An air carrier run by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement makes sure illegal immigrants get to Central America in style. Complete with leather seating, and ample leg room for its passengers, it stands out at a time when other American carriers are making it so you have to claw someone’s face off for a pack of peanuts and an itchy blanket. Air traffic controllers call the airline “Repatriate,” which sounds a lot more official than the name its employees have bestowed upon it - ICE Air. The service, however, is said to be superb. It’s just a really nice way of letting immigrants know the kind of comfort they will never again experience:

“For a lot of these immigrants, it has been a long journey to the U.S.,” said Michael J. Pitts, chief of flight operations for deportations and removals at ICE. “This is going to be the last impression they have of the United States. We want to provide good service.”

So who foots the bill? You do!

ICE Air’s patrons are what the airline industry calls “non-revenue passengers,” since Washington foots the bill at $620 a person on average for the one-way flight home. The agency now flies 10 aircraft, twice as many as last year, including leased and government jets.

Flights stop in Guatemala City and Tegucigalpa, Honduras as well as, more recently, cities in Philippines, Indonesia and Cambodia. Flight aren’t scheduled until there are enough passengers to fill every seat, resulting in some instances of overbooking:

“We are making a valiant attempt to overbook,” said Mr. Pitts. Sometimes passengers get bumped, he said, “to make room for priority cases.” Those might be convicted criminals who are wanted by their country or individuals eager to get home due to a family emergency.

Yes. Eager to share a flight with convicted criminals. With no in-flight movie.

Now Boarding: Illegal Immigrants On One-Way Tickets Home [WSJ]