Order 03-01-1

Order 03-01-1

Essential Air Service at Decatur, Illinois

Order 03-01-1 OST-02-11859	Issued January 2, 2003 Served January 7, 2002	Order Selecting Carrier and Establishing Final Subsidy Rate	Essential Air Service at Decatur, Illinois
		Appendices A-C: Map, EAS Calculation

By this order, the Department is selecting Trans States Airlines, Inc., d/b/a American Connection, to provide essential air service at Decatur, Illinois, for a two-year period at a subsidy rate of $917,077 annually. In the absence of a proposal for service to Chicago, Trans States' Option A best meets Decatur's essential air service determination, since it offers 90 seats each weekday and 120 each weekend. Ninety seats each weekday easily meets the 67 contained in Decatur's essential air service determination. Although 120 seats over the weekend falls slightly short of the 134 seats contained in Decatur's determination, Trans States projects 23,352 passengers on 1,946 completed flights annually -- an average of 12 passengers per flight on 30-seat aircraft. It is clear from the carrier's traffic projection that the additional round trip required to meet Decatur's seating guarantee on weekends is not necessary as a practical matter.

By: Read C. Van de Water