OST-2000-7881
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OST-2000-7881
http://www.wilcoairport.com/ - Williamson County Regional Airport
Corporate Airlines, Inc. d/b/a Trans World Express
| OST-2000-7881 | August 31, 2000 | 90-Day Notice of Intent to Terminate Essential Air Service at Marion, IL | Marion, IL- St. Louis, MO |
| Service List |
Counsel: Coporate Airlines, Charles Howell, 615.223.5644
| Order 00-11-16 OST-00-7881 |
Issued November 16, 2000 Served November 20, 2000 |
Order Prohibiting Termination of Service and Requesting Proposals | Marion, IL- St. Louis, MO |
| Appendix: Schedule | |||
| Service List |
By: Paul Gretch
| Order 00-12-27 OST-00-7881 |
Issued December 29, 2000 Served January 3, 2001 |
Order Selecting Carrier and Setting Final Rate | 90-Day Notice of Intent to Terminate Essential Air Service at Marion , IL |
| Exhibits A & B: Subsidy Calculation and EAS to be Provided |
Order 2000-12-27 is selecting Corporate Airlines, Inc., to provide essential air service at Marion/Herrin, Illinois, for a two-year period, at an annual subsidy of $794,031. Corporate Airlines, the only airline that filed a proposal in response to our request, submitted two service options. Under its first option, the airline proposes to continue its current service of 26 nonstop round trips a week to St. Louis with 19-seat Jetstream 32 aircraft at an annual subsidy of $794,031 . Its second option is to provide 18 nonstop round trips a week to St. Louis at an annual cost of $619,532.
Marion/Herrin is not the typical essential air service community. Although the number of passengers generated at subsidized EAS communities varies greatly by community, most fall into the 5,000-10,000 passengers-a-year range. As the chart below shows, Marion/Herrin has averaged about 20,000 passengers a year over the last three years, and was in the 25,000-30,000 passengers-a-year range during the mid- 1990's. An average of 25,000 passengers a year equates to an average of 80 passengers a day (based on 313 days to account for typically reduced service on weekends) or 40 a day in each direction. Based on Corporate's four-round-trip-a-day option, there would be an average of 10 passengers per flight, sufficient or nearly sufficient to be operated subsidy free. While traffic has declined in the last few years, the early returns are that Corporate has been able to reverse that downward trend, but not as quickly as the carrier had projected. Corporate Airlines is a commuter air carrier and is already providing reliable scheduled air service at several communities including Kirksville, Cape Girardeau and Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Community officials in Marion and Herrin also report that Corporates's service is highly reliable. Based on all of the above, while we remain concerned about the significant increase in subsidy required for the four-round-trip-a-day option compared to three a day ($794,031 vs. $619,532), we will authorize subsidy for the higher service level for this two-year contract period. We expect that Corporate and the community will work together in the next two years to raise traffic levels to the point where subsidy will not be required after this two-year contract. Failing that, however, we are putting the community on notice that we will closely examine the traffic results of the next two years in the context of the need to continue to subsidize four round trips a day.
By: Francisco Sanchez
| Order 03-1-13 OST-97-2515 OST-00-7881 |
Issued and Served January 16, 2003 | Order Setting Interim Subsidy Rates | Essential Air Service at Kirksville, Missouri and Marion, Illinois |
By Order 2000-12-22, December 29, 2000, Corporate was selected to provide subsidized EAS at Marion, Illinois, for the two-year period through November 29, 2002. Similarily, by Order 2000-10-33, October 27, 2000, Corporate was selected to provide subsidized EAS at Kirksville, Missouri, for the two-year period through December 5, 2002. Those rates have expired without our having established new rates. Consequently, it is necessary for us to extend the expired rates as interim rates, subject to retroactive adjustment, in order to ensure that Corporate will continued to be paid for its services until we can establish new final rates retroactive to November 30, 2002, in the case of Marion, and retroactive to December 6, 2002, in the case of Kirksville. The new final rates may be higher, lower or the same as the interim rates we are extending here.
