Long-term Debt and Revolving Credit Facility (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2013	Apr. 02, 2013
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity	800,000,000
Line of Credit Facility, Amount Outstanding	0
Subsequent Event
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity		1,000,000,000
Line of Credit Facility, Expiration Date	Apr. 02, 2018
Floating-rate 737 Aircraft Notes payable through 2020 | AirTran Airways
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Number of Prepaid Secured Term Loans	6
Extinguishment of Debt, Amount	119,000,000
Number of mortgages on secured aircraft	20
Debt Instrument, Maturity Date Range, Start	Aug. 16, 2016
Debt Instrument, Maturity Date Range, End	Apr. 03, 2020
Line of Credit | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) | Subsequent Event
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Debt Instrument, Basis Spread on Variable Rate	1.50%