Southeast Airlines Ceases Operations

[Khephra]

LARGO, Fla. -- Southeast Airlines, a Florida-based discount airline serving seven destinations along the Atlantic seaboard and in the Midwest, announced that it has ceased operations.

The company said in a statement posted on its Web site late Tuesday that it "has made its final landing and has ceased airline operations. We apologize for the inconvenience this will cause to our customers."

The airline said the decision was due in part to high fuel costs. There was no answer at its Tampa Bay area corporate office early Wednesday and a company official could not immediately be reached for comment.

WTSP-TV in Tampa/St. Petersburg reported on its Web site that employees were called to the airline's corporate headquarters Tuesday night, given their last paychecks and told they no longer had jobs.

http://www.newsday.com/business/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-southeast-airlines,0,1981639.story?coll=sns-ap-business-headlines