Order 00-1-3 / OST-97-2368 / OST-99-6686 / Trans States / Atlantic Coast / Air Wisconsin / American Eagle / Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport / High Density Rule / Order

Order 2000-1-3

Posted 1/4/2000 4:59 p.m.

Served: January 7, 2000

Issued by the Department of Transportation on the 4th day of January, 2000

Applications of

Trans States Airlines, Inc., Atlantic Coast Airlines, Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp.,

For exemptions from 14 CFR Part 93, under

49 U.S.C.41714

in this order are as follows:

1/ Kingsport, Johnson City, and Bristol, Tennessee, and Bristol, Virginia.

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By Order 98-4-21, April 21, 1998, the Department granted an exemption from 14 CFR Part 93, Subparts K and S, to Trans States Airlines, Inc., to enable it to conduct 16 flight operations a day (departures or arrivals) at Chicago O'Hare Airport during the slot-controlled hours of 6:45 a.m. to 9:15 p.m. This authority was valid only for the provision of nonstop service with regional jet aircraft between O'Hare and the cities of Chattanooga, Tri-Cities, and Roanoke. Trans States inaugurated and has operated the authorized service under a code-sharing arrangement with United Airlines. It currently operates the following flights:

In summary, Trans States is using five slot exemptions each to serve Chattanooga and Roanoke, and six slot exemptions to serve Tri-Cities. A sixth daily operation is performed outside the slot-controlled hours at both Chattanooga and Roanoke.

By letter dated December 17, 1999, Trans States, Atlantic Coast Airlines (ACA) and Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp. notified the Department that Trans States and United Airlines have mutually agreed to terminate their code-sharing relationship. As a result, Trans States will redeploy its aircraft in other non-Chicago markets after February 8, 2000. In order to avoid loss of nonstop Chicago O'Hare service for Tri-Cities and

2/ Flight is operated outside the slot-controlled hours.

3/ Flight is operated outside the slot-controlled hours.

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Roanoke, the parties request that the Department approve the reallocation of five 0'Hare slot exemptions to ACA for service to Roanoke and six O'Hare slot exemptions to Air Wisconsin for service to Tri-Cities. (Both ACA and Air Wisconsin have a codesharing relationship with United Airlines and will serve their respective markets as United Express. ACA will do so with regional jet aircraft. Air Wisconsin will use 32seat Dornier 328 aircraft, which Tri-Cities has endorsed.)

By letter dated December 17, 1999, the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority and American Eagle Airlines, Inc., jointly requested a similar transfer of slot exemption authority from Trans States to American Eagle in order to preserve nonstop regional jet service between Chattanooga and O'Hare. The Chattanooga/American Eagle letter requested that the Department exercise its authority on the matter "as expeditiously as possible".

In all cases, the applicants seek to be enabled to maintain the same frequencies and essentially to replicate the departure and arrival times currently operated by Trans States.

By Notice served December 21, 1999, the Department stated that it would treat the letters as applications. Considering the requests for expedition in this matter to be wellfounded, the Department set December 22, 1999 as the due date for answers to the applications. No answers have been filed.

We will reallocate five of the 16 O'Hare slot exemptions previously granted to.Trans States to American Eagle for service at Chattanooga, six to Air Wisconsin for service at Tri-Cities, and five to ACA for service at Roanoke. By reallocating the slot exemptions in this fashion, we are enabling the replacement carriers to maintain the same frequencies and comparable departure and arrival times that are currently operated by Trans States with little or no hiatus in service.

We affirm the findings we made in Order 98-4-21 that important transportation benefits would be realized by the grant of slot exemptions for direct service between O'Hare and the three designated communities. Trans States' planned cessation of service in the subject markets does not reflect a lack of traffic response. Rather, it is prompted by the decision reached mutually between Trans States and United to discontinue their codesharing relationship, which will necessitate a redeployment of Trans States' aircraft fleet. The proposed replacement operations by ACA at Roanoke, Air Wisconsin at TriCities, and American Eagle at Chattanooga are enthusiastically endorsed by all of the civic parties, and we are satisfied that those carriers' proposals are operationally and financially viable. In addition, we note that no answers were filed in opposition to the proposed reallocation of the exemptions.

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Administrative Terms As the FAA slot regulation makes clear, "slot(s) do not represent a property right but represent an operating privilege subject to absolute FAA control (and) slots may be withdrawn at any time to fulfill the Department's operating needs..." 14 CFR 93.223(a). This order should not be construed as conferring on these carriers any ability to sell, trade, transfer, or convey the operating authorities granted by the subject exemptions.

The Department is allocating slot exemptions by this order on the ground that the services proposed by the applicants meet the statutory public interest and exceptional circumstances criteria. The Department reserves the right to modify or terminate such exemption authority if the Department determines that, due to changed circumstances, these criteria are no longer satisfied by an applicant's use of the authority.

This order is issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR 1.56(1).

1. The Department amends its action in Order 98-4-21 by withdrawing the 16 slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare Airport during the slot-controlled hours of 6:45 a.m. to 9:15 p.m. allocated therein to Trans States Airlines, Inc., and reallocating them as follows:

Five exemptions to American Eagle Airlines, Inc., to enable it to conduct five flight operations a day (departures or arrivals) in nonstop service with regional jet aircraft between Chicago O'Hare Airport and the City of Chattanooga, Tennessee;

Six exemptions to Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp. to enable it to conduct six flight operations a day (departures or arrivals) in nonstop service with Dornier 328 or regional jet aircraft between Chicago O'Hare Airport and Tri-Cities Airport, Tennessee;

Five exemptions to Atlantic Coast Airlines to enable it to conduct five flight operations a day (departures or arrivals) in nonstop service with regional jet aircraft between Chicago O'Hare Airport and the City of Roanoke, Virginia;

2. The Department directs American Eagle Airlines, Inc., Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp., and Atlantic Coast Airlines to contact the Airspace and Air Traffic Law Branch of the Office of Chief Counsel in the Federal Aviation Administration as soon as possible following the issuance of this order to determine with the FAA the actual times for arriving and departing flights as authorized by this order;

3. The authority granted under these exemptions is subject to all of the other requirements delineated in 14 CFR Part 93, Subparts K and S, including, but not limited to, the reporting provisions and use or lose requirements;

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4. Dockets OST-1997-2368 and OST-1999-6686 shall remain open until further order of the Department; and

5. We will serve this order on all parties in Dockets OST-1997-2368 and OST-1999-6686.

By:

(SEAL)