By: Randall Bennett
Order 03-5-7
OST-01-8731 - Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-96-1167 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - Marion, IL
OST-00-7855 - Owensboro, KY
Issued May 6, 2003 | Served May 9, 2003
We have made adjustments to the rates consistent with the framework established by Order 2002-2-13, namely, that we would make up for revenue reductions to the extent that they fell below those forecast in the final subsidy rates in effect on September 11, and insurance increases directly attributable to the September 11 attacks. Even though Corporate's revenue fell after September 11, only at Cape Girardeau and Kirksville did they fall below those forecast in the subsidy rate, and we adjusted those rates accordingly. At all seven communities, the only other adjustments we made were for increased hull and liability insurance (other than general and administrative and return elements which are set as a percentage of expenses).
By: Read C. Van de Water
Order 03-5-12
OST-01-8731 - Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-96-1167 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - Marion, IL
OST-00-7855 - Owensboro, KY
OST-03-14492 - Quincy, IL
Issued May 9, 2003 | Served May 14, 2003
Order Setting Final Rates | Word
As discussed in Order 2002-2-13, the Department authorized emergency EAS payments to all subsidized carriers because of the losses suffered by them in the face of generally lower revenue and higher costs after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, combined with the fact that the EAS carriers are paid on a pre-agreed, fixed rate per flight. Recently, Order 2003-5-7, issued May 6, 2003, set final rates for seven of the above communities (all except Quincy) from October 1, 2001, until the respective ends of the various contracts. This Order sets final rates that go into effect at the expiration of those contracts, and will remain in effect until further Department action while we process the various carrier selection proceedings for all the communities.
By: Read C. Van de Water
Order 04-12-13
OST-01-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-96-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - EAS at Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-00-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
Issued and Served December 22, 2004
Order requesting Proposals, and Order to Show Cause Tentatively Termination Subsidy Eligibility and Allowing Suspension of Service | Word
By this order, the Department is requesting interested persons to show cause why we should not terminate the essential air service subsidy eligibility of Kirksville, Missouri, and allow Corporate Airlines, Inc., d/b/a American Connection, to suspend its subsidized service. The Department is also requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing EAS at the other communities identified above for new two-year periods. Proposals to provide subsidized EAS at each of the above communities, as well as objections to the Department’s tentative decision to terminate the subsidy eligibility of Kirksville, are due within 30 days of the service date of this order.
With the end of the current rate term approaching, we conducted a review of the communities' traffic results in anticipation of requesting carrier proposals for a new rate term beginning at the end of their current two-year terms. During calendar year 2003, Burlington averaged 24.0 enplanements a day, Cape Girardeau 23.7, Ft. Leonard Wood 20.0, Jackson 14.0, Marion/Herrin 34.6, Owensboro 17.6, and Kirksville 7.1. The Department is prohibited from subsidizing service at communities where the subsidy amounts to more than $200 per passenger, unless they are more than 210 highway miles from the nearest large or medium hub.' Based on the 2003 traffic level of 4,428 passengers and the current subsidy rate of $968,249, Kirksville's subsidy per passenger is $218.67 and, thus, exceeds the $200-per-passenger ceiling.
We request that any carriers interested in providing essential air service at any or all of the communities, including Kirksville, and with or without subsidy, file their proposals within 30 days of the service date of this order. With respect to each community, we expect proposals consisting of service, at a minimum, with two‑pilot, twin‑engine aircraft with at least 15 passenger seats, and offering two or three one‑stop or nonstop round trips each weekday and each weekend period to St. Louis or any other suitable hub such as Kansas City or Memphis.
By: Karan Bhatia
January 31, 2005
Proposal of Great Lakes Aviation - Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-96-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-00-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
OST-00-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-01-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-97-2515 - EAS at Kirksville, MO
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Cliff Hammock, Mayor of The City of Waynesville
I would like to update you on the essential air service situation at Ft. Leonard Wood and give you an opportunity to submit any comments if you wish. As you know, by Order 2004-12-13, December 29, 2004, the Department solicited proposals from all interested air carriers to provide service at Ft. Leonard Wood and six other communities in Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee. In response to that order, we received a total of 42 proposal options from five carriers - Corporate Airlines, Inc. d/b/a American Connection, Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., Mesa Air Group d/b/a Air Midwest, Mesaba Aviation d/b/a Northwest Airlink, and Multi-Aero, Inc. d/b/a Air Choice One, Inc. Please note that while Corporate, Great Lakes, and Air Midwest submitted a number of service options, each of their options represents an indivisible package that cannot be separated on a community by community basis. Also, some carriers submitted options involving fewer than six communities. For example, Mesaba submitted a proposal for just Jackson, Tennessee. While we would normally write up a brief summary of all the proposals, it is not practical in this case given the number of options. While we would normally write up a brief summary of all the proposals, it is not practical in this case given the number of options.
