Republic Air Case Shows Price of Cheap Flights : Travel: The charter company, which started selling tickets last summer, is accused of violating various federal rules.

Bill Forgotston’s experience illustrates the need for consumers to be careful about flying with charter airlines and other companies besides major carriers.

When he bought a cheap ticket to fly from Dallas to Los Angeles through a company he saw advertised on a billboard, Forgotston thought he was using a regular airline.

But the $220 round trip he booked through Republic Air Travel of Dallas in October showed him that wasn’t the case.

During a long night seeking his luggage at Los Angeles International Airport that stretched until 4:30 a.m., “we couldn’t find anybody to tell us anything,” said Forgotston, a Dallas computer consultant.

“Everybody blamed everybody else,” he said. “Nobody knew what anybody was doing.”

Forgotston is one of many passengers who have complained about Republic Air, which began selling cheap tickets last summer. The Department of Transportation has filed an enforcement complaint against the travel agency accusing it of violating various public charter regulations, including diverting customer funds for illegal use.

Republic Air did not immediately return calls seeking comment last week, but it has denied the accusations in the past. The company has reportedly shut its doors but continued to take phone reservations.

Other allegations in the complaint: That Republic Air assumed the duties of a charter operator and that it took out ads in major newspapers that did not tell readers it is not a regularly scheduled airline.

Customers are supposed to be told if they are flying a public charter.

What’s the difference? A tour operator charters a jet and its crew and sells the seats. A regular airline owns or holds long-term leases for its jets, and the crews are on its payroll.

In Republic Air’s case, the company said it was operating a reservations center for Miami-based Airlift Group Inc.--also named in the complaint--which was actually selling the charter trips. Express One International Inc. of Dallas was flying the jets, but it said last week that it would do so only until this Saturday, leaving Republic without a carrier.

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Express One was also named in the complaint; it has settled with the government while admitting no wrongdoing.

While travel experts say the vast majority of charter operators do a good job, “there are some notorious cases over the last 15 years with planeloads of people being stranded in Europe,” said Ed Perkins, editor of Consumer Reports Travel Letter.

Several who follow the air travel industry suggest that consumers take steps to protect themselves when they’re looking for bargains away from the major carriers.

Travel agents are often familiar with a little-known company’s reputation.

“If it’s too good to be true, call a travel agent,” said Michael Boyd, president of Aviation Systems Research in Golden, Colo. “Let a travel agent handle it. Travel agents are paid to protect people.”

Pay with a credit card, or make checks payable to the escrow account that charter operators have to set up, so your money hasn’t been spent before the flight.

Under federal law, customer prepayments for charter trips must go into escrow accounts until after the trip is made. The Transportation Department has accused Republic Air of using funds that were supposed to go into escrow accounts.

One more option: Buy trip interruption insurance.

Perkins said the insurance--which protects against, among other things, airline and operator failure--can be purchased from virtually any travel agent or directly from the insurance companies.