Sharon Fisher

2743 3rd Avenue

Ketchikan, AK 99901

February 9, 2013

Lauralyn J. Remo

DOT Office of Aviation Analysis

Air Carrier Fitness Division X-56

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE

Washington, DC 20590

Dear Ms. Remo:

I am writing you this letter in support of Scott Air, LLC DBA Island Air Express in 

Alaska. I have lived in Southeast Alaska my entire life and I am an advocate for 

supporting local businesses. I have worked at the Ketchikan International Airport for 

almost five years and for the last two years I have been working for Island Air Express 

(IAX). With my professional experience in the aviation industry and my personal 

experience with people from both Ketchikan and Prince of Wales, I hope you will take 

my opinion into consideration. There are many reasons why IAX should be granted a 

certificate of public convenience and necessity. 

Reliability is an essential factor when considering which air carriers are fit to provide 

services to our rural communities. The United States mail is one of those services. IAX is 

the only airline located near the postal hub in Ketchikan that is capable of flying in 

inclement weather with the use of state-of-the-art instruments. There are many days that 

our petitioners, Pacific Airways and Promech, cannot fly due to visibility, wind, or icing 

conditions. If they cannot fly, they cannot provide a reliable service to Prince of Wales. 

At my previous job, Aero Services, I assisted Pacific Airways in the pickup and delivery

of their mail from the post office to their airport facility. In the winter months, it was not 

uncommon to see the same mail I picked up on Tuesday to still be sitting in the hangar on 

Friday. Meanwhile, IAX planes were coming and going without delay. That is not fair to 

the residents of Prince of Wales nor is it fair to the reputation of the United States Postal 

Service. Many people depend on the mail for medications, government checks, supplies, 

and other necessities to maintain daily activities in these rural communities. It makes no 

sense to deny people their mail when there is a safe, reliable, and capable airline located 

on their island. 

Our competition serves many other communities on Prince of Wales, but we are the only 

carrier to provide service to Klawock. For IAX, this is not about business. It’s not about 

taking money out of the pockets of our fellow air carriers. It is about providing our loyal 

customers and their neighbors the right to get their mail rain or shine. This is about giving 

back to the communities that have allowed us to grow into the airline we are today. With 

this certificate, IAX can give the residents of Prince of Wales the timely mail service they

deserve.
February 9, 2013

Page 2

In regards to the accusatory document presented by Pacific Airways and Promech’s 

representative, Hank Myers, I would like to refute a few of his claims. While I am sure 

that my employer has already taken care of these false allegations, I want you to know 

that IAX personnel are most certainly fit to manage a certificated operation. The owners 

and management down to the customer service representatives all take pride in their jobs. 

It is no one’s intention to provide unfair and deceptive business practices as Mr. Myers 

had stated. The increasingly large number of passengers that choose IAX over the 

competition will also vouch for that. The fact that our competition had to hire a 

muckraker to find something wrong with our operations goes to show that they are not in 

business to serve people, but are only in it for their own personal greed. 

Living on an island in Alaska has its obstacles and the mission of IAX is to help alleviate 

the barriers of travel for our residents. We do not have any interline agreements with 

other airlines, nor is it possible to book a reservation with us through any other website 

than our own. One diminutive issue with our toll free phone number and the fine print 

regulations that go along with it is no reason for denial of our certification. Mr. Myers 

will stop at nothing to prevent us from growing our business. Our IFR service gives us an 

advantage over the competition, but that is not unfair, that is how business works. His 

attacks are misguided and do not reflect on the amazing service that IAX provides. 

When the Interisland Ferry breaks down, IAX delivers their parts needed to fix the boat. 

When other carriers cancel, IAX adds extra flights to get all passengers to their 

destinations. When people call and need miracles to happen, IAX tries harder than any 

other airline to make that happen. We are truly a great company with amazing people that 

work hard to serve the wonderful residents of Southern Southeast Alaska. With this 

certificate, we can contribute the same reliability of our passenger service to the United 

States Mail. 

The bottom line here is that it’s not about which company is going to profit from 

delivering mail to outlying communities. While our petitioners may lose some revenue if 

we begin mail operations, the benefits of receiving mail on a daily basis for most 

residents far exceeds the cost to the other carriers. IAX’s main goal is to give Alaskans a 

reliable carrier no matter what we are transporting. I strongly urge you to think about the 

people in our communities and how important this is to them. It is with great confidence 

that I guarantee Island Air Express is more than fit to continue serving our communities 

and become certificated so that we may serve them better. 

Thank you for your consideration on this matter.

Sincerely, 

Sharon Fisher
February 9, 2013

Page 3