OST-1997-2785 - EAS at Fairmont, Minnesota; Brookings, South Dakota; Yankton, South Dakota; Devils Lake, North Dakota, Jamestown, North Dakota, Norfolk, Nebraska

http://flybrookings.com/ - Brookings Regional Airport
http://www.devilslakeairport.com/ - Devils Lake Airport
http://www.jamestownnd.com/city/airport.htm - Jamestown Municipal Airport

EAS Docket

By this order, the Department is revising the service levels and subsidy rate for the essential air service (EAS) to be operated by Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., d/b/a United Express, at Fairrnont, Minnesota. Brookings and Yankton, South Dakota, Devils Lake and Jamestown. North Dakota, and Norfolk, Nebraska, and reselecting Great Lakes to provide subsidized essential air service at the six communities for a new two-year rate term beginning when the new service is implemented, on or about August 18, 1997, through July 31, 1999

Both Minneapolis/St. Paul and Sioux Falls are located within a close proximity to the Fairmont area and both are accessible entirely via interstate highways. With the recently approved higher speed limits, both airports provide convenient access to jet service to many destinations. Minneapolis/St. Paul also serves as a major hub for Northwest Airlines.

Great Lakes has commented that its services at the six communities do not enjoy the benefit of attractive through fares for passengers connecting at Minneapolis to longer-haul destinations. In that respect, we have raised informally with Northwest the possibility of a Northwest Airlink proposal, including more attractive through fares and other marketing benefits, as a more cost-effective alternative to Great Lakes' service. Absent that option, we would encourage Northwest's cooperation with Great Lakes to afford the communities marketable joint fare opportunities, which should benefit all parties - the communities in the form of more affordable fares, and both Great Lakes and Northwest in the form of increased traffic and revenues. We will remain open to more cost-effective proposals on behalf of the EAS communities.

We have decided to establish a short-term subsidy rate for Great Lakes, as the carrier proposed, to continue its existing service as outlined in Appendix C at the annual subsidy rate of $4,794,180, effective September 28, 1998, until the Department takes farther action, but no later than April 1, 1999.3 In doing so, however, we note an area of potential improvement that we believe could result in significantly more responsive service for the communities and decreased subsidy burdens.

By this order, the Department is approving Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., d/b/a United Express's proposed alternate service pattern, by changing the hub to which service is subsidized for Norfolk, Nebraska, and Yankton, South Dakota, from Minneapolis to Denver. The order also selects Great Lakes to provide subsidized service at Fairmont, Minnesota, Brookings and Yankton, South Dakota, Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, and Norfolk, Nebraska, for a new two-year rate period at a total combined subsidy rate of $3,915,196 a year, effective on the date the carrier inaugurates the level of service described in Appendix B to this order, through April 30, 2001, and sets a final combined annual subsidy rate of $3,915,196 for Great Lakes' provision of subsidized essential air service (EAS) at the six communities.

By this order, the Department is extending as interim rates the recently expired subsidy rates for the essential air service (EAS) provided by Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, and at Brookings and Huron, South Dakota, until new final rates can be established.

By this order, the Department is (a) establishing a final rate for the essential air service operated by Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, for the period from October 1, 2001, through December 31, 2002; (b) tentatively reselecting Great Lakes at the two communities for the two-year period beginning January 1, 2003, but reducing the level of subsidized service from 18 to 12 round trips a week as of May 1, 2003; and (c) providing for objections to the Department's tentative reselection and inviting competing proposals from other interested carriers.

Brookings and Huron are guaranteed to receive minimum levels of air service under the Essential Air Service program by virtue of the fact that they appeared on a certificated air carrier’s Civil Aeronautics Board-issued certificate on October 24, 1978, the date the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 was signed into law. Great Lakes Aviation is the only scheduled passenger air carrier serving both communities. Great Lakes’ service at Brookings and Huron consists of two round trips each weekday and each weekend to Minneapolis/St. Paul over the routing Huron-Brookings-Minneapolis/St. Paul with 19-passenger Beech 1900D aircraft.

Therefore, we request proposal options that would provide the communities with service to their designated hub of Minneapolis consisting of at least two or three round trips a day, nonstop or one-stop, six days a week, with twin-engine, two-pilot, 15-passenger-seat or larger, pressurized aircraft. The proposals should offer at least enough daily seats to accommodate the most recent average daily enplanements at a 60-percent load factor. We will also entertain proposals to serve other hubs, such as Omaha, Denver, Milwaukee, Kansas City, St. Louis, or Chicago, that provide access to the national air transportation system in order to give the Department and the community as broad an array of proposals as possible from which to choose. (Both communities have specifically requested that we seek proposals for service to Omaha.) As always, we will formally solicit the community’s views on any service options we receive before making a long-term carrier selection decision. In order to assist carriers in making their traffic and revenue forecasts, we have included historical traffic data in Appendix B.

The North Dakota National Guard training facility at Camp Grafton, which is south of Devils Lake, has projected 3,000 plus students, from across the nation, for the next 12 months. The school schedules Friday afternoon arrivals and Saturday morning departures to accommodate the local carrier flight schedule. With that information we request DOT provide 14 round trips weekly. This would provide a service level that supports this most important customer base.

It is suggested that DOT investigate a selection of an airline with codesharing and joint fares with a dominant carrier in the Minneapolis hub. Failure to do so creates airfare disparities for local travelers and discourages EAS ridership. Currently airfares are 40% higher for 1 eisure and 2 0% higher for business travelers at the nearest competing airports. Without a major airline Computer Reservation System (CRS), access to this service by nonlocals is restricted.

Currently, Great Lakes Airlines provides three round trips each weekday and two each on Saturday and Sunday. This schedule utilizes an unsubsidized flight for a total of 19 per week. I have received a copy of the airlines proposed schedule and it will not include any unsubsidized flights. The route would have a 27 hour span without a flight into or out-of Jamestown between Saturday and Sunday. We feel this schedule will not adequately serve the needs of the passengers and a further decline in the number of boardings would be the probable outcome. We propose increasing the number of flights from 12 to 14 per week and requiring two per day.

Great Lakes Airlines currently serves the Jamestown route using a code share with United. This has proven to be of limited value. I receive numerous complaints from local citizens that Jamestown is not even listed when booking online. From the second quarter, when Great Lakes eliminated its ties to United, to the third quarter 2001, passenger counts dropped by 580 or 35%. In addition, the majority of our fares are 20 to 40 percent higher than Fargo even though the fare to Minneapolis is cheaper. This leads us to the conclusion that Great Lakes will not be able to provide competitive services due to factors outside of their control. We feel that any successful service to the Jamestown/ Devil's Lake route must be directly affiliated with a major carrier.