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Robert Butler, Mayor of The City of Marion, IL
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Gary Chick, Waynesville Regional Airport Airport Manager
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Mike Edwards, Mayor of Burlington, IA
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Charles Farmer, Mayor of The City of Jackson, TN
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Mayor Jerry Gist, Madison County Courthouse
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Rodney Hendrix, Jackson-Madison County Airport Authority
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Douglas Kimmel, Williamson County Airport Authority Airport Manager
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Jay Knudtson, Mayor of Cape Girardeau, MO
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Sharon Leeper, Southeast Iowa Regional Airport Airport Manager
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Bruce Loy, Cape Girardeau Regional Airport Airport Manager
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Debbie Masten, Mayor of The City of Kirksville, MO
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Waymond Morris, Mayor of The City of Owensboro, KY
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Brian Morrissey, Ft. Leonard Director of Logistics
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from The Honorable Victor Ritter, Mayor of The City of Herrin, IL
By: Dennis DeVany
February 9, 2005
Re: Request for Comments from Jody Sayer, Kirksville, Regional Airport Airport Supervisor
By: Dennis DeVany
OST-01-8731 - Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-96-1167 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - Marion, IL
OST-00-7855 - Owensboro, KY
February 15, 2005
Re: Southeast Iowa Regional Airport Letter Requesting Extension of Deadline
By: Sharon Leeper
February 16, 2005
Re: Letter Extending Deadline for Filing Community Comments
At the request of the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport Authority, as well as of several other communities, we are extending the deadline for filing community comments for the carrier selection case in the above-listed dockets from February 25, 2005, to March 15, 2005.
By: Dennis DeVany
March 8, 2005
Re: Comments of B and A Travel Services
By: David Coracy
OST-01-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-96-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - EAS at Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-00-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
March 9, 2005
Re: Extension of Time to File Community Comments
The Airport Manager of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, has requested a second extension, from March 15, until March 25, to file the community's comments in response to our letter of February 9, 2005. The extension is necessary because of an unforeseen scheduling conflict involving the Cape Girardeau's City Council meeting, scheduled for March 21, and a meeting of the community's Airport Advisory Board that was scheduled to review the various carrier proposals and make a carrier‑selection recommendation to the Cape Girardeau City Council.
This is to advise all parties that we have decided to grant the requested extension to file community comments. Community comments must now be filed no later than March 25, 2005.
By: EAS & Domestic Analysis Division, Dennis DeVany
March 9, 2005
Re: Cynthia Boehne and Gerry Boehne Letter against Change in Service
By: Cynthia Boehne and Gerry Boehne
March 8, 2005
Re: Lane Pierce Letter against Change of Carrier
By: Lane Pierce
March 12, 2005
Re: TNT Travel Letter in Support of Current Service
By: Bill Trees
March 20, 2005
Re: Williamson County Airport Authority Letter in Support of Corporate Airlines
By: WCAA, Doug Kimmel
March 24, 2005
By: Stan Hunter
March 24, 2005
Re: Comments of Jeffrey Pelch and Mark Freeze
We do not believe that the board of directors at the Williamson County Regional Airport fully looked at the market potential and the economic need when they submitted their recommendation for RegionsAir to the Department of Transportation. The reactions from the community strongly support Mesa Airline's proposal #2 for service to Chicago's Midway Airport and the Nashville airport.
By: Jeffrey Pelch and Mark Freeze
Order 2005-6-14
OST-01-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-96-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - EAS at Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-00-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
Issued June 15, 2005 | Served June 20, 2005
Order Reselecting Carrier and Terminating Show-Cause Proceeding
By this order, the Department is reselecting RegionsAir, Inc. d/b/a American Connection, formerly known as Corporate Airlines (RegionsAir), to provide subsidized essential air service at each of the above communities for a new two-year period from June 1, 2005, through May 31, 2007, for a combined annual subsidy of $7,306,249. Also by this order, the Department is terminating the show-cause proceeding tentatively terminating subsidy at Kirksville, Missouri, as RegionsAir's selected proposal is below the $200-per-passenger cap.
