August 26, 2014 The Honorable Anthony R. Foxx Secretary · Department ofTransportation · 1200 NewJersey Avenue SE Washington, DC 20590 . t,

RE: Norwegian AirInternational- DocketNo. OST-2013-0204

. ' Dear Secretary Foxx: As pilots working for Norwegian Air International and its affiliates, we are writing in support ofNorwegian Air International's (NAI) exemption and foreign air carrierpermit applications currently pending before the U.S. Department of Transportation. We urge the Departmentto grantNAI's applications without further delay to allow us to bring this exciting new service to U.S. markets. As pilots for Norwegian, we can assure you that the allegations made by pilots unions and others calling into question Norwegian's laborpractices and safety records

· have no basis in fact orreality. First, our salaries are competitive with our peers around the globe. As youknow, operating a 787 Dreamlinerrequires thousands ofhours ofpilot experience, and ourexperience is
very much in demand around the world. This competitive advantage for pilots redounds no matter where we are based. Indeed, pilots based in Asia and Europe with our levels of experience, often make far more than their unionized pilots in the U.S. Second, ourworking conditions are good. We have the flexibility to fly schedules convenient to us. We enjoy competitive working conditions wherever we are based, which

are subject to local employment laws and labor standards. Indeed, 

### in the U.S. ourpilots have the right to unionizejust like pilots in otherbases across the world, subjectto local andcountry laws in effect. Third, we are fully licensed and qualified pilots. NAI's pilots
are subject to the oversight and licensing requirements ofIreland

- one ofthe most robust aviation safety oversight organizations in the world. The company fully complies with European safety standards (EASA) and all its crews are trained according

. to EU standards and the company's own additional training programs. We have well-trained and experiencedpilots on long-haul with several thousand flight hours from major airlines all overthe world. Fourth, to suggest that any ofus would compromise safety simply because ofour employment arrangements and risk our lives orthose ofourpassengers, orrisk our licenses offends us personally and professionally. Notto mention that to suggest a lesser level ofsafety based on our particularemployment arrangement would fly inthe face ofestablish norms under the Chicago Convention and the U.S-EU Open Skies Agreement. This criticism does not only hit the company, but also all ofus, who every day have ourpassengers' and co-workers' safety as our main priority. We, pilots hired by Norwegian, would strongly urge DOTto renounce the misleading information about our operations and the false claims about our safety standards. We are among a growing cadre ofpilots (including Americans} working for Norwegian and are anxiously awaiting the launch of NAI'stransatlantic service. Ourwork environment is positive, cooperative and energetic. We appreciate the opportunity to work in the state-of-the-art Boeing 787 aircraft with its many outstanding features, making the overall flying experience extremely pleasant for both customers and crew. We urge the U.S. Department ofTransportation to swiftly approve NAI's exemption and foreign air carrierpermit applications. Letus continue to fly- in accordance with the Open Skies regime. Sincerely,

Name



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