The Devils Lake Chamber of Commerce is very concerned with the discussions of reducing the flight schedule for our community. The actual boarding at our airport is the result of a number of factors identified by the Airport Authority in their letter on the issue and we concur.

The Airport Authority, Camp Graflon and the Chamber of Commerce as well as our Economic Development Organization (FORWARD Devils Lake) have consistently lobbied the existing carrier to address problems that are at the root cause of our lower than potential boarding. The service reliability problems have continued to the point of an erosion of confidents by our local travelers and the travel agents in our area. The proposed solution of reducing flights is exactly the wrong direction and is an indication of poor oversight by the Department of Transportation and the EAS Program and a lack of commitment to rural community's transportation needs after deregulation.

We have excellent potential for growth if a carrier would coordinate effectively with the needs of the National Guard, address their reliability problems and begin an ongoing marketing effort to increase boarding and repair their image. I believe the community of Devils Lake will be a willing partner in this effort but the contracts are overseen by the Department of Transportation and any review of the effectiveness of the EAS should begin with a review of your oversight policy with the carriers not by cutting service in our community.

The real issue regarding air service in Devils Lake is the service reliability problems from our existing carrier. Rather than reducing flights, we believe more direct oversight of the existing carrier is required. This increased oversight would lead to greatly improved, reliable service that will substantially increase customer satisfaction and ultimately increase the level of use. The Devils Lake Region continues to grow and prosper. A carrier that provides reliable consistent service, that can coordinate with larger users such as the North Dakota National Guard, and who is willing to engage in an ongoing marketing effort to repair their image and promote air service use, can and will do well in the Devils Lake Region.

Our two communities are having a hard time increasing boardings because of poor connections in the Twin Cities, size of planes and lack of promotional advertising. Most recently, Great Lakes dropped its ties to United Airlines and is now doing its own reservations. It is hard for our travel agents and internet ticket buyers to get tickets when they cannot access the reservation system. This has driven up the cost of flying Great Lakes and has decreased boardings significantly.

We have received a request from MultiAero, Inc., for a twenty-day extension of this due date. In support of its request, MultiAero affirms that it will deliver to the Department of Transportation all required documentation on or before May 13, 2003. We will grant this request. As is our normal practice, we will therefore grant all potentially interested applicants until May 13, 2003, to submit service proposals for any or all of the subject points.

We our requesting an extension for bid request Docket OST-1997-2785 and OST-2000-7138. The reason for the request we just learn of the bids on April 18, 2003 and need additional time to place a bid. Our understanding bid closing dates are April 23, 2003. Multi-Aero is requesting an extension until May 13, 2003.

Correspondence from Secretary Norman Y. Mineta to The Honorable Earl Pomeroy, U.S. House of Representatives, thanking him for his letter of March 21 concerning the U.S. Department of Transportation's tentative decision to reduce the level of subsidized service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota.

Request to the Honorable Fred Bott for comments on the carrier selection decision as soon as possible, but in any event, by June 2, 2003.

Request to the Honorable Charles Kourajian for comments on the carrier selection decision as soon as possible, but in any event, by June 2, 2003.

Response of Mesa Air Group on behalf of its wholly-owned subsidiary Air Midwest, Inc. to Request for Proposals 2003-4-5 for Competitive Proposals between Brookings/Huron, South Dakota and Omaha, Nebraska.

We are, at this time, in support of Mesaba Aviation being selected a.Q the carrier for our air service route. We feel that their relationship with Northwest Airlines will provide an increased level of convenience to our passengers. We also believe that this selection will, by its nature, increase the level of boardings in Jamestown and Devils Lake.

The selection of a new carrier with a direct affiliation with a major airline is in the best interest of the local communities and the EAS program. This will reduce long term costs and increase the benefits to our cities and regions. In order to make a September transition as trouble-free as possible, a selection needs to be made as expeditiously as possible. Thank you for your continued hard work and diligence with the Essential Air Service Program.

As to your office's May 20th letter on the carrier selection bids is our agency's comments. The commission selects the Mesaba proposal as the best option to provide community air service from the three submitted. Mesaba will provide Northwest Airlines presence, connecting fares and worldwide air access online through the Minneapolis hub.

By reviewing the last 12 years of Great Lakes boardings at the two airports, the passenger growth has been declining. It is time for a change! Air service can drive a communities economic engine and tourism will supplement the growth. The EAS program provides these two communities the access to air transportation that our agency greatly appreciates and will assist local leaders to partner with Northwest Mesaba Planning staff and Mesaba operations to be a success.

Order 03-6-13
OST-97-2785 - EAS at Fairmont, MN, Brookings and Yankton, SD, Devils Lake and Jamestown, ND, and Norfolk, NB

The Department selects Mesaba Aviation, Inc., d/b/a Northwest Airlink, to provide essential air service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, for a two-year period at a subsidy rate of $1,739,270 annually. Our decision in this case is straightforward. All three applicants are very experienced scheduled service carriers, capable of providing reliable service at Devils Lake and Jamestown. However, Mesaba has the support of the communities, and its code-share alliance with Northwest Airlines, Inc., means that it can offer travelers far more on-line connecting opportunities at the Minneapolis/St. Paul hub, where Northwest is the predominant carrier, than the other two applicants can. In addition, Mesaba's annual subsidy requirement is the lowest among the three applicants -- nearly $100,000 less than Great Lakes and nearly $600,000 less than Mesa/Air Midwest.

I am requesting that the Secretary perform an eligibility determination as described in Sec. 409 (c) taking into consideration the commonly used route from Brookings to the Minneapolis Airport. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

By this order, the Department is requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service (EAS) at Brookings, Huron and/or Pierre, South Dakota, for a two-year period, with or without subsidy.

The service proposed by such bid offers the two subsidy-eligible communities of Huron and Brookings, South Dakota, three round-trip flights each weekday, and two round-trip flights each weekend day. On May 6, 2004, Westward received an Air Carrier Operating Certificate issued under Title 14 CFR 135 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations.

Westward anticipates submittal of final documents to effect Westward's Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity for Interstate Air Transportation (Docket OST-02-14071) to the Department no later than May 17, 2004.

Big Sky Transportation Co. is pleased to provide proposals to provide Essential Air Service to the South Dakota points of Brookings, Huron and Pierre. It is our belief that the proposals being made are unique and offer the South Dakota community's substantially better service than is being provided by the incumbent carrier. The Big Sky proposals include service for the Huron and Brookings communities to Omaha, Nebraska. Service from the state capital of Pierre is proposed to Denver.

Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. is pleased to submit these proposals to provide essential air transportation at these points in South Dakota.