This was a difficult decision based on the number of proposals presented and the fact that all of the applicants, with the exception of Multi-Aero, are current providers of EAS and have demonstrated their ability to provide reliable air service at other communities across the country. It is further complicated by the fact that the carriers' proposals cannot be broken apart. There is no combination of proposals that would provide each community with the service they support. This means we are faced with a decision that, by its very nature, must go against some of the communities' wishes. We also note that some support service options that would provide more service than they currently receive, and we are not in a position to subsidize increased service levels. The EAS program is designed to ensure that every eligible community receives a safety-net level of service that provides access to the national air transportation system, which may not be the level of service that communities would like to receive.
By: Karan Bhatia
Order 2006-12-25
OST-2001-8731 - Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - Owensboro, KY
Issued December 27, 2006 | Served January 2, 2007
Passenger traffic has increased slightly at each of the six communities compared to calendar year 2004 levels. Passenger enplanements for 2006 range from a high of 36 a day at Marion/Herrin to a low of 11 a day at Jackson, while the number of enplanements at Burlington, Cape Girardeau, and Ft. Leonard Wood each average about 24 a day, and at Owensboro, they average about 15 a day.
By: Todd Homan
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
January 30, 2007
Extension of Proposal Due Date
By Order 2006-12-25, December 27, 2006, the Department requested proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service at any or all of the above communities no later than February 1, 2007. In an email dated January 29, Mesa Air Group, Inc. requested a one-week extension of the due date for filing proposals until February 8. Before responding to the carriier, we contacted each of the six communities listed above either by phone or email to learn whether they supported or did not support Mesa's request. Only one community opposed the extension. Thus, we are hereby granting Mesa's request and extending the due date for proposals from all interested carriers until February 8.
By: Mike Waters
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herron, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
February 8, 2007
Proposals of Air Midwest - Bookmarked
Mesa's proposed options would contemplate service with a combination of hubs at Chicago Midway, Kansas City, Memphis, Nashville, and St. Louis.
Mesa proposes to operate all flights as a combination of Mesa Airlines, US Airways Express and Midwest Connect. All operations at Chicago Midway will be Mesa Airlines. Mesa plans on pursuing a primary codeshare relationship with American Airlines in both St Louis and Nashville if awarded service to those respective hubs as we assume the incumbent carrier will not serve these markets without subsidy. Option #2, with service to Memphis, is contingent upon receiving a Northwest Airlines codeshare, which we are currently pursuing. We have established an internal deadline of March 1 for this process and reserve the right to rescind this option should we be unable to come to terms with Northwest.
All operations proposed would utilize our modern fleet of Raytheon/Beechcraft B-1900D airliners. These aircraft offer a very comfortable 19-seat, pressurized cabin with two turboprop engines.
By: Mesa Airlines, Jeffrey Hartz
Feburary 8, 2007
RegionsAir is proposing 6 options that would offer a variety of services to continue operating the vital link to American Airlines’ hub city of St. Louis, Missouri. All flights will be sold and marketed as AmericanConnection utilizing 19 seat BAe Jetstream 32 turboprop aircraft. Flights will be timed to offer optimal connecting opportunities to American Airlines’ flights at St. Louis Lambert International Airport.
Unfortunately the company has had some operational issues in the past few months that have negatively impacted performance causing an increase in cancellations and delays. The primary problem was unexpected engine removals last summer and fall compounded with significantly higher fuel costs than anticipated in the current contracts. The company is addressing capital issues with funding from an outside investment group. The company’s Cleveland operation, which further strained resources, is ending this spring.
The company realizes that many passengers were impacted by recent and unexpected cancellations, it anticipates the capital infusion to allow a rapid return to the previous high standard. By early summer, RegionsAir will have sufficient Jetstream aircraft, to provide an optimal schedule including an operational spare aircraft to assure reliability.
