217 El m St r e et / O il City, PA 16301 - 1412 / 814.677 . 3 1 52 / FAX 814.677.5206 / 800.483.6264 / www.oi l region.or g

May 22,2014

Mr. Kevi n Schl emmer Chief, Essenti al Air Service & Domestic Anal y sis Division United States Department of Trans p o rtation 1200 New Jersey Ave SE Washington , D.C. 20590 r , .. '

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Dear Mr
. Schl e mmer; I am co rresponding in response to the Tentative Order 2014

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- 26 serv ed on April 24 , 20 14 regarding termination of EAS eligibility for the communities of Franklin/Oil C ity, Penn sylvani a b y Silver Airlines d.b.a. United Express. The enplanements for these commu nities are b e lo w te n (10) per day. The prim ary issue faced in Franklin and Oil City has been , and c ontinue s to be , absence of dependable air serv ice l argel y due to the fact that the air c arriers p ro v ide on ly transiting airc r aft and l andings are substantiall y affected b y w eather conditions. Indeed the current p rovider, Silver Airways , (formerly Gulfstre am International ) has man ag e d to c an c e l 22.8% of its f

l ights duri ng th e months of December thru February , each year si nce 200 8 , fo r weather re as ons. The pas t year saw an across the board cance ll ation av erage o f 1 0

. 8% o f their f li ghts for reasons ran g i ng from mai ntenance to operations and weather caus in g hundreds o f passengers to either drive to the hub or be transported by taxi costing them lost connectiv i ty du e to re booking

. Often these passengers go away and do not try the airl i ne agai n af ter the ir expenences. The air carrier (s) have b asicall y de nied this community the essential part of E ssential Air Service b y fai l ing to develop a schedule putting a plane in place to m ake a dependable departure to a hub airport enabli ng l ocal pass e ngers a chance at reasonab l e conn ections wi th eno u gh c o nsiste n cy to b u i l d a l oyal market. An air carrier vice preside nt acknowledge d as much in 2 010 when he in quired if we h ad a hangar to o v ernight an aircraft because in worki ng on an air s ervice bi d for Franklin/Oil City it was very apparent that an overnight aircr af t w ith serv ice to Pi tts burg h was needed to assure the community ' s ab i lity to be within the n e cessary per pass e ng er c ost stru cture. Thi s airport u sed its f unds to build a hangar for that purpose , howe v er the aircr af t and the s ervice to Pittsburgh n ever materialized

. The ten (10 ) enplanements per d ay issue w ould n o t be a factor here if we had an ori g inating aircraft pro v iding this community E s s e nti al Air Service

. Instead the air carrier persisted in using Cle v eland as a hub when all studies hav e sho wn that 99% of th e local area travel market prefers Pitt sburgh.As the lead agenc y for economic development and tourism promotion , hav ing reliable air serv ice

is a key essential part of marketing this region to new prospective companies and existing employers who conduct business travel. The severe impact of loss of this serv ice would be economically hurtful. The Industrial Parks are marketed to attract and retain businesses to our area as " Global and Regional " Market Access. The second largest energ y field in the world , Fuels and Natural Gas Industry has made Pennsylvania the second largest producer in the United States that's poised to revolutionize the business. Innovation and reinvention as the " Birthplace of the Oil Industry " are roadways with Airports, Rail Access , and Highways as the streamline to our future. Our location is perfectly situated in the Northeastern United States g i ving businesses access to top U.S. markets as well as markets around the world. Becoming a part of the natural gas industry ' s supply chain requires an understanding of the needs and requirements of those supply chain industries. The Venango Regional Airport is vital to our continued business efforts to attract new businesses to our communities. In tourism it is very advantageous to have air service as many of our fairs , festivals, are heavil y attended with the annual Applefest in Franklin seeing upwards of 100 , 000 v isitors. We are marketing this region as an outdoor recreation destination and reliable air serv ice makes it easier for visitors to have the opportunity to get here. The Oil Region Alliance also manages the Oil Region National Heritage Area and works hard in educating and exposing our heritage to visitors to this region. Reliable air serv ice can be so instrumental in helping the ORA complete our mission

. We ask only for our fair chance at truly essential air service and , on behalf o f the Oil Heritage Region served by the Venango Regional Airport , I ask that you gi v e fav orable consideration to this appeal to allow continued air service to the communities of Franklin and Oil City. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to give me a call at (814) 677-3152.