In light of the instructions in the order to provide a "last and final" offer for the service to these points, Great Lakes has provided a list of options for service to these Essential Air Service points for the communities and the Department to choose from. As in the recent bids for service points in Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming, Great Lakes is bidding on these points to provide service in the local markets to Denver as Great Lakes Airlines. These service patterns and times are designed specifically to connect with our code-share partners Frontier and United Airlines in Denver, with which we hold exclusive code-sharing agreements for the service at these points. Service into Minneapolis will be operated as Great Lakes Airlines, and those flights are designed to connect advantageously with Northwest Airlines' flight structure there. Great Lakes holds a ticketing and baggage agreement with NWA that allows for through ticketing and baggage check for our customers traveling through Minneapolis.

Mesa Air Group, Inc. d/b/a Air Midwest cordially submits a proposal to provide Essential Air Service at Brookings, Huron, and Pierre, South Dakota. Mesa proposes timely non stop service to Denver, Colorado and Omaha, Nebraska. All nights will be operated with a pressurized turboprop Beech 1900 D aircraft with 19 seats. This level of service meets the requirements mandated by Order 2004-4-8.

I would like to update you on the essential air service situation at Brookings and to give you an opportunity to submit any comments if you wish. As you know, by Order 2004-4-8, April 6, 2004, the Department solicited proposals from all interested air carriers to provide service at Brookings, Huron, and Pierre. In response to that order, we received proposals containing a total of seventeen service options from four carriers-Great Lakes Aviation, Air Midwest, Big Sky Airlines, and Westward Airways. While we would normally write up a brief summary of all of the proposals, that is not practical in this case given the number of options.

In conjunction with Huron, South Dakota, we wish to build our airline boardings to sufficient levels to be self‑sustaining and ease out of the EAS program, as this is the program's original intent. Moving our initial destination to Omaha would allow our citizens more value based options for travel, while also offering the same opportunities to those who wish to come to our city.

In reviewing the airline bids, Great Lakes retains our service as the status quo. We have had many years to build our service to Minneapolis, MN and to date we have had only modest success. Big Sky and Westward Airways, while offering good service, have aircraft that would diminish the quality of the service we currently enjoy.

In order of priority, the following EAS proposals are preferred by the community of Pierre, SD:

On behalf of the citizens of Brookings, South Dakota, we respectfully request your assistance in the selection of airline service to our city, as provided by the Essential Air Service program.

Per document 97-8-9 (Order Reselecting Carrier.. .) under assigned document number OST-1997-2785, four (4) airlines have submitted bids to provide service to Brookings. Following several community meetings and consultations with our fellow community (Huron, South Dakota), we are firm in our belief that the service which would best serve our two communities is that of Option 3 as offered by Mesa Air Group, Inc. d/b/a Air Midwest (Document number OST-1997-2785-34).

By this order, the Department is selecting Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. to continue providing subsidized essential air service at Pierre, and Air Midwest to provide subsidized essential air service at Brookings and Huron, for a two-year period. Great Lakes' service at Pierre is to consist of 12 weekly nonstop round trips to Denver with 19seat Beech 1900-D aircraft, at an annual subsidy of $449,912. Air Midwest's service at Brookings and Huron is to consist of 12 weekly flights routed Huron-Brookings-Omaha-Brookings-Huron, with 19-seat Beech 1900-D aircraft, at an annual subsidy of $2,078,727.

We stress that we are very concerned over the low passenger levels and expect both communities to work diligently with Air Midwest to improve traffic levels, which should also result in decreasing subsidy levels in future years.

By this order, the Department is setting final, past-period subsidy rates for the period of October 1, 2001, through December 31, 2002, for Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. for its provision of essential air service at Brookings and Huron, South Dakota. The final rates will be $1,045,428 on an annual basis for Brookings and $568,848 for Huron.

As you may know, the Department has no statutory authority to pay communities directly for assuring that basic essential air service is provided; rather, we pay airlines on a monthly basis for completed flights pursuant to a contract between the carrier and the Department. It is incumbent upon the carriers to estimate their expected annual costs and revenues when they construct their proposals to provide essential air service with subsidy support. In that regard, I note that Mesaba forecast about $2.4 million of annual expense in its combined Devils Lake/Jamestown bid. I note also that the current contract with Mesaba expires on September 30, 2005, and we will soon be issuing a request for proposals from all carriers potentially interested in serving Devils Lake and Jamestown. I would urge you to contact any carriers you believe to be interested in serving your community to make your wishes known as to schedules and other elements of the total service package.

We expect proposals consisting of service with two-pilot, twin-engine aircraft, offering two round trips each weekday and each weekend from Devils Lake and Jamestown to a suitable hub such as Minneapolis/St. Paul or any other hub offering convenient access to the nation’s transportation system. We encourage proposals that meet those requirements in an efficient manner. Carriers are also welcome to propose more than one service option, if they choose; they need not limit themselves to those requirements if they envision other, potentially more attractivc service possibilities-different
hubs, for example-with subsidy requirements that remain competitive.

Mesaba Aviation has served Devils Lake and Jamestown for two years. Before that, Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd., served the conimunities for a number of years. During the 12 months ended February 28, 2005, the most recent 12-month period for which traffic data are available, Devils Lake averaged 6.5 enplanements a day and Jamestown averaged 10.8 enplanements a day. These figures represent a decline of 22 percent at Devils Lake and an increase of 24 percent at Jamestown from the levels registered during calendar year 2000, prior to the terrorist attacks of September 1 1

Northwest Airlines would like to request an extension of time to file a proposal to provide essential air service at Devils Lake /Jamestown, North Dakota. We request that the Department extend the deadline for filing proposals for 10 days.

We have received a request dated July 7, 2005, from the Northwest Airlines, requesting a ten‑day extension, for submitting a proposal. We will grant this request, and in so doing, will grant all potential applicants until July 18, 2005, to submit proposals to provide essential air service at Devils Lake and Jamestown.

In response to the Department's Order 2005-6-3, Mesaba Aviation, Inc., doing business as Northwest Airlink, is enclosing a detailed subsidy proposal for continued essential air service at Devil's Lake and Jamestown, ND at a level of two roundtnp flights per day, using 34 seat Saab 340 aircraft.

I would like to update you on the essential air service situation at Devils Lake and Jamestown and to give you an opportunity to submit any comments if you wish As you know, by Order 2005-6-3, June 2, 2005, the Department solicited proposals from all interested air carriers to provide service at Devils Lake and Jamestown In response to that order, we received a proposal from Mesaba, Aviation, Inc.

