Greenland’s Capital Expects Air Service Increase
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The agency will allow airlines to add five more round-trip flights beyond the airport's 1,250-mile perimeter rule.
The Department of Transportation tentatively awarded new slots for routes outside of Washington Reagan National Airport’s 1,250-mile perimeter rule on Wednesday. Earlier this year, Congress allocated the additional slots as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024.
Five round-trip flights are set to be awarded with eight airlines applying. The outlined criteria for choosing air carriers were as follows: The exemptions must enhance options for nonstop travel to “beyond-perimeter airports” that do not have nonstop service from Reagan National as of the signing of the bill, or they must have a positive impact on the overall level of competition in the markets.
Four of the slot pairs were made available to nonlimited incumbent carriers while the remaining slot was available to one airline qualifying for status as a limited incumbent carrier at the airport.
Both American and Delta won their respective proposals for long-distance flights from Reagan National. American plans to serve San Antonio with daily Airbus A321 flights.
Delta is set to serve its Seattle hub with daily service from the D.C. airport on an Airbus A321neo. The airline will compete directly with Alaska on the same route.
“American would like to thank the city and community of San Antonio, the San Antonio International Airport, U.S. Senator Cruz and the entire Texas delegation for its strong partnership and support of this effort. I’d also like to thank DOT for recognizing the overwhelming value this route will bring to a previously unserved market,” said American executive vice president Nate Gatten in a Wednesday news release. “We look forward to DOT issuing a final order so we can begin connecting more members of Military City USA with our nation’s capital and our industry-leading global network.”
Alaska and Southwest were also awarded new routes. Alaska will add service between Reagan National and San Diego on a Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. The Seattle-based carrier also serves San Diego from Washington Dulles.
San Diego is the largest unserved market from the airport, previously flown by US Airways before the route was axed in 2014.
“Alaska is proud to connect these two critical markets and looks forward to providing our premium service to guests in San Diego, Washington, D.C. and across the West Coast,” the airline said as part of a statement.
Southwest will operate new flights between Washington and Las Vegas following the slot award. The carrier will go head-to-head with American on the route.
Even with its nearby hub at Washington Dulles, United is slated to take the fifth slot, adding more flights to San Francisco. The route would be the carrier’s second daily flight between the two cities.
The DOT’s decision remains tentative, the agency noted as part of a “show cause” order issued on Wednesday. A public comment period will be available prior to a final order. The agency’s order can be found here.
In addition to the carriers that received tentative awards, JetBlue, Spirit, and Frontier applied for one of the five slots. In a July statement, Breeze — which does not currently serve the airport — called the reauthorization legislation unfair and anti-competitive because it excludes nonincumbent airlines.
JetBlue scaled back capacity on some of its existing routes from Reagan National during the upcoming winter months.
Editor’s Note: This story was updated on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024 at 9:24 p.m. ET to include a quote from Alaska Airlines.
Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com back in February 2013 and has amassed considerable experience in the aviation sector. His work has been featured in several publications and news outlets, including CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. During his time in the industry, he's worked in roles pertaining to airport/airline operations while holding a B.S. in Air Transportation Management from Arizona State University along with an MBA. Ryan has experience in several facets of the industry from behind the yoke of a Cessna 172 to interviewing airline industry executives. Ryan works for AirlineGeeks' owner FLYING Media, spearheading coverage in the commercial aviation space.
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