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The secret to Skybus success? Keep your assets moving, the airline's chief financial officer, Mike Hodge, said at today's annual meeting of the High Point Economic Development Corp.

"You have to sweat your assets to keep your prices down," Hodge said in explaining the Skybus business model.

The High Point group -- meeting over a really terrific lunch at GTCC's Joseph S. Koury Hospitality Careers Center -- heard from Hodge, Piedmont Triad Airport Authority Chairman Henry Isaacson and Penny Whiteheart, executive VP of the Piedmont Triad Partnership. They were telling the very satisfying story of the courtship of Skybus, which is going to make PTI a whole lot busier.

Four-year-old Skybus, based in Columbus, Ohio, patterned itself after Europe's Ryanair -- a low-cost, no frills carrier. The concept is pretty simple: expand the customer base.

"People want to travel, and if you can get the price down they will travel," Hodge said.

Simple, yes, but "I was really blown away at how powerful this concept was," said Hodge, a Princeton/Harvard MBA grad. "As you push the price of air travel down, demand explodes."

Skybus rounded up $162 million in equity capital, bought some aircraft and went to work.

Those jets -- A319s -- are workhorses.

Hodge teased that he's not supposed to say how much they cost but each one represents an asset worth $40 million to $50 million. So, "The key to us is you've got to keep those planes in the air."

Skybus does -- 13 hours a day, more than any other U.S. carrier, Hodge said. He added that the jets are fuel-efficient and reliable, requiring almost no down time.

Other cost-saving strategies: "All our employees are owners." They sacrifice on salary now for the promise of greater wealth later. And, as owners, they have a stake in the company's success.

"When you've got skin in the game, you behave differently, you treat customers differently," Hodge said.

In addition to price -- an average of $50 per ticket (one-way), Hodge said customers care about schedules. He said Skybus achieved the best on-time record in the industry in just its third month, and it hardly ever loses anyone's bag.

It ought to be that good because it doesn't fly into the biggest, busiest airports, and it offers only direct flights. That means fewer opportunities for delay or losing suitcases.

Skybus expects to do very well here, eventually flying to as many as 25 cities from PTI. "We need 1.2 million to 1.5 million passengers a year, which will double your airport," Hodge said. It can do that because that's how many people were driving away from the Triad for cheaper, better flights at other airports. Skybus is about reversing that trend and enticing new customers into the air.

Just keep sweating those assets, guys.

Addendum: Skybus CEO Bill Diffenderffer is coming by for a chat with us Monday, and he's agreed to do a video interview.