Sometimes an innovation that makes perfect sense economically will get blasted by consumers for emotional reasons that have more to do with perception than anything else. Take flying on airplanes for example, where consumers want low fares but also grumble about stuff like having to pay for the peanuts. Irish carrier Ryanair (NASDAQ: RYAAY) has ultra-low fares, but also little in the way of free amenities: Seat assignments, checked bags, early boarding, and food all cost extra.

SkyBus Airlines will be trying that approach here in the States, with fares starting at as little as $10. It's going to charge $5 per checked bag, and will even sell the right to have your company's logo on its planes (I nominate BloggingStocks).

SkyBus's Rules of Flying sound like they were written by the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld: Bring cash for food, bring a book, don't call us, and don't be late.

Here's what I like about this airline: You only pay for the services you want. People might like the idea of free peanuts and free baggage checking, but, Economics 101 folks: Nothing is really free. Instead of having every passenger absorb the cost of free peanuts, why not just charge the people who want them? It makes perfect sense to me.

We'll see how SkyBus does. It might take some getting used to, but I have to think this is the future of the airline industry.

Really, really no-frills flying originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 May 2007 20:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.