Before the United States Department of Transportation

February 17, 2015

Proposal to Provide Essential Air Service at

CRESCENT CITY, CALIFORNIA

Under 49 U.S.C. 41731 et seq.

Docket OST-1997-2649

Proposal of SeaPort Airlines, Inc. to Provide 

Essential Air Service at Crescent City, California

By Order 2014-11-18, the U.S. Department of Transportation (“the Department”) requested 

proposals from carriers interested in providing Essential Air Service (“EAS”) at Crescent City, 

California no later than December 22, 2014. At the request of interested parties, on December 19, 

2014 the Department extended the deadline for proposals until January 15, 2015. On January 13, 

2015, the deadline was further extended until February 17, 2015. 

SeaPort Airlines, Inc. respectfully submits this timely proposal to provide subsidized EAS at 

Crescent City that includes 37 weekly roundtrip flights as follows:

• 25 weekly roundtrips to Portland International Airport

• 12 weekly roundtrips to Sacramento International Airport.

SeaPort will provide the above service using 9-passenger Pilatus PC-12 aircraft. At the above level 

of frequency, approximately 34,600 annual seats would be available in the market which is

comparable to the number offered presently by SkyWest Airlines. 

SeaPort Airlines is requesting subsidy in the amount of $7,691,469 per year and this proposal is 

being submitted on the basis of a four-year term.

After this proposal is docketed, SeaPort Airlines will schedule a meeting with the community to 

explain our proposal in detail and answer any questions. In the interim and throughout the carrier 

selection process, questions regarding this proposal should be directed to:

Timothy Sieber

Executive Vice President

SeaPort Airlines, Inc.

7505 NE Airport Way

Portland, OR 97218

(971) 340-1716

tsieber@seaportair.com
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February 17, 2015 Page | 2

Discussion of Proposal 

Company Introduction

SeaPort Airlines, Inc. is a FAA certified scheduled airline based in Portland, Oregon with over 

30 years of experience in commercial aviation. In addition to Portland, the company has 

operational bases at Memphis, Tennessee (MEM); San Diego, California (SAN); and Juneau, 

Alaska (JNU).

Over 300 professionals provide service to 27 cities across ten states with a fleet of 21 aircraft. 

The company’s route map as of the date of this proposal is provided below:1

The primary focus of SeaPort Airlines is to provide affordable and reliable air service to rural 

and underserved communities. Service to 13 of the communities on our route map is provided 

under the EAS program: Muscle Shoals, Alabama; Tupelo and Greenville, Mississippi; 

Pendleton, Oregon; El Dorado, Hot Springs, and Harrison, Arkansas; Salina and Great Bend, 

Kansas; Jackson, Tennessee; and Imperial/El Centro and Visalia, California.

 1 Service to Greenville, MS begins on March 16, 2015.
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February 17, 2015 Page | 3

 

Increasing our presence in California is a strategic focus of SeaPort Airlines. This strategy was 

lauched this past December with inauguration of our first international service, connecting San 

Diego International Airport with San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico. Earlier this month, SeaPort 

began providing EAS at Visalia, California, offering service to both Burbank Bob Hope Airport 

(Los Angeles Basin) and Sacramento International Airport.

Once SeaPort Airlines is awarded an EAS contract and service is launched, we develop a 

partnership with each community by participating in local events, donation of tickets, on-going

dialogue with airport management and community leaders, and presentations to civic clubs and 

other similar organizations.

We also have a reputation of being responsive to community needs, affording them the 

opportunity to comment on schedule changes before they become effective. The most recent 

example occurred at Imperial/El Centro, CA, where a departure time from Burbank was moved 

10 minutes later to better accommodate connections with a Southwest Airlines flight from 

Sacramento.

Proposed Service Patterns & Illustrative Flight Schedules

SeaPort proposes to to connect Crescent City to the national air transportation system via 

Portland International Airport (25 weekly roundtrips) and Sacramento International Airport (12 

weekly roundtrips).

An Illustrative schedule is as follows.

It is important to point out that the schedules shown are for illustrative purposes only. If selected 

to provide EAS at Crescent City, SeaPort Airlines will solicit comments from the community on 

proposed flight schedules prior to publishing them for sale to the public and, as much as 

practical, incorporate community comments into the final schedule. 

As illustrated, such a schedule would to provide benefits to a wide cross-section of travelers at 

Del Norte County Airport. Specifically:

• Service to two hubs, both providing strong connectivity with large network airlines and 

low-fare airlines. As SeaPort Airlines demonstrated in other EAS markets, dual-hub 

service patterns are similar to greater flight frequencies outlined above, as the increased 

customer options can result in more residents and visitors using their local airport.

