1

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) 

### CommunityAIR

- working towards a clean, green waterfront

July 8, 2011

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Re: Application of PORTER AIRLINES INC. for an exemption pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5

40109 and a foreign air carrier permit pursuant to 49 U.S.C. $41302 (Canada

- U.S.)

Docket No. OST

- 2007

- 27402

_____________________________________________________________________

We write in response to the above

.

Currently, that exemption expires on July 10, 2011.

CAIR submits that, until certain question s are satisfactorily answered, a further extension of

the exemption should be denied, given the questionable validity of material evidence

presented to your Department in support of the original application.

For the same reason, CAIR further submits that , until those questions are satisfactorily

answered, Porter should not be issued a foreign air carrier permit.

In its original submission for a foreign air carrier permit, Porter Airlines tendered a letter of

support from the Toronto Port Authority (TPA) t o claim that the Toronto Island Airport

was open for business to U.S. airlines.

It was the only evidence presented to support th at claim.

That letter, dated May 10, 2007, was signed by Lisa Raitt the then CEO of the TPA. It

purported to assure your depa rtment as follows:

“The TPA has never denied a U.S. carrier access to TCCA. The most recent

application by a U.S. carrier to operate from TCCA was filed by US Airways Group,

Inc. (“US Airways”) in December 2006. TPA promptly granted US Airways’ request

for access to TCCA.”2

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) The Raitt letter attaches correspondence between the TPA and US Airways, purporting to

grant rights to US Airways to fly the Toronto

- Philadelphia route from the Toronto Island

Airport.

However, based a report in Bloomberg News, the TPA could not have granted US Airways’

request for access to the airport for the Toronto

- Philadelphia route, as. the TPA had

previously agreed, in its 2005 Commercial Carrier Operating Agreement with Porter, to

protect Porter from competition on certain route s.

Toronto

- Philadelphia was one of those routes, as reported by Bloomberg News on October

20, 2009. That report includes this:

Porter’s agreement with the authority barred regional carriers, including Jazz Air,

from flying between the airport and New York , Chicago, Boston, Washington,

Philadelphia [our emphasis], Cincinnati, Detroit and Cleveland

Your Department based its decision to grant a temporary exemption to Porter on this sole

evidence of U.S. carrier access to the Toronto Island Airport . This is f rom its decision of

June 20, 2007:

“ On May 10, the Department received a letter from the TPA stating that it has never

denied a U.S. carrier access to TCCA. It states that the most recent application by a

U.S. carrier to operate from TCCA was filed by US Ai rways in December 2006 and

that this request was promptly granted. The TPA states that no other requests have

been made by any other U.S. carrier for access to TCCA. ”

These questions require answers.

1. Just what were the terms of the 2005 CCOA between Porter and the TPA?

2. Was US Airways aware of those terms?

3. If not, why did the TPA not advise US Airways of it?

4. If it did, why were these letters prepared?

5. And why did the TPA not advise the Department of Transportation of this apparent

prohibition, instead of s ubmitting documents which appear to have misled your

Department as to the true situation?

6. How valid is Porter’s current exemption from the foreign air carrier permit

requirement , based, as it was, on apparently incorrect material information?

Without defin itive answers to these questions, we submit that your Department should

refuse Porter Airlines’ request for a further extension, and refuse a foreign air carrier permit.3

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) Respectfully submitted,

Brian Iler

Chair, CommunityAIR

Email: biler@ilercampbell.com

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on this 8th day of July , 2011, a copy of the foregoing Application of

Porter Airlines Inc. for Renewal of Exemption was served by electronic mail on the

following :

Stephen J. Morrissey

Managing Director, International and

Regulatory Affairs

United Air Lines

1025 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.

Suite 1210

Washington, DC 20036

Steve.morrissey@united.com

R. Bruce Keiner, Jr.

Lorraine B. Halloway

Counsel for Continental Airlines

Crowell & Moring

1001 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20004

rbkeiner@crowell.com

Lhalloway@crowell.com

Dan Weiss

Continental Airlines, Inc.

Gove rnment ~ffairs

- 8' Floor

1600 Smith Street

Dept. HQSGV

Houston, TX 77002

dan.weiss@coair.corn

Anita Mosner

Jennifer Nowak

Counsel for United Parcel Service

Holland Sc Knight4

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) 2099 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Suite 100

Washington, D.C. 20006

Anita.~nosner@hltlaw.co~n

Jennifer.nowak@hltlaw.com

Alexander Van Der Bellen

Jeff Morgan

Sametta C. Barnett

Delta Air Lines

1212 New York Avenue, NW

Suite 200

Washington, D.C. 20005

Sascha.vanderbellen@delta.com

sametta.c.bamett@delta.com

Jeff.morgan@delta.com

Carl B. Nelson, Jr.

Associate General Counsel

American Airlines, Inc.

1 10 1 Seventeenth Street, N. W.

Suite 600

Washington, D.C. 2 0036

carl.nelson@aa.com

John L. Richardson

Counsel for Alnerijet International

John L. Richardson, P.L.L.C.

555 1 3S~tree~t, N .W.

Suite 420 West

Washington, D.C. 20004

jrichardson@johnlrichardson.com

Joim Palo

Vice President, Planning Military

and Government

Evergreen International Airlines, Inc.

