HOUSTON, Tex. -- In recent months, airlines have been taking unusual steps to reduce the weight of their airplanes to conserve fuel. From removing lavatories to eliminating magazines, from promoting buoyant luggage to even removing all seats, carriers are cutting every corner to save on the cost of getting and keeping their airliners airborne.

Now Monument Airlines has gone a step further. The airline announced today that it will establish an independent, low-cost airline as an alternative to its current commercial airline service. Monument Barelines, as the new venture is called, will fly only passengers who carry no luggage and wear no clothes.

Heidi Truncher, a spokesperson for Monument said, "By scaling back to the bare essentials, we expect to save about $2.5 million annually in fuel costs alone. Moreover, passenger screening will be speeded up greatly since our passengers will not have to remove their shoes, or for that matter, anything else."

Monument Barelines is expected to begin service between Houston and other major airports in the southern tier of states. "The nude travel concept is expected to be quite popular with budget conscious leisure and business travelers, and we expect to expand quickly into the Caribbean,” said Truncher. "There are obvious limitations to the destinations we select for service. For instance, there are no plans to offer service to Anchorage, Saskatoon or Reykjavík.