Flight # Depart Arrive Stops Frequency Flight # Depart Arrive Stops Frequency

TO: PORTLAND, OR FROM: PORTLAND, OR

5800 5:30am 6:55am 0 ExSun 5801 8:30am 9:55am 0 ExSun

5802 9:45am 11:10am 0 Daily 5803 1:45pm 3:10pm 0 ExSat

5852 1:30pm 2:55pm 0 ExSun 5853 4:15pm 5:40pm 0 Daily

5804 6:10pm 7:35pm 0 ExSat 5805 9:30pm 10:55pm 0 ExSat

TO: SACRAMENTO, CA FROM: SACRAMENTO, CA

5850 6:15am 7:30am 0 ExSun 5851 8:00am 9:15am 0 ExSun

5854 4:00pm 5:15pm 0 ExSat 5855 5:45pm 7:05pm 0 ExSat

Illustrative Flight Schedule for Crescent City, California
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• At Portland, travelers will be able to access a growing portfolio of nonstop international 

destinations including Tokyo, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Reykjavik.2

 

• Schedules to both Sacramento and Portland will permit same-day return trips from 

Crescent City, saving travelers time and money.

• Schedules to/from Portland International Airport were constructed to optimize 

connectivity with Alaska Airlines, which offers more departures and nonstop destinations 

from PDX than any other airline, and interlines with SeaPort allowing single-ticket 

itineraries and baggage check-in through to the customer’s final destination.

• Two aircraft would overnight at Del Norte County Airport, allowing an early morning 

departure to both Sacramento and Portland.

Finally, it is important to note that SeaPort has current operations at both Portland and 

Sacramento. As such, SeaPort is well positioned to initiate service at Crescent City in a timely 

manner.

Span of Service at PDX & SMF

The maps below illustrates nonstop destinations served from Portland International Airport and 

Sacramento International Airport.

3 Nonstop service operated by interline partner, Alaska 

Airlines, is differentiated by red lines.

Nonstop Destinations Served from Portland International Airport 

June 2015

 2 Frankfurt and Reykjavik are summer seasonal only.

3 Published schedules for June 2015 as of February 10, 2015.
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Nonstop Destinations Served from Sacramento International Airport 

June 2015

Aircraft

SeaPort Airlines’ proposal to provide EAS at Crescent City assumes operations using Pilatus 

PC-12 aircraft. 

 

The Pilatus PC-12 is a single-engine turboprop manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland. 

The aircraft, which seats nine passengers and is operated by a crew of two pilots, is pressurized 

and can cruise at over 300 mph. The speed of the aircraft makes it ideal for the segments the 

length of CEC-PDX (275 sm) and CEC-SMF (255 sm).

SeaPort Airlines has extensive experience operating the PC-12. This aircraft was the platform 

that operations in Lower 48 were launched in June 2008, and remained part of the company’s 

fleet until February 2014. We anticipate no challenges returning this aircraft to our active fleet.

To achieve this, SeaPort Airlines has retained an aircraft broker to source Pilatus PC-12s 

should we be awared the contract to provide EAS at Crescent City, California. 
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A total of three PC-12s are being sought: two for operating the schedule outlined above and one 

spare to ensure schedule integrity during scheduled and unscheduled maintenance.

Fares & Pricing

SeaPort Airlines projections of traffic and revenue in this proposal assumed use of a low-fare 

pricing model that allows for the customer’s fare from Crescent City to be an “add-on” to the fare 

from the hub and still result in a reasonable overall travel cost.

The table illustrates the price points SeaPort would offer at Crescent City to both Portland and 

Sacramento, along with the rules and restrictions applicable to the three basic fare families of 

our company.

Proposed Fares at Crescent City, California

(Both Portland, OR & Sacramento, CA)

During the first 30 days of service, SeaPort Airlines would offer an introductory fare of $49 

(including all government required taxes and fees) that would be available on every seat and 

flight. This strategy incentivizes the market to try SeaPort’s services for a reasonable price.

Additional Special Pricing & Products

In addition to the fares listed above, customers in Crescent City will have access to new 

products that SeaPort is rolling out over the next six months: 

• Commuter Books that offer 10 tickets at a discounted price and waiver of certain 

restrictions.

• Student stand-by fares for $25 each-way, based on available seats.

• Negotiated fares with local companies that allow them to realize progressive savings 

based on level of activity and/or share of their air travel budget committed to the local air 

service.

• Discounted travel for economic development or quality of life purpose that benefit the 

community, such as transportation of site selectors and recruitment of specialist doctors 

by the hospital.

Fully Refundable Change For Fee No Refund or Changes

Fare (including all taxes & fees) $139 $99-$69 $49

Advance Purchase (Days before departure) 0 3-7 7-14

Refunds Permitted Not Permitted Not Permitted

Fee to Change Itinerary $0 $25 Not Permitted

Access to Express Security Lane at PDX & SMF Yes No No

Stand-by For Earlier Flight Same Day $0 $0 Not Permitted

# of Free Checked Bags (50 lbs each) 2 1 1

Fee for Oversize/Excess Checked Bags $35 $35 $35

Fee for Golf Bags (Regardless of # checked bags) $35 $35 $35

Service Fee for Booking at Airport/via Phone $0 $0 $25
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Global Distribution & Interline Connectivity

SeaPort Airlines tickets may be purchased by calling our toll-free reservation number, online at 

www.SeaPortAirlines.com, or any travel agent. In addition, customers can also book using any

of the major online travel agencies and meta-searchers such as Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia, 

Kayak, Hipmunk, and CheapoAir. 

