Sun Country takes a flier on unlimited pass offer

Still struggling to emerge from nearly two years in bankruptcy, Sun Country Airlines is hoping to salvage its slowest season with a new pass that lets passengers fly as far and as often as they like for $499.

The promotion includes all 16 of the airline's destinations for flights between Sept. 7 and Oct. 13, as long as seats are available

Also on Tuesday, discount airline JetBlue announced details of its own unlimited flight plan, which spans four weeks and two price options: $499 for travel five days a week or $699 for all days. The discount airline, which operates primarily out of New York, also offered the promotion last year, and flights quickly sold out.

At Sun Country, which uses Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport's Humphrey Terminal as its only hub, the unlimited flights launch the day after Labor Day, with planes scheduled to fly to Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. Other cities that will become available include Anchorage, New York City and Cancun, the sole international destination. The airline's summer service to London, launched this year, has already ended.

"We've had the phones ringing off the hook," said Wendy Williams Blackshaw, vice president of marketing.

She declined to disclose how many customers bought the passes Tuesday, or even how many passes the airline will sell.

It was the fall lull that sent the airline into bankruptcy two years ago. The airline had expected a loan from then-chairman Tom Petters to pull it through the slow season, but Petters' assets were frozen as part of an investigation into a massive Ponzi scheme he'd orchestrated at another business. Petters is now serving 50 years in prison for that $3.6 billion fraud.

Sun Country's fortunes have appeared to be improving -- adding routes and launching a travel planning division -- though the airline has continued to push back the date that it will emerge from bankruptcy. In recent court filings it said that it lost $1.2 million on $50 million in revenue in the second quarter. That followed a $9.4 million profit on $69 million in revenue in the first quarter.

Terry Trippler, who owns the Minneapolis-based travel website RulesToKnow.com, said the promotion was a smart move for the airline and for travelers, especially those willing to work around Sun Country's limited schedule. For example, Sun Country flies to Dallas only twice during the work week.

"The first time they get you with their low fares, and from that point forward, they'll get you with their service," Trippler said.

Matt Weber, a project manager at Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, learned about the Sun Country unlimited flight passes Tuesday, a day after he bought roundtrip tickets to New York in September. But he's considering buying the $499 all-you-can-fly passes for him and his wife.

"It's still quite a bit," Weber said. "You'd definitely have to use it."

Customers must buy passes by Aug. 24. Flights, which must be booked three days in advance, are guaranteed as long as seats are available.

Wendy Weigel, vice president of travel at AAA Minneapolis, said customers should pay attention to the fine print, including a $100 "no show" fee per flight.

"It's not just $499," Weigel said. "There are taxes and other things that are charged in addition."

Molly Young • 612-673-4376