Coming on the heels of last week’s announcement that Delta Air Lines and ExpressJet were terminating their regional flying agreement effective Sept. 1, ExpressJet announced today that it will also end its branded flying operation effective Sept. 2.

The 39 aircraft the airline is currently using in these operations will be returned to the lessor no later than June 2009.

This will leave ExpressJet with 30 aircraft that it will continue to fly as part of its charter operation, ExpressJet Corporate Aviation, and 205 aircraft which it will fly for Continental Airlines.

Shame. Everyone I knew who had flown the new branded flying product had good things to say about it. Given the airline’s options at the time — I’m still not one to jump on management for what they tried to pull off. The basics of this business plan were not the same as the ill-fated Indy Air.

Alas, just not enough profit margin in flying a branded 50-seater operation these days.

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