SeaPort’s schedules and availability are published in four of the top five top global distribution 

systems (GDS): Amadeus, Apollo, Sabre, and Worldspan. Within the next three months, 

SeaPort’s distribution will be enhanced via a code-share agreement with Hahn Air that results in 

availability being published in secondary GDSs throughout Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Interline Agreements

In early 2014, SeaPort Airlines became the first US airline to be fully hosted on the Amadeus 

Altéa reservation platform. This advanced system is used by over 300 airlines across the globe, 

including leading airlines as Air France/KLM, Qantas, Emirates, Korean Airlines, Lufthansa, and 

Avianca. 

Altea provides SeaPort with unsurpassed capabilities relative to most independent regional 

airlines. This includes interline ticketing, baggage check-in to the customers final destination, 

Inter-Airline Thru Check-In (IATCI) allowing SeaPort agents to issue boarding passes on 

participating connecting airlines, SMS notifications advising customers of schedule changes and 

flight irregularities, ability for customers to make changes to reservations via the Internet, and 

online check-in.

The most important feature of Altéa for communities such as Crescent City, however, is that it 

allows SeaPort Airlines to enter into bilateral interline e-ticketing and baggage agreements with 

other airlines.

4 Presently, SeaPort has interline agreements with Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian 

Airlines. We anticipate completing an additional agreement with one of the “Big Three” major 

U.S. airlines by the end of 2015 and maintain an on-going dialogue with a number of domestic 

and international airlines regarding interline agreements.

SeaPort Airlines Website

In addition to reservations, SeaPort Airlines offers rental cars and hotels on its website. SeaPort 

is set to enhance this offering in 2015 with a dynamic booking process for business trips and 

vacations that will allow customers to book flights (including those of interline partners), rental 

car, and hotel in a single transaction and all from a single screen. This will be included as part of 

an overall makeover of the company’s website that will be designed for better functionality with 

mobile devices.

 4 Bilateral agreements allow both participating carriers to make reservations and issue tickets on each other’s flights. A unilateral 

agreement only allows one carrier to sell and issue tickets.
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Sales & Marketing

SeaPort Airlines’ proposal to provide EAS at Crescent City, California includes a commitment to 

spend $50,000 annually on advertising and promotional activities. In addition, the Port of 

Portland has committed to providing up to $10,000 in supplemental marketing funds that will be 

used to promote PDX as a connecting hub to Crescent City area travelers.

Advertising

Advertising activities will focus on radio, print, online, and outdoor (i.e., roadside signs and 

stadium boards) across the reasonable catchment area of Del Norte County Regional Airport. 

On a limited basis, we may purchase commercials during local television news broadcasts. 

Sales & Community Relations

Advertising will be supported by aggressive and sustained sales activities focused on 

companies and organizations in the Crescent City area with a need for reliable and affordable 

travel options. The sales message would include explanation of the value proposition of flying 

compared to driving, connectivity possibilities, service enhancements, special fares (ie., 

commuter books and negotiated corporate contracts), and the importance of local businesses to 

support local air service. Costs of sales activities (i.e., printing, travel, etc.) are not included in 

the $50,000 marketing communications budget.

The plans for advertising and community relations are preliminary in nature and would be 

developed into a comprehensive plan if awarded the EAS contract and only after consultation 

with the airport manager, Chamber of Commerce, and other economic and community 

development organizations. 
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Subsidy Request Calculations

The following pages provide projections and calculations to support the request of SeaPort 

Airlines for annual subsidy of $7,691,469 to provide EAS at Crescent City, California.

Respectfully submitted,

Timothy Sieber

Executive Vice President

SeaPort Airlines, Inc.

February 17, 2015
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Proforma Data

Operating Projections

Average Sector Length (sm) 269

Scheduled Departures 3,848

Scheduled Block Hours 5,243.3

Projected Completion Factor 98.5%

Projected Completed Departures 3,790

Projected Completed Block Hours 5,164.7

Passenger Projections

Projected Passengers 16,875

Passengers per Departure 4.5

Projected Average Fare $68.79

Revenue Passenger Miles (RPMs) 4,531,166

Available Seat Miles (ASMs) 9,159,673

Projected Load Factor 49.5%

Financial Projections

Revenues

Passenger Ticket Revenues $1,160,850

Ancillary Revenues $29,021

Total $1,189,871

Expenses

Flight Operations $774,703

Aircraft Ownership/Lease $1,152,000

Fuel & Oil $1,624,293

Sales & Marketing $50,000

Traffic Servicing $1,483,796

Insurance $108,458

Engine & Airframe Reserves $903,820

Maintenance $1,455,091

Sub-Total - Direct $7,552,160

Indirect $906,259

Total Expenses $8,458,420

Projected Operating Profit/(Loss) ($7,268,549)

Subsidy Calculations

Operating Loss $7,268,549

Economic Return @ 5% $422,921

Required Subsidy $7,691,469

Subsidy per Departure $2,029.26

Subsidy per Passenger $455.79

Avg. Enplanements per Operational Day 27.0

12 Weekly RTs: Crescent City - Sacramento

25 Weekly RTs: Crescent City - Portland

OST-1997-2649