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Exchange-Traded Fund

In the wide and varied family of the thousands and thousands of funds out there, the exchange-traded fund is one of the more consumer-friendly ones.

Unlike mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, behave more like stocks. You can buy into an ETF at any time, and sell it whenever you feel like it. And like a stock, an ETF's value can rise and fall--depending on what the ETF is invested in.What do ETFs invest in? Well, they're typically linked to an index like the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the S&P 500. So, if you had an ETF that trades the same companies that make up the Dow or the S&P, it will rise and fall in value pretty much the same amount as the Dow or S&P.

You can also buy ETFs that invest in other types of products, like bonds, currencies, gold or other commodities. The ETF market has grown considerably in the past few years, so there is no shortage of ETFs to invest in.

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Monday, July 28, 2008

AirTran Airways Introduces New E-Ticketing Capabilities for Corporate Travelers

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LOS ANGELES, July 28, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ ----AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AAI), today announced on the floor at the annual National Business Travel Association convention held in Los Angeles, Calif., that the airline has introduced new e-ticketing capabilities to simplify the booking, ticketing and reporting process for corporate travelers through select global distribution systems (GDS). The airline is adding this new enhancement to save corporations time and money when booking AirTran Airways through the GDS.

This enhancement is another step in AirTran Airways' ongoing commitment to make it easy to do business with the airline. Effective today, e-ticketing will be available initially through the Sabre GDS and will enable corporations and travel management companies to book AirTran Airways in the same fashion as any other airline.

The benefits of e-tickets are reduced documentation costs, enhanced passenger check-in options, reduced fraud, and the elimination of lost, stolen and pre-paid tickets.

In the coming months, the airline will be announcing additional capabilities through the GDS systems, such as improved seat assignment and Business Class upgrade functionality, frequent traveler recognition, and expanded corporate program integration.

AirTran Airways pioneered ticketless travel fifteen years ago and will continue to offer ticketless travel while adding e-ticket travel. Ticketless travel, available through www.airtran.com or 800-AIRTRAN, is a reservation with a confirmation number and payment is settled through the airline. E- ticketing is a reservation which includes a ticket number, an accounting and reporting trail, inventory management, and other airline interline options, and payment is settled through the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC). E- ticketing will give corporate travelers more ticketing and interline capabilities.

"We are committed to building our corporate business, and the introduction of e-ticketing is a major step forward for AirTran Airways," said Paul G. Clements, general manager of sales for AirTran Airways. "While we will continue to be a ticketless airline, AirTran Airways will work to improve GDS functionality for our corporate partners."

"Moving to a 100% e-ticketing environment is a very significant industry initiative," said David Gross, senior vice president of Airline Distribution for Sabre Travel Network. "AirTran Airways is a valuable partner of Sabre's and we are delighted to be to the first GDS to launch e-ticketing with them. We look forward to launching additional functionality that will continue to streamline and enhance the booking process."

AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings, Inc., a Fortune 1000 company, ranked number one in the 2008 Airline Quality Rating study. The airline offers more than 700 affordable, daily flights to 57 U.S. destinations, employs 8,900 friendly Crew Members and operates America's youngest all-Boeing fleet. AirTran Airways also provides XM Satellite Radio

and Business Class seating on every flight. For more information and free online booking, visit http://www.airtran.com.

 Media Contacts: AirTran
   Airways Tad Hutcheson Judy Graham-Weaver Cynthia Tinsley-Douglas Quinnie Jenkins 678.254.7442

SOURCE AirTran Airways

http://www.airtran.com

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