By: RegionsAir
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
February 8, 2007
Proposals of Big Sky Airlines - Bookmarked
All flights will be operated with modern 19 passenger Beechcraft 1900D aircraft.
Community Proposal 1 Proposal 2 Proposal 3 Proposal 4 Burlington St. Louis Cincinnati St. Louis N/A Cape Girardeau St. Louis Cincinnati N/A Cincinnati Ft. Leonard Wood St. Louis Cincinnati St. Louis N/A Jackson St. Louis Cincinnati N/A Cincinnati Marion/Herrin St. Louis Cincinnati St. Louis N/A Owensboro St. Louis Cincinnati N/A Cincinnati Annual Subsidy $6,838,269 $8,356,955 $3,243,889 $3,247,440
Counsel: Big Sky, Fred deLeeuw, 406-247-3912, fred.deleeuw@bigskyair.com
February 8, 2007
Proposal of Great Lakes Aviation
Proposal Part Service Point(s) Hub(s) Served Round Trips Equipment Subsidy Requirement Passengers Forecast Average Fare 1 Burlington St. Louis 3 1900D $943,793 16,000 $79.00 2 Cape Girardeau St. Louis 3 1900D $949,956 16,500 $69.00 3 Ft. Leonard Wood St. Louis 3 1900D $519,858 17,500 $89.00 4 Jackson St. Louis 2 1900D $1,072,948 7500 $99.00 5 Marion/Herrin St. Louis 4 1900D $1,126,810 25,000 $59.00 6 Owensboro St. Louis 2 1900D $968,470 10,500 $77.00
Great Lakes will provide service at these Essential Air Service points in a similar fashion as is offered in Denver and utilize our interline agreements with all the major carriers, which will (enable connecting bag service through the St. Louis hub. In addition, we will endeavor to obtain code-sharing arrangements with major carriers serving the St. Louis market, to allow passengers in these EAS markets the seamless service, in which they are accustomed to, through St. Louis to the destinations served by our partners and prospective partners.
All proposals contemplate the use of 19 seat Beechcraft 1900D airliner equipment.
Counsel: Great Lakes, Michael Matthews, 307-432-7000
February 12, 2007
DOT Letters Requesting Community Comments of:
As you know, RegionsAir, Inc. d/b/a American Connection, serves your community, as well as five others, to St. Louis, and their contract expires on May 31, 2007. In anticipation of that, we issued Order 2006-12-25, December 27, 2006, soliciting proposals from carriers interested in providing subsidized service at all six communities in the region, for a new, two-year period, beginning June 1. In response to our request, we received proposals from RegionsAir, Inc. (6 options), Mesa Air Group d/b/a Air Midwest, Inc. (8 options), Big Sky Airlines, Inc. (4 options), and Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. (6 options). While we would normally compose a brief summary of all of the proposals, that is not practical in this case given the number of options.
With specific respect to Marion/Herrin, we note that the community recently began to receive service to Chicago in addition to RegionsAir’s service to St. Louis under the Department’s essential air service program. For the present, we are willing to continue to subsidize service to St. Louis, or some other hub, in recognition of the joint state-and-local effort to build Marion/Herrin’s air service, and in view of the fact that Air Midwest’s service has just begun. We intend to defer our consideration of the implications of this new service on Marion/Herrin’s air service needs until we can assess the results of the new service.
My purpose in writing to you at this time is to request any final comments you might have on the proposals before we submit a carrier-selection recommendation to the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs. We request that you review the proposal and submit any comments you may have as soon as possible, but in no case later than March 7.
By: Dennis DeVany
OST-01-8731 - Burlington, IA
OST-96-1559 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-96-1167 - Cape Girardeau / Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-97-2515 - Kirksville, MO
OST-00-7857 - Jackson, TN
OST-00-7881 - Marion, IL
OST-00-7855 - Owensboro, KY
February 23, 2007
Re: Kansas City International Airport Support for Air Midwest Option 4 or 5
Air Midwest's proposals include a unique fare product which will offer low local fares that then become "add‑on" fares on connecting flights. This will stimulate local traffic to Kansas City. In addition to the convenient online options Air Midwest proposes with its mainline partners, EAS travelers will have the ability to connect with all major airlines using Air Midwest's convenient local fare "add‑on" product.
