Midwest Airlines pretty much disappeared in 2010 after merging with Frontier, but a couple of Milwaukee businessmen are hoping to see it take flight once again.
Former Midwest and Frontier executive Greg Aretakis and his business partner Curt Drumm are currently looking for investors to help them revive the airline, explaining that “plans are under way” to bring back its Midwest Express division.
“Remember the great service, comfortable seating and chocolate cookies? So much of that went away, and hasn't come back,” reads a statement on FlyMidwesternExpress.com, which was first registered back on Feb. 15, reports the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
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The airline, which formerly operated out of Milwaukee’s Mitchell International Airport, reportedly provided non-stop service to dozens of destinations throughout the country. The Journal-Sentinal, too, notes that the airline was “almost universally loved” in its home state, thanks in large part to its roomier seats and those aforementioned cookies.
By 2010, however, the airline could no longer sustain its business model, and merged with fellow Republic-owned airline Frontier to become Midwest-Frontier. And in 2011, the “Midwest” part was scrapped entirely, and Frontier was soon sold off to a private firm.
But now, Aretakis and Drumm say there’s plenty of interest in reviving Midwest, as evidenced by the buzz they’re generating with their site.
"I can’t count how fast the emails are coming in off this website," Drumm told the Journal-Sentinel. "It’s crazy."
A venture like this doesn’t come cheap, though: According to industry experts, the duo will need at least $100 million in funding before they can get a plane in the air.
Aretakis and Drumm, too, are remaining tight-lipped about their progress, but claim they’re working with “a number of people” to get the idea off the ground.
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But one person who isn’t interested? Midwest’s former CEO, Tim Hoeksema.
"It is my understanding that two individuals are attempting to start an airline using the Midwest Express name,” Hoeksema told the Journal-Sentinel. “I am not involved in this effort."
Aretakis and Drumm were not immediately available for comment.
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