WebProNews

It was a common practice in the 60's, 70's and 80's to test-market products by placing advertisements for them.  Often it was a make-or-break test, a product receiving enough inquiries would go into production, a product that did not would be cancelled.  Considering the tooling and other costs associated with going from prototype to production for today's products, this is not a bad idea.  Product pricing for the consumer is lower if the successful products do not have to pay off the expenses for the marketing flops. 

I think it was a valid test for marketing purposes.  A client of theirs can now make a decision to run print ads for a website based on actual numbers, not guesswork.  If they had used a REAL airline, who can say which customers would have come anyway?  By using a non-existent airline, they had 100% certainty that any web inquiries were the direct result of the print ad.

With airlines going out of business, fees and surcharges skyrocketing with the costs of fuel, PMH took a responsible approach to give airlines an opportunity to see demonstrable results of print advertising.  Remember, if the airlines lose money blowing it on unsuccessful ad programs, it will be YOU paying for it the next time you book a flight.