i' 

U.S.Depottmentof 

Transportation 

Off\ce of the Secretaty 

ofTransparlaflon 

Mr. Mark Cafferty 

President/CEO 

San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation 

530 B Street, 1• Floor 

San Diego, CA 92101 

Dear Mr, Cafferty: 

Thank you for your letter to Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, supporting the application 

of Alaska: Airlines, Inc., for two beyond-perimeter slot exemptions at Ronald Reagan 

Washington National Airport (DCA) to serve San Diego International Airport with one round 

trip per day from DCA.. Secretary LaHood asked tha.t I respond to your letter. 

Under authority granted in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. the 

U.S. Department ofTransportation will be awarding to new entrant or limited incumbent 

carriers a total of eisht slot exemptions at DCA, which would support four daily round trips. 

We received Alaska's application, which also proposes orie daily round trip to Portland. Oregon, 

on March 12. Other timely applications were received from Air Canada. proposing one round 

trip to Vancouver~ British Columbia; Frontier Airlines, one round trip to Colorado Springs and 

beyond to San Diego; J·etBiue Airlines. one round trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico. and one round 

trip to Austin, Texas~ Southwest Airlines~ one round trip to Austin and San Diego beyond; Sun 

Country Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas; ~.tnd Virgin America\, Inc .. , two round trips to San 

Francisco. 

As. the matter is still pending, I cannot cmnment on the merits of the points raised in your letter. 

However, I can assure you that aU applications the Department received will be given full and 

fair consideration ~d will be evaluated agaipst the selection criteria specified in the statute. 
... 

Page 2, Cafferty 

The Department's action an this matter is being administered through a public docket, which 

allows all interested parties the opportunity to comment. Following our nonnal practice, I am 

placing a copy of your letter and this response in docket nwnber DOT-2012-0029. 

I appreciate your inlere.st in this matter. 

Sincerely yours, 

Susan L. Kurland