Because the cost of the only applicant’s initial proposal was quite high, and because we had been requested informally by the airport managers of Devils Lake and Jamestown to seek a different schedule/service pattern, we held informal subsidy rate negotiations with Mesaba The results of those negotiations are summarized in Attachment A (subsidy calculations) and Attachment B (schedules) to this letter. I should note that the airport managers specifically requested that we pursue with the carrier a schedule offering two linear round trips a day over a Devils Lake-Jamestown-Minneapolis/St. Paul routing. Although we did in fact broach that idea with Mesaba, the carrier declined to submit such a proposal option.

My purpose in writing to you at this time is to request any final comments you might have on the carrier’s service and subsidy proposal, as negotiated, before we submit a recommendation on the carrier selection issue to the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs.

The North Dakota Aeronautics Commission, in consultation with the airport managers of Devils Lake and Jamestown, offer the following comments on US DOT Order 2005-6-3 for Essential Air Service. Our commission recommends your office negotiate the following with Mesaba's bid:

1.The proposed schedule for a new early morning departure is supported by local business and leisure travelers and should be maintained for the two-year contract.

2.The proposed late night returns should be adjusted with the changing Northwests's hub banks for western USA cities.

4.However, the proposal lacks a specific line item for marketing that the previous US DOT contract has supported at $10,000.

5.With two roundtrips per weekday, we suggest that one Saturday and one Sunday flight schedule be maintained in the term of the contract. Leisure travelers benefit with airfare discounts on Saturday night stay restrictions. National Guard travel at Devils Lake also books heavily for Saturday departures.

The comments I have involve the proposed schedule. First, the proposed schedule for Saturday shows only a departure from Devils Lake with no arrival on Saturday. Second, the proposed schedule shows late night arrival at 7:40; we would like to see a later arrival than 7:40.

I would like to thank yourself and Mesaba Airlines for making this new schedule available to the citizens of Devils Lake. The new scheduling has increased our enplanements by 22% over the previous two months, compared to last year. There are two concerns that I have on the proposal. First, the weekend schedule indicated no arrivals on Saturdays. I have received an e-mail from Sandy Jacks at Mesaba stating that this has been fixed; however, I would like to see the proposed schedule changed to represent an arrival and departure on both Saturday and Sunday. Also, I would like to see a night arrival slightly later than 7:40 so that most west coast connections can be made. Finally, I am concerned that the lease rates that we charge are not represented in the facility lease proposal. Once again, I thank yourself and Mesaba Airlines for providing this new schedule.

The Jamestown Regional Airport has had for the most part a positive experience with Mesaba Airlines during the last two year Essential Air Service Contract. Currently, significant concerns lie with Mesaba filing for bankruptcy and how this will affect the level of service and the anticipated payments of rents and other expenses to the airport and its tenants. Currently, Mesaba holds no lease agreement with the airport and the airport has no guarantee that the airline will continue to conduct business as normal. The Jamestown Municipal Airport Authority has clearly stated that it does not wish to do business with an entity who will not sign a lease.

The airline also has not been consistent with its flight times. Five minute adjustments every once in a while are not that huge of a deal, but with limited staffing trying to work with constant changes of more than a half hour has proven quite difficult. Additionally, the employees at the airport rarely find out about these changes until after they have taken affect and sometimes the day they take effect.

Thank you for your letter of June 7 supporting the requests of Jamestown Regional Airport regarding its essential air service.

On June 2,2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued Order 2005-6-3, soliciting proposals from all air carriers interested in providing EAS at Jamestown. The Department received one proposal, from Mesaba Airlines, in response to Order 2005-6-3. The EAS staff has negotiated a tentative agreement with the carrier for continued EAS at Jamestown, and is awaiting receipt of a signed subsidy rate agreement from the carrier. When the agreement is received, the EAS staff will notify the Jamestown civic parties of the negotiated proposal and seek the community's comments.

The Department selects Mesaba Aviation, Inc., d/b/a Mesaba Airlines, to provide essential air service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, as described in Appendix B, effective October 1, 2005, through September 30, 2007.

The Department sets the final subsidy rates for Mesaba Aviation, Inc., d/b/a Mesaba Airlines, for the provision of essential air service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, as described in Appendix B, to be payable as follows: for each calendar month during which essential air service is provided, the amount of compensation shall be subject to the weekly ceilings set forth in Appendix C, and shall be determined by multiplying the subsidy-eligible flights completed during the month to Minneapolis/St. Paul by $1,089.15 for Devils Lake and by $1,116.17 for Jamestown.

Proposals should provide sufficient capacity to accommodate historical levels of traffic. Specifically for Brookings and Huron, we request proposals for service consisting of 12 round trips a week to Omaha with two-pilot, twin-engine aircraft with at least 15 passenger seats. We encourage proposals that meet those requirements in an efficient manner. Carriers are also welcome to propose more than one option, if they choose; they need not limit themselves to those requirements if they envision other, potentially more attractive service possibilities – different hubs, for example – with subsidy requirements that remain competitive.

Air Midwest has provided service at the communities since September 2004. For the year ended December 31, 2005, Brookings generated a total of 1,869 O&D passengers, an average of 3.0 enplanements per day, while Huron generated 2,854 O&D passengers, a daily average of 4.6. Passenger levels are up slightly at both communities from the prior year.

By Order 2006-5-19, the Department requested proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service at Brookings and Huron, South Dakota, for a new two-year period, with or without subsidy, beginning October 1, 2006. Upon review, it was discovered that current legislation affecting Brookings’ subsidy eligibility was inadvertently omitted.

The law directed the Secretary of Transportation to consult with the Governors of the States or the Governors’ designees, and to consider their certification as to the most commonly used route between the community and the nearest large or medium hub airport. The Department must then issue a decision as to the community’s eligibility to receive subsidized essential air service. If a community is reinstated, it would be effective through September 30, 2007, the date which designations made under Vision 100 would expire.

We are here amending the criteria for proposals for EAS at Brookings. Interested carriers should prepare their proposals to provide EAS at Brookings as previously stated in Order 2006-5-19. However, proposals for the period after September 30, 2007, must be below the $200 per passenger statutory ceiling. Based on the 1,869 total passengers as of YE 2005, proposals would have to show annual subsidy requests of no more than $373,800 in order to be below the subsidy per passenger cap. We would note, however, that traffic levels at Brookings have increased over the past few years.

No changes will be made to the criteria as they relate to proposals for service at Huron. Interested carriers should file proposals for service at Huron for the period beginning October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2008.

These new circumstances warrant the extension of the deadline for proposals set forth in Order 2006-5-19. Carriers should file their proposals within 20 days of the date of service of this Erratum. Consistent with program practice, we will give full consideration to all proposals filed in a timely manner.