3850 Three Mile Lane

McMinnville, OR 97128

john.palo@evergreenairlines.com

charters@evergreenairlines.com

Malcolln L. Benge

Counsel for World Airways and North

American Airlines

Zuckert, Scoutt & Rasenberger, L.L.P.

888 Seventeenth Street, N.W.

Suite 7005

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) Washinston, DC 20006

mlbenge@zsrlaw.com

Angeline Garbuzinski

Legal and Regulatory Affairs

Federal Express Corporation

3620 Hacks Cross Road

Building B, 31d Floor

Memphis, TN 38125

anbird@fedex.com

Pierre Murphy

Counsel for Brendan A irways, L.L.C.

d/b/a USA 3000

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.

Suite 590

Washington, D.C. 20036

- 6802

pmurphy@lopmurphy.com

Thomas E. Fosko

Vice President

Air Transport International LLC

2800 Cantrell Road

Little Rock, AR 72202

tom.fosko@airtransport.cc

Howard Kass

Managing Director & Associate General

Counsel

US Airways

1401 H Street, N.W.

Suite 1075

Washington, D.C. 20006

howard

- kass@usairways.com

Aaron Goerlich

Counsel for Allegiant Air and

Ryan International Airlines

Garofalo Goerlich Hainbach PC

1200 New Hampshire Avenue NW

Suite 800

Washington, D.C. 20036

- 6802

agoe rlich@ggh

- airlaw.com

Robert E. Cohn

Counsel for Frontier Airlines

Hogan Lovells

555 13"' Street, N.W.6

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) Washington, D.C. 20004

robert.cohn@hoganlovells.com

Robert P. Silverberg

Jeffrey Johnson

Counsel fo r ABX Air

Silverberg, Goldl~lat&i Bikoff, L.L.P.

1 10 1 30th Street, N.W.

Suite 120

Washington, D.C. 20007

rsilverberg@sgbdc.com

jjohnson@sgbdc.corn

Marshall S. Sinick

Counsel for Alaska Airlines

and Florida West International Airways

Squire, Sanders & Dempsey

120 1 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.

Suite 500

Washington, D.C. 20004

msinick@ssd.com

Stephen H. Lachter

Counsel for Astar Air Cargo

Lachter & Clements LLP

1150 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Ste. 900

Washington, DC 20036

slachter@lachter

- clements.com

Russell E. Pommer

Associate General Counsel and

Director of Regulatory Affairs

Atlas Air, Inc.

1747 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W

Su ite 875

Washington, D.C 20006

rpommer@atlasair.com

Mark W. Atwood

Counsel for Kalitta Air

Cozen O'Connor

Army Navy Building

1627 1 Street, NW

Suite 1 100

Washington, D.C. 20006

matwood@cozen.com

Jonathan B. Hill7

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) Counsel for Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue

Dow Lohnes

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.

Suite 800

Washington, DC 20036

- 6802

jhill@dowlohnes

John S Fredericksen

Vice President and General Counsel

MN Airl~ncsL, LC dba Sun Country

A~rllnes

1300 Mendota He~ghtsR oad

Mendota Heights, MN 55 120

john.fredericl~sen@suncountry.com

Joanne W. Young

Coiinsel for Spirit Airlines

Kirstein & Young PLLC

1001 Pennsylvania Ave. , N.W

Suite 600 South

Washington, DC 20004

jyoung@yltlaw.com

William C. Evans

John R. Mietus, Jr.

Counsel for Centurion Air Cargo and Trade

Winds Airlines

670 1 Democracy Blvd.

Suite 300

Bethesda, MD 208 17

bill@mi etuslaw.com

john@mietuslaw.com

Lisa Dunn

Counsel for TEM Enterprises1 Xtra Airways1

Casino Express

33 1 7'h Street

Elko, NV 8980 1

ldunn@xtraairways.com

Stephen A. Alt er~nan

Counsel for Horizon Air

Meyers & Altennan

1220 Nineteenth Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20036

cargoair@aol.com

Eric Christensen8

7th Floor, 150 John Street

, Toronto M5V 3E3 Work: (416)598

- 0544 (direct) Vice President, Planning

Skywest Airlines

444 S. River Road

St. George, UT 84770

echristensen@skywest.com

Kevin Montgonlery

Peter Beckett

Polar Air Cargo, Inc

1747 Pennsylvan~a Avenue, N.W.

Suite 875

Washington, D.C 20006

kevin.montgomery@ polaraircargo.com

peter.beckett@polaraircargo.com

Jonathan Blank

J. Timothy Hobbs

Counsel for Capital Cargo International

Airlines

Kirkpatrick & Loclthart

Preston Gates Ellis LLP

160 1 K Street NW

Washington, DC 20006

jonathan.blank@klgates.com

tim.hobbs@kigates.com

John M. Allen

Director

Flight Standards Service

Federal Aviation Administration

800 Independence Avenue, S. W

Room 821

Washington, D.C. 20591

john.al len@faa.gov

John E. Gillick

David M. Endersbee

ZUCKERT, SCOUTT & RASENBERGER,

L.L.P.

888 Seventeenth Street, NW

Suite 700

Washington, DC 20006

Tel: (202) 973

- 7939

Fax: (202) 342

- 0683

Email: jegillick@zsrlaw.com

dmendersbee@zsrlaw.com