CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Current assets:
Allowances for doubtful accounts receivable, current	$ 107,048	$ 73,571
Shareholders' equity of Frontier:
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0.25	$ 0.25
Common stock, authorized (in shares)	1,750,000,000	1,750,000,000
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	995,128,000	993,855,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	1,027,986,000	1,027,986,000