Atlanta regional airline backtracks on new name

It looks like Atlantic Southeast Airlines wasn't so sure about its name after all.

Just a day after announcing a new name for the airline -- SureJet -- the carrier put a "ground stop" on the idea. The decision came after a barrage of negative comments. On some airline message boards, for example, postings expressed a combination of surprise, disbelief and discontent regarding the change, along with satirical takes on the name.

Atlanta-based Atlantic Southeast announced the "SureJet" moniker Wednesday, saying it would take effect once its merger with ExpressJet Airlines is complete. Atlantic Southeast, a Delta Connection regional carrier, is a subsidiary of SkyWest Inc. and acquired ExpressJet last November.

But on Thursday, Atlantic Southeast spokeswoman Kate Modolo confirmed that the SureJet name is being parked for now. "We've heard concerns our employees have voiced about the SureJet name," she said. "We're valuing our employees' feedback and we want to do what's right."

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