a list of flights that others have already booked and that have seats available.
Getting on someone else's booked flight can be much cheaper, $110 one way for each passenger when there are three compared with more than $300 with just one passenger flying from Los Angeles to San Diego. You can also check who's on the flight.
If the booked time doesn't work, you can reserve your own flight time with the hope that others will join you. You can either wait or message others in the Facebook social website, which is linked to the Miwok site, asking them to take the flight with you.
If you prefer privacy, you can block the flight from being booked by anyone else, but you'd have to pay the higher, single-passenger fare.
-- Peter Pae