When compared to the other connecting hubs listed in the competing proposals, fares from Kansas City International Airport are substantially lower. Kansas City fares are 37 percent lower than Cincinnati, 29 percent lower than Memphis, and 9 percent lower than St. Louis. While the average fares at ChicagoMidway are compelling, travelers connecting in Chicago-Midway instead of Kansas City International Airport have fewer nonstop destinations and one third less marketing airlines to connect to.
By: Mark VanLoh
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2003-14492 - EAS at Quincy, IL
OST-2006-23929 - EAS at Decatur, IL
February 27, 2007
Re: Letter from Senator Richard Durbin - Regions Air Service Record
Regions has a code‑share relationship with American Airlines, which allows passengers to seamlessly book travel on flights to and through American's regional hub at Lambert International Airport in St. Louis. through American Connection. Regions receives over $3.5 million per year in EAS subsidies as part of the two‑year contracts with. the U.S. DOT.
In the last three months, Regions has failed to adequately fulfill its contracts to operate these flights. Flight cancellation figures for November, December, and January were 1.6 percent, 27 percent, and 15.5 percent, respectively. In contrast, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the average percentage of flights canceled in the domestic passenger market was 1.71 for all of 2006.
Regions' poor service record and large number of cancellations deter travelers from flying into or out of Quincy, Marion, Decatur, and Springfield which has a detrimental effect on the local economies. In addition, this deficient service is the primary factor for Quincy's inability to meet the important. 10,000 passenger threshold, which qualifies Quincy Regional Airport for a $1 million Federal Aviation Administration grant.
By: Senator Durbin
February 28, 2007
Re: Southern Illinois University - Off-Campus Academic Programs Support for Regions Air
March 1, 2007
Williamson County Airport Authority in Support of Great Lakes
Due to the number of proposals submitted and various options contained therein, along with the complexities involved with meeting the needs of six different communities contained within the Order, we would like to submit our first and second selections. The Authority respectfully recommends the following proposals:
By: Airport Manager, Douglas Kimmel
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
March 2, 2007
Statement of American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. hereby states that it has signed a letter of intent with Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. To operate American Connection‑branded service to from St. Louis in the event that Great Lakes Aviation is selected in this proceeding.
Counsel: American, Carl Nelson, 202-496-5647
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
March 2, 2007
Opposition of Great Lakes Aviation bid by RegionsAir
We feel that the Department should reject Great Lakes bid for the 6 markets currently served by RegionsAir to St. Louis.
Great Lakes submitted a bid that was $1,000,000 less than the current contract and over $800,000 less than their bid two years ago even though fuel costs have climbed dramatically during that time. Their bid is approximately $1,300,000 less than Big Sky’s and almost $2,000,000 less than Air Midwest both flying the same aircraft as Great Lakes and proposing essentially the same service.
We find this extremely disturbing in light of Great Lake’s communications to RegionsAir. During the first few days of February the Chairman of Great Lakes called us wanting to know if the sale of our airline had closed. He said that he was interested in our Saab certification but had little interest in St. Louis as they had determined that short haul flying under a prorate contract was not a very good business. He stated that their prime focus was in Milwaukee but they would probably make a token bid for St. Louis as they had 2 years previously.
Clearly Great Lakes has by far the lowest bid. However, we feel that Great Lakes in part submitted this extremely low bid as a means of preventing RegionsAir from completing a transaction to refinance the airline and put a competitor out of business.
By: RegionsAir, Douglas Caldwell
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
March 7, 2007
Delta Air Lines, Inc. submits this statement in support of the submission of Big Sky Transportation Co. d/b/a Big Sky Airlines to the extent it proposes to provide essential air service between the above-referenced communities and Cincinnati, Ohio. Delta further hereby advises the Department that if one of Big Sky's Cincinnati proposals (either proposal 2 or proposal 4) is selected, Delta intends to codeshare with Big Sky on those EAS flights. A codeshare relationship with Big Sky would offer passengers from the affected EAS communities access to Delta's global transportation system.