Mesa's proposed options would continue service to Omaha. Mesa proposes to operate all flights as Mesa Airlines. We are currently in talks with America West/US Airways to add these markets to our existing codeshare relationship.

All operations proposed would utilize our modem fleet of Raytheon/Beechcraft B-1900D airliners. These aircraft offer a very comfortable 19-seat, pressurized cabin with two turboprop engines.

The Great Lakes proposals contemplate conveniently timed connecting services with our Code Share partners United and Frontier at our Denver Hub. For each of these cities, Great Lakes proposes a schedule package that contemplates flowing the service one-stop over Pierre, South Dakota through to Denver. Our code share agreements will give both of these South Dakota communities the greatest competitive opportunity available.

For the Huron, South Dakota service, Great Lakes' two year proposal would include the option of providing nonstop service to Denver, at the company's discretion. The company requests that upline service from Huron be eligible, in order to facilitate this service. Per the Department's instructions, the bid for Brookings is for a one year period, ending September 30, 2007.

These proposals contemplate the use of pressurized 19 seat Beech 1900D's in each case.

In response to the Department's Order 2006-5-19, Mesaba Aviation, Inc,, doing business as Northwest Airlink, is enclosing its detailed subsidy proposal for essential air service at Brookings and Huron, SD at a level of two roundtrip flights per day (M-F) and 1 roundtrip per day on Sat/Sun, using 34-seat Saab 340 aircraft from Northwest's MSP hub. Flights to/from BKX would be non-stop to MSP, while flights to/from HON would have a brief stop in BKX going both directions.

As you may know, by Order 2006-5-19, issued May 22, 2006, the Department solicited proposals from all air carriers interested in providing essential air service at Brookings and Huron in anticipation of the end of Air Midwest’s current contract on September 30, 2006.

In response to our request for proposals, we received submissions from Air Midwest, Great Lakes Aviation and Mesaba Aviation.

My purpose in writing to you at this time is to request any final comments you might have on the carriers’ subsidy proposals before we submit a recommendation to the Assistant Secretary on the carrier selection issue. We request that you review this information as expeditiously as possible and submit any comments you may have on the carrier selection case as soon as possible, but in any case no later than July 28, 2006.

I have just read the three EAS proposals submitted by Mesa, Mesaba, and Great Lakes. In my estimation accepting any one of the three is a huge waste of govt money that could be put to much better use at a community that really needs it. As I pointed out to you in a previous e-mail being 45 minutes from the Sioux Falls airport by car hardly qualifies BKX as being remote and isolated.

Another issue that I feel should be taken under consideration in the decision to continue passenger service at BKX is the fact that the FAA has found our airport in violation of the protection of the RPZ for the primary runway 12/30. BKX has been sited for at least 15 hazards in the approach that consists mostly of commercial buildings and homes that the city issued building permits over the years to be constructed. It makes no sense to me that the same US government that tells us with one of the departments, the FAA, that we are operating with an illegal runway and another department, the DOT subsidizes an airline to furnish passenger service that the majority of community neither wants or needs. The proof is in the numbers that you have seen for boardings at BW. I sincerely feel this entire situation is exposing the community to far to much liability for the little that is gained.

The City Council voted on July 25, 2006 to endorse Mesa Airlines as the primary choice. We have seen an increase in passenger loads over the past two years, with their service, and hope it will continue for the years to come.

The Council also considered Mesaba Airlines because our business travelers in Brookings frequently use Northwest Airlines. Between Daktronics, 3M, and South Dakota State University, they purchased over 7,500 tickets last year. However, because of the large Mesaba subsidy, we did not feel it was appropriate to endorse them as our first choice, therefore, they are our secondary choice for Brookings.

Although we discussed the Great Lakes bid, we do not feel Denver is even a feasible destination for Brookings and can not support their bid.

Over the past two years the City of Brookings has seen a constant increase with Mesa Airlines flying to Omaha. Although we have had some difficulties, we feel that we need to continue with Omaha another bid cycle to continue improvements. Therefore we are selecting Mesa as our primary bid choice.

Since the subsidy to Minneapolis is quite large and a risk to air service in Brookings we, as a community, were not able to endorse Mesaba Airlines. Despite Minneapolis being the proven primary destination city and Northwest being the primary code-share desired, not knowing how expensive ticket prices will be and if our passengers will still use the service if those prices are excessively high, we felt it to be a high risk gamble.

At this time, the community has no need to seek Great Lakes Airlines. We feel their bid will be the final nail in Brookings air service coffin. They are imposing an extremely large subsidy rate onto Brookings and our survey indicated only a small percent of our traveling public wants to go to Denver. A selection of Great Lakes, for Brookings, will be a deliberate move to eliminate Brookings subsidy. If DOT is willing to pay that large of a subsidy for Brookings in 2007, we ask that you then use it to send us to Minneapolis over Denver.

On behalf of the City of Huron I am pleased to submit this Letter of Support for the proposal submitted by Great Lakes Aviation Ltd. for service with twice daily flights to Denver under the Essential Air Service program.

We pledge our full support, endorsement, and cooperation to this effort and hope that you will agree with us that the Great Lakes proposal is the best choice for our community and the Essential Air Service program.

On behalf of the City of Huron Airport Board, I am pleased to submit this Letter of Support for the Essential Air Service Proposal submitted by Great Lakes Aviation Ltd. of Cheyenne, Wyoming in response to your Order Requesting Proposals 2006-5-19 and the Erratum to the same order.

We have carefully studied the proposals submitted by Great Lakes, Mesa, and Mesaba Airlines and are convinced that the proposal for service to Denver with code share agreements with United and Frontier Airlines as submitted by Great Lakes, provides the greatest and most cost effective opportunity for our airport to increase boardings to a reduced or hopefully a non-subsidized level.

Assuming the elimination of the Mesaba proposal due to the much higher subsidy requirement, the Great Lakes proposal provides for the lowest subsidy requirement and the best service opportunity for us of the two remaining proposals.

By this order, the Department is selecting Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. to provide subsidized essential air service at Brookings and Huron, South Dakota, consisting of two daily one-stop round trips to Denver International Airport, at annual subsidy rates of $1,212,400, and $793,733, respectively, beginning October 1, 2006.

As we discuss in more detail later. under current Vision 100 legislation, Brookings' subsidy eligibility will almost certainly expire on September 30, 2007, and so our selection ends then. Unaffected by that law, Huron would receive the typical two-year service term, through September 30, 2008, at the annual subsidy rate of $793,733.

By this order, the Department is requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, for a new two-year period, beginning October 1, 2007, with or without subsidy.

