NEWARK — PEOPLExpress, the iconic low-cost airline that Homer Simpson said brought air travel to hicks, is back in business 27 years after it folded, and once again flying out of Newark.

PEOPLExpress made a splash in the commercial airline industry when it was first launched in 1981, with low-fare, no-frills flights featuring cash payment on board, before over-expansion led to its demise in 1987.

But the name PEOPLExpress has been revived, and a completely new airline with the same name and, its leaders say, the same original intention of providing affordable, friendly and efficient service today began daily flights between Newark Liberty International Airport and the carrier's new base at Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport.

Chris Slimmer, an airline buff who was in Norfolk, Va. this week for his job as a shipping technology consultant, decided to take the inaugural flight from nearby Newport-News to Newark. He and about 125 fellow passengers arrived in Newark, on time, at 9 this morning.

"It was a pleasant flight, they did an inaugural free drinks " said Slimmer, who got off the plane and spent about an hour at Gate 56 inside Terminal B, before turning around and getting back on board for the 50-minute flight back to Virginia. "I'm an airline hobbyist, and whenever I can I try to fly on new airlines. For $112, it was easy for me to say I was on their inaugural flight."

A few minutes later, Slimmer was back on board one of PEOPLE's two Boeing 737-400 aircraft — this one freshly painted in the carrier's green, gray and white color scheme — as the plane was showered with a water canon salute by firetrucks from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Then, it taxied out to the runway and took off.

Slimmer and others on the flight paid $56 one way, though holidays and Sunday nights cost more. The new PEOPLExpress flies out of Terminal B, with two daily departures, at 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., taking about an hour and half each way. Flight and other Information is available at www.flypex.com

The original PEOPLExpress was the first U.S. carrier modeled after Britain's low-cost Laker Airways (Remember the Cockney-accented Freddie Laker, whose name was on every plane?). The original PEOPLExpress was based out of Newark's old North Terminal, and started out with domestic service only, before adding flights from Newark to London starting at $149 each way. Sodas were 50 cents and a snack pack of cheese, crackers and salami was $2.

But problems began with an ambitious expansion of the airline, including when PEOPLE's no-frills philosophy failed to win over fliers accustomed to a higher-end experience on other carriers PEOPLE acquired. Some of its assets were sold off, and its remaining operations were absorbed by Continental Airlines in 1987, when PEOPLExpress ceased to exist as a brand. Ironically, perhaps, the Continental name also disappeared years later under its merger with United Airlines.

Despite its initial popularity, the original PEOPLExpress was the subject of comic barbs based on its proletarian image. In an episode of the Simpsons, when Homer is recounting highlights of the 1980's, he notes, "People's Express introduced a generation of hicks" to air travel."

Other than its low-cost philosophy, its name and its logo — a stylized depiction of two parallel faces in profile — with new PEOPLExpress has little connection to the original. The new CEO, Jeff Erickson, said the trademark on the name had been allowed to expire, and its new founders simply claimed it.

"It's a little bit of a homecoming for us, since PEOPLExpress was originally based in Newark," Erickson said during brief remarks this morning at the gate in Newark.

Newport News will be PEOPLE's only direct destination from Newark, and will act as a hub for connecting flights to the airline's other destinations, which now include Boston, Pittsburgh, and will be followed by West Palm Beach, Atlanta, St. Petersburg, Fla., and New Orleans in the coming weeks.

Apart from its 138 coach seats on each flight, PEOPLEexpress offers 12 wider "Living Large" seats with more leg room, for an additional $59 each way — though in-flight service for those customers will be the same. PEOPLExpress was one of the first airlines to charge fliers even for a single first checked bag, at $2. Now, it's $20, rising to $25 for a second, and $75 for a third.

PEOPLExpress is actually still awaiting certification as a commercial carrier from the Federal Aviation Administration, and for the time being does business under a management agreement with Vision Airways, an established charter and scheduled-flight airline. Under the agreement, known as a "wet lease," Vision maintains the aircraft, and employs the pilots and crew. Erickson said certification is expected in about 18 months, though there would be no noticeable change for fliers.

Richard Taub of Franklin Township in Somerset County and his niece, Jillian Cullen of Roselle Park, plan to fly down to Virginia on the same flight as Slimmer. Cullen just graduated with an archeology degree from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, and was eager to explore historic Williamsburg.

Taub had more nostalgic reasons for being on board. As a young man three decades ago, he had worked as ground crew member for the original PEOPLExpress in Newark while pursuing his goal of becoming a commercial airline pilot. Now, after having accumulated the necessary flying time by working as a flight instructor, Taub is a U.S. Airways pilot, regularly flying the Philadelphia-to-Boston route, plus shuttle flights.

"I'm excited about it," he said of the rebirth of PEOPLExpress. "I hope it ends up taking off."

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