Counsel: Hogan & Hartson, Robert Cohn, 202-637-4999, recohn@hhlaw.com
Order 2007-3-5
OST-2001-8731 - EAS at Burlington, IA
OST-1996-1559 - EAS at Cape Girardeau, MO
OST-1996-1167 - EAS at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO
OST-2000-7857 - EAS at Jackson, TN
OST-2000-7881 - EAS at Marion/Herrin, IL
OST-2000-7855 - EAS at Owensboro, KY
Issued March 9, 2007 | Served March 14, 2007
Order Selecting Carriers and Establishing Subsidy Rates
As the end of the two-year contract period was approaching, the Department issued Order 2006-12-25, December 27, 2006. requesting proposals for a new two-year period beginning June 1, 2007, with or without subsidy. In response to our request. we received proposals from four earners: the incumbent, Regions, Air Midwest Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express (Air Midwest), Big Sky, and Great Lakes.
By this order, the Department is selecting Big Sky Transportation Co., d/b/a Big Sky Airlines, and Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. to provide subsidized essential air service at the above communities for the two-year period from June 1, 2007, through May 31, 2009, using 19-seat Beech 1900D turboprop aircraft as follows: Big Sky at Cape Girardeau, Jackson, and Owensboro for a combined annual subsidy of $3,247,440: and Great Lakes at Burlington, Fort Leonard Wood, and Marion/Herrin for a combined annual subsidy of $2,590,461.
By: Andrew Steinberg
March 5, 2007
City of Herrin in Support of Great Lakes Aviation and Big Sky
The city agrees with the Williamson County Regional Airport Authority's selections of:
By: Mayor, Victor Ritter, 618-942-6166
OST-2000-7881 - Marion
OST-2006-23929 - Decatur
OST-2003-14492 - Quincy
July 24, 2007
Notice of Air Midwest to Terminate Scheduled Air Service
Air Midwest, Inc. respectfully serves notice upon the Department of Transportation, in accordance with 14 C.F.R. 323.3 and 14 C.F.R. 323.4 of its intent to discontinue scheduled service between Decatur, Quincy & Marion, Illinois and Chicago, Illinois effective October 22, 2007.
The termination of service by Air Midwest will reduce air transportation at all three communities to a level below the essential air service determination set forth in the respective orders.
At present, Air Midwest is the sole provider of certificated scheduled air service at each community. Air Midwest is hereby providing public notice of its intent to terminate scheduled air service with the expiration of the 90-day notice as required. Any objections to this Notice to Terminate Service must be filed within twenty days from the date of this filing.
By: Mesa, Tom Bacon
Order 2007-8-15
OST-2000-7881 - Marion
OST-2006-23929 - Decatur
OST-2003-14492 - Quincy
Issued and Served August 17, 2007
We will allow Air Midwest to suspend its services at the three communities at the end of its 90-day notice period. In doing so, we are deferring to an Air Service Development Agreement entered into by the carrier, the communities, and the State of Illinois in January 2007, under which Air Midwest undertook to provide the services now at issue. Section 4.A of that Agreement specifies that “any party may terminate this Agreement at any time upon ninety days prior written notice to the other parties.” In bargaining for this provision, Air Midwest stated a reasonable condition for undertaking the services, and in agreeing to it, the communities acknowledged and gave Air Midwest the right to cease providing service after providing such notice. We do not believe we should effectively rewrite the Agreement, negating Section 4.A, and creating an unbargained-for benefit for the communities and an unbargained-for burden for Air Midwest.
As noted earlier, Decatur’s and Quincy’s determinations stipulate service to two hubs, Chicago and St. Louis, whereas Great Lakes’ forthcoming services will be operated to St. Louis only. However, when we initiated the carrier-replacement cases that led to our selection of Great Lakes to provide service at Decatur and Quincy, we recognized that Air Midwest’s services to Chicago had just begun, and that their success was uncertain. We therefore explicitly requested -- and ultimately selected -- proposals for Decatur and Quincy that offered service levels to St. Louis high enough to compensate for the possible loss of Air Midwest’s services to Chicago. Great Lakes’ services will now do just that.
Before Air Midwest suspends service, however, we expect it to contact all travelers holding reservations for travel after its suspension date, to notify them of its suspension and Great Lakes’ incoming service, and to secure alternate air transportation for such travelers or to provide them with a refund of their ticket price, without penalty, if requested.
By: Michael Reynolds
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