With specific respect to Devils Lake and Jamestown, the Department expects proposals consisting of three one-stop round trips a day between each community and Minneapolis/St. Paul utilizing 19-seat aircraft, or two one-stop round trips a day between each community and Minneapolis/St. Paul with 30-seat or larger aircraft. Such service is consistent with what the communities currently receive, and fully satisfies their essential air service requirements. We encourage proposals that meet those requirements in an efficient manner. Carriers are also welcome to propose more than one service option, if they choose; they need not limit themselves to those requirements if they envision other, potentially more attractive service possibilities -- different hubs, for example -- with subsidy requirements that remain competitive.

In response to the Department's Order 2007-4-17, Mesaba Aviation, Inc., doing business as Northwest Airlink, is enclosing a detailed subsidy proposal for EAS at Devils Lake and Jamestown, ND at a level of 12 roundtrip, one-stop flights per week using 34-seat Saab 340 aircraft from Norhtwest's MSP hub. The following is the current and proposed schedules:

In anticipation of the end of Mesaba’s current contract on September 30, 2007, the Department issued Order 2007-4-17 on April 20, 2007, to solicit proposals from all interested air carriers to provide EAS at Devils Lake and Jamestown for a new, two-year term. In response to that order, Mesaba, the incumbent, was the only carrier to submit a proposal.

We request that you review Mesaba’s proposal and submit any comments you may have before we submit a recommendation to the Assistant Secretary. We ask that you submit any comments you may have as soon as possible, but in any case no later than June 19, 2007

When you look at the number of boardings out of Jamestown and the passenger numbers into Jamestown, they appear to be low. There are reasons for this. We do not have a direct flight to Minneapolis, MN resulting in an additional hour to the flight time for the passengers. One can drive in one hour and fifteen minutes to Fargo where there are more options for airline service. If one does have a ticket out of Jamestown, but not an assigned seat, will that person be “bumped” in Aberdeen for a passenger with a seat assignment? This uncertainty does make one uncomfortable with choosing to fly out of or into Jamestown. The travel agents tell me that there is a lack of available seats out of Jamestown, especially the lower priced seats. It appears that Aberdeen is allocated more seats. It is difficult to know if this is a fact or not. We believe there needs to be transparency in the seat allocation system. Aberdeen does not have Essential Air Service. Does this factor play a role in seat allocation?

In the future, our community would like to be involved in the DOT’s process of creating the request for proposals before they are sent to the airlines. This way the community can address and possible alleviate the issues it has with the air services, and find a solution that will work for both the airline and the community.

The proposed route structure meets the needs of our business community by providing an early morning and late evening schedule, but the structure pairs us with communities which have historically taken up a majority of the available seating. This arrangement makes it difficult for the citizens of Jamestown to find affordable seating on the aircraft and the USDOT is actually subsidizing other communities' air service to the detriment of Jamestown, ND. The communities of Aberdeen, SD and Brainard, MN have enough ridership to sustain these flights without the added subsidization and routing through our communities.

Additionally, it has been brought to the attention of JMS that passengers flying out of Jamestown have occasionally been bumped off the flight in favor of passengers in the paired communities, even when the pair communities have more daily flights operations to accommodate bumped passengers better than the options out of Jamestown Regional Airport.

JMS would also like the USDOT to look at the cost of operating and to make sure the airline will be able to meet its monthly obligations in a timely manner. Currently, Mesaba Airline has not signed or even negotiated a lease with the airport. It has been operating without a legal lease for over two years. JMS has approved a non-signatory fee policy for commercial operators of the airport. The policy states that entities which operate on airport property without a signed lease will be charged double the rate of an entity which holds a binding contract. The numbers in the proposed cost of operation do not seem to provide for this policy.

JMS would like the USDOT to negotiate a flight structure that would allow at the minimum of one direct flight to and one direct flight from Minneapolis, MN daily. It feels that the direct flight would increase enplanements and allow the community to prove that it has the ability to self sustain its own air service. JMS would also like the USDOT to negotiate a strategy with the airline to address the issue of the bumped passengers in lieu of passengers flying in communities with more options to reschedule. Lastly, the Authority would like the USDOT to take a closer look at the proposed cost of operations to ensure the airline is considering all of the costs related to flying into and out of the Jamestown Regional Airport without a signed lease.

Overall, JMS feels the proposal meets most of the needs of the airport. With the adjustments to the proposed route structure, more guarantees of service to passengers with limited flight options, and negotiating the cost structures and lease agreements with the airport, JMS will encourage the USDOT to accept the proposal.

For the letters, we expect the week of July 4 for the elected officials (on behalf of Devils Lake & Jamestown) and the week of July 11 on behalf of the Devils Lake Municipal Airport Authority. I'm sorry for any confusion.

By letters to the communities listed above, dated May 25, 2007, the Department offered each community the opportunity to provide comments on the essential air service proposal submitted by Mesaba Aviation, Inc., d/b/a Mesaba Airlines, operating as Northwest Airlink. The deadline for comments was set as June 19. In an email dated June 18, the Manager of the Devils Lake Regional Airport requested an extension to file comments.

We are hereby granting the community's request and extending the date for comments from both of the communities listed above until July 13, 2007.

I am asking that Northwest Airlines/Mesaba Airlines considers increased air service into the Devils Lake, ND (KDVL) airport. I am the officer in charge of an Army Engineer schoolhouse that trains over 3,700 Soldiers annually from across the USA. Two thirds of students use air service, who have paid the government fare, to bring them to North Dakota. However, over 1,000 students can not fly directly into Devils Lake due to a lack of seats available and have to use other airports throughout the State.

If an increase in service can not be justified for an entire year, consider increasing service when the schoolhouse’s highest density operations are taking place typically May through September. The largest exchange of students are scheduled to arrive and depart from Friday to Monday and an increase in seat availability over those time periods would reduce the number of students that fly into other airports including Fargo North Dakota.

By this order, we are reselecting Mesaba Aviation, Inc., d/b/a Mesaba Airlines, operating as Northwest AirLink, to provide essential air service with Saab 340 aircraft at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota, for the two-year period of October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008, for annual subsidy rates of $1,331,664 at Devils Lake and $1,355,011 at Jamestown ($2,685,675 annually for both points combined).

We appreciate Northwest Airline’s efforts to improve seat availability. Devils Lake’s first choice would be to partner with Jamestown to and from Minneapolis. We prefer that this option be explored, as both Airport Authorities passed a resolution to that effect. The North Dakota Aeronautics Commission senior aviation planner Mark Holzer recently talked with the Brainerd airport manager, who noted that their airport had trouble getting enough seats for their Brainerd passengers as well, particularly on summer weekends. Adding a second round-trip flight on weekends would be helpful.

