Jet set before the wet set

They're calling it Aeromigrante. Rock-bottom airfares from southern and central Mexico - one way - for those ready to swim the river (or whatever) to enter the United States.

The flights are part of a booming services industry for the estimated 13 million Mexican and Central American migrants who reside in the USA. Passengers who used to make bus trips of several days can arrive at the border well-rested for the often dangerous crossing.

Return flights south are often nearly empty of passengers, and some routes offer only one-way service. One of the airlines, Tijuana-based Avolar, estimates that 70% of its customers have the USA as their final destination.

"The most productive routes we have are cities where you have those passengers who are traveling with the idea of the American dream," said Luis Ceceña, a company spokesman.

Apparently the airlines are making up in volume what they are no longer charging as fare.

Other budget carriers such as Volaris, Interjet and Click have started operations in the past two years and make air travel affordable to poorer Mexicans. One-way flights to Tijuana from central Mexico cost about $150, half what they did a few years ago.

"It's much more comfortable than the bus, and about the same price," said Leopoldo Torres, 37, of Mexico City, as he stretched his legs aboard a Volaris flight to Mexicali. He and a traveling companion, Julio Menéndez, planned to cross into the USA illegally through the California desert.

Maybe the U.S. government should contract with the same airlines to provide inexpensive transportation for deportees.