By Kendra Marr
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Maxjet Airways, the Dulles-based business-class airline, said it would suspend all Washington flights starting Oct. 29.

The announcement coincided with the carrier's plans to add a fifth plane to its fleet and increase the number of round-trip flights between Stansted Airport near London and Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York.

Maxjet officials did not indicate when it might resume flights to Washington Dulles International Airport.

"It was a difficult decision for Maxjet to make," said Michael Miller, a Maxjet spokesman. "The decision was more based on demand from other markets than a commentary about Washington."

Two months ago, as the carrier was starting flights to and from Los Angeles, Joshua B. Marks, Maxjet's executive vice president of planning and development, said the airline had a "good passenger load year-round."

"We've built up a core clientele as we've moved beyond our first route from New York to London," he said.

But the number of passengers on Maxjet's Washington flights has been falling. In the first six months of 2007, Maxjet airplanes serving Dulles were only 34 percent full, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Last year, Dulles flights were about 48 percent occupied.

Average occupancy for established carriers is about 70 percent.

Maxjet was launched in late 2005, offering gourmet meals, deep-reclining leather seats and on-demand entertainment for about $2,000 a ticket, compared with $4,000 or more for a traditional carrier's business-class seat to London.

Although Maxjet will no longer serve Dulles, it will continue to be based in Northern Virginia. In May, the carrier moved to a larger headquarters to accommodate an expanded staff.

Customers who booked canceled Washington flights will have the option for reimbursement or a trip to John F. Kennedy International Airport to fly Maxjet's New York-to-London route.

Raymond E. Neidl, an airline analyst at Calyon Securities, said it is common for carriers to concentrate on the routes making the most money.

In the first six months of this year, occupancy on Las Vegas and New York flights was higher than on Washington flights but was still not more than 70 percent.

Las Vegas flights were about 66 percent filled and New York flights were about 48 percent occupied, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

At Dulles, Maxjet faced tough competition from United Airlines and British Airways, larger airlines with connecting hubs, analysts said. It also competed with frequent-flier clubs and corporate discounts on more established carriers.

"Flights out of Washington and London have a great deal of diplomatic and legal traffic," said Michael Boyd, an airline analyst. "Those sectors have long-term relationships with airlines."

Boyd said he would caution against reading into Maxjet's move.

"Pulling out of a market like Dulles is not an indication of anything going wrong," Boyd said. "It's just adjusting their schedule."

Maxjet is too small a carrier to have much effect on Dulles's business when it leaves, said Darryl Jenkins, an aviation consultant

"It's not even a rounding-off error," he said.