Right now (even this past week), we’ve had a problem with seats being “sold out” from Devils Lake, yet we’ve been putting just a few onboard. The plane seems to be filling in GFK and Brainerd, and DVL seats are not from available for purchase. Monday afternoon for instance, we had 6 booked from Devils Lake, and six more wanted to fly out, but could not book due to no seat availability. (That flight ended up being cancelled, we’ve been told due to weather & the MSP runway situation, as is the flight this afternoon. The next outgoing flight is tomorrow). Cancellations pose serious issues on weekends, because if the 6 a.m. Saturday flight is cancelled, there will be another 24 hours until the 6 a.m. Sunday flight option, and that’s often full.

Partnering with Jamestown, we’re spending $130,000 on marketing efforts, with DOT grant help, to promote NWA flights to & from our communities. The last two months DVL has had record high boardings compared to last year, but people are still not able to book seats. We are thankful to Tim & NWA for their efforts to help. With increased seat availability, we anticipate increased boardings.

Specifically, at Devils Lake, Mesaba would provide two round trips each weekday and each weekend to Minneapolis/St. Paul with intermediate stops at Brainerd, Minnesota, only. Mesaba would provide Jamestown with two round trips each weekday and each weekend to Minneapolis/St. Paul, with intermediate stops at Aberdeen, South Dakota. This alternate service pattern will constitute the same frequency level, and will not increase the annual subsidy requirement of $2,685,675 annually for both communities combined. Mesaba intends to begin these new service patterns in November.

We approve the alternate service pattern requested by Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota.

Mesaba, operating as Northwest Airlink, proposed to continue its current service patterns at Devils Lake and Jamestown, utilizing 34-seat Saab 340 aircraft. At Devils Lake, Mesaba provides one round trip over a Devils Lake-Grand Forks-Minneapolis/St. Paul routing; and one round trip over a Devils Lake-Brainerd-Minneapolis/St. Paul routing on weekdays and weekends. At Jamestown, Mesaba provides one round trip over a Jamestown-Brainerd-Minneapolis/St. Paul routing and one round trip over a Jamestown-Aberdeen-Minneapolis/St. Paul routing on weekdays and weekends. In mid-August we issued Order 2007-8-16, re-selecting Mesaba to continue to provide its current HAS schedules at these two communities for a new two-year term.

The core objective of the EAS program is to provide communities with a link to the national air transportation system, and not necessarily all of the service that communities might prefer. While Mesaba's current service meets that core objective, we encourage the communities and the carrier to continue to work together to optimize the service provided during this current two-year contract.

As you are aware, Vision 100 expired on September 30, 2007 and along with it the DOT’s order establishing the eligibility of these three communities. However, during debate on H.J. Res. 52, Senators John Rockefeller (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Aviation Subcommittee, and Patty Murray (D-WA), Chairwoman of the Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee, stated their intent that funds appropriated under H.J. Res. 52 to the EAS program be used to continue subsidized air service to Hagerstown, Lancaster, and Brookings.

RAP requests that the DOT abide by Congress’ clear intent in this matter and continue to subsidize scheduled air service to these communities. Should the air carriers currently providing air service to these places discontinue air service during the interim, we would ask that the DOT issue an emergency order requesting proposals to provide air service.

Our members in Brookings, SD have informed us that the DOT does not intend to abide by the colloquy language for H.J. Res. 52 which: 1) expressed the strong intent of Congress that funds appropriated for the EAS program under the CR be used to continue subsidized air service to Brookings, SD; Hagerstown, MD; and Lancaster, PA, and 2) requested the DOT avoid making any major policy changes impacting the program during the period covered by the CR. Furthermore, as a result, we understand that the DOT has, as of October 1, 2007 declared Brookings, Hagerstown, and Lancaster ineligible for subsidy based on their proximity to the nearest large/medium hub airport.

RAP is disappointed with the DOT's position in this matter and its reluctance to follow what is the clear intent of Congress to continue subsidized air service to these communities during this interim period. We would ask that the DOT re-evaluate its position given language addressing the eligibility of these 3 communities has been included in the Senate version of the 2007 FAA Reauthorization Act and it is only a matter of time until this bill is enacted.

The disruption of service caused by your actions is clearly not in the best interest of the communities where you have a duty to follow both the letter and spirit of the law. As an organization, we fully expect our public servants to abide by the intent of legislators and policymakers.

As we discussed on the phone, effective May 2, 08 instead of serving DVL and JMS via ABR/BRD on the am/pm flights, NW will operated JMS nonstop to/from MSP with DVL getting one stop service via JMS. The mid-day flights are unchanged.

We would like to reiterate our support for linking together our two communities to increase seat availability in Devils Lake and Jamestown. We support NWA's proposed route change linking Jamestown and Devils Lake on our late evening and early morning flights. We feel this new route structure will be beneficial to both communities.

In response to the communities’ continuing desires for increased capacity on the early morning and late evening flights, we received a request from Mesaba on December 21, 2007, to link Devils Lake and Jamestown together, altering its service pattern for a second time. Mesaba would continue to provide each community with twelve round trips a week to Minneapolis, but part and parcel of Mesaba’s proposal is that the first flight of the day be routed Devils Lake-Jamestown-Minneapolis and the last flight be routed Minneapolis-Jamestown-Devils Lake, six days a week. That routing has the practical effect of making more seats available for Devils Lake and Jamestown passengers because, under the current schedule, each community is served on the same routes with a very strong traffic-generating community. Devils Lake’s other six weekly mid-day round trips would stop at Grand Forks, North Dakota; Jamestown’s at Brainerd, Minnesota. This alternate service pattern will constitute the same frequency level and annual subsidy requirement for both communities ($2,685,675) as described in Order 2007-8-16. Mesaba intends to begin this new service pattern in May.

By Order 2007-8-27, the Department approved an alternate service pattern. Nonetheless, the communities continued to work with Mesaba for further schedule enhancements.

By this order, the Department is requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service at Brookings, Hagerstown and Lancaster through September 30, 2008, with or without subsidy. Proposals are due March 21.

None of the three communities currently receive scheduled air service. All three communities had lost subsidy eligibility because they did not meet statutory eligibility criteria -- Hagerstown and Lancaster because they are within 70 driving miles of a large hub (Philadelphia International Airport), and Brookings because its subsidy per passenger exceeded $200 and the community is within 210 miles of a large hub airport (Minneapolis International Airport).

At the time that the communities lost subsidy eligibility, September 2007, Air Midwest was serving Hagerstown and Lancaster, while Great Lakes Aviation was serving Brookings, service in each case being provided with 19-seat Beech 1900 aircraft. Air Midwest provided Lancaster with three nonstop round trips to Pittsburgh each weekday and weekend (18 a week) at an annual subsidy rate of $1,377,257 and Hagerstown with two round trips each weekday and weekend (12 a week) to Pittsburgh at an annual subsidy rate of $854,452.2 At Brookings, Great Lakes provided two one-stop round trips to Denver each weekday and weekend (12 a week) at an annual subsidy of $1,212,400.

Before preparing their proposals, interested carriers should take into consideration that, under current law, all three communities’ subsidy eligibility terminates effective September 30, 2008. Therefore, carriers should prepare proposals with the expectation that subsidy will be terminated effective October 1, 2008.

Proposals should generally provide service levels comparable to those in effect at the time that the communities lost subsidy eligibility, as described below. Service should be with two-pilot, twin-engine aircraft with at least 15 passenger seats, unless the communities agree to smaller aircraft.

On February 28, 2008, the President signed into law the Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-190). Among other things, that Act reinstated the “most commonly used route” standard in measuring distance from EAS communities to hub airports. The practical effect of the legislation is once again to make Brookings, Hagerstown and Lancaster eligible for subsidized EAS, this time through September 30, 2008.

By Order 2008-3-27, February 29, 2008, we requested proposals from carriers interested in providing EAS to these communities. We did not receive any responses to that request. As a result, we are here again soliciting proposals from carriers interested in providing these communities’ EAS.

Thank you for your letter of April 1, cosigned by Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr., regarding the essential air service eligibility of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as well as Hagerstown, Maryland, and Brookings, South Dakota. You requested that we resolicit proposals and extend the communities' eligibility through September 30, 2011.

The Department understands your concern that, due to the short timeframe, carrier interest in the proposal may be limited. However, the Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2008 extended the eligibility of these communities only through September 30, 2008, and there is no assurance that the eligibility will be further extended. Also, while §205 of the Public Law 106-181 grants the Department the authority to provide subsidized EAS to communities within 70 highway miles of a large or medium hub airport if the most commonly used highway route between the place and the hub airport exceeds 70 miles, this authority is discretionary and one that, to date, has not been exercised. Moreover, exercising that authority in this situation would be wholly inconsistent with the Administration's fiscal year 2009 budget proposal to reform EAS, as we seek to focus the program's limited resources on the needs of communities that are truly isolated from the Nation's air transportation system.

As you are aware, Lancaster is within 70 highway miles of the Philadelphia International Airport, and the extensive air service options that it affords. Moreover, the community is less than 32 miles from Harrisburg International Airport, which is served by seven major carriers that provide nonstop service to 12 domestic destinations and one‑stop service to cities around the world. While we are sensitive to the air transportation needs of Lancaster, it is difficult to consider the community as "isolated," especially relative to the vast majority of other communities served by LAS. In addition, such service comes at a price to the taxpayer, to which we must also be sensitive: in 2007, when Lancaster last received subsidized air service, the Department paid an annual rate of $ 1,377,257. The Administration has sought to direct available resources toward communities that are isolated and have few travel options, whereas Lancaster is one of the least isolated communities in the program.

Thank you for your letter to Simon Gros of May 5, regarding the recent essential service (EAS) selection case at DuBois and Franklin/Oil City. As the EAS program falls under my purview, he asked that I respond to you. You asked that the Department select the service option supported by both communities.

Order 99-1-15 OST-98-3843 OST-97-2785 OST-98-3703 OST-97-2785 OST-97-2785 OST-98-3704	Issued January 29, 1999 Served February 1, 1999	Order Setting Subsidy Rate Until Further Department Action	EAS - Great Lakes Aviation
		Appendix A: Map
		Appendix B: Operating Statistics
		Appendix C: Great Lakes EAS

Order 99-1-15 OST-98-3843 OST-97-2785 OST-98-3703 OST-97-2785 OST-97-2785 OST-98-3704	Issued January 29, 1999 Served February 1, 1999	Order Setting Subsidy Rate Until Further Department Action	EAS - Great Lakes Aviation
		Appendix A: Map
		Appendix B: Operating Statistics
		Appendix C: Great Lakes EAS

Order 99-4-7 OST-98-3843 OST-97-2785 OST-98-3703 OST-98-3704	Issued April 12, 1999 Served April 14, 1999	Order Selecting Air Carrier and Approving Alternate Service Pattern Scanned Version	EAS - Great Lakes Aviation
		Appendix A: Map
		Appendix B: Great Lakes EAS
		Appendix C: Annual Compensation

Order 01-09-11 OST-97-2785	Issued September 17, 2001 Served September 20, 2001	Order To Show Cause	EAS at Fairmont, Minnesota; Brookings/Yankton, South Dakota; Devils Lake/Jamestown, North Dakota; and Norfolk, Nebraska
		Appendixes: Summary of Service, Subsidy Calculation, Historical O & D Traffic

Order 03-03-15 OST-97-2785	Issued March 20, 2003 Served March 25, 2003	Order to Show Cause - Tentatively Reselecting Carrier and Establishing New Subsidy Rates	Essential Air Service at Devils Lake and Jamestown, North Dakota
		Appendices: Map, Calculation Proposal, Historical Enplanements

Option #	Hub	Service	Annual Subsidy
1	OMA	2 RT: BKW to OMA (1 stop) 2 RT: HON to OMA (nonstop)	$2,054,912
2	OMA	2 RT: HON to OMA (nonstop)	$1,601,278

Proposal Number	Service Point	Hub Served	Equipment	Round Trips	Subsidy Requirement	Passenger Forecast	Subsidy per Passenger
1	Huron	Denver	1900D	2	$783,733	3500	$225.78
2	Brookings	Denver	1900D	2	$1,212,400	2100	$577.33

Departs MSP	Arrive BKW	Arrive HON	Depart HON	Depart BKW	Arrive MSP
1115	1234	1330	1410	1520	1637
2100	2219	2315	0700	0800	0917

Depart MSP	Arrive BRD/GFK	Arrive DVL	Depart DVL	Depart BRD/GFK	Arrive MSP
1100	1307	1338	0558	0730	0820
2105	2219	2324	1405	1501	1628

Depart MSP	Arrive BDR/ABR	Arrive JMS	Depart JMS	Depart BRD/ABR	Arrive MSP
1305	1427	1528	0603	0707	0819
2105	2251	2317	1556	1724	1811

MSP-JMS	2115-2305
JMS-DVL	2320-2350

DVL-JMS	0600-0630
JMS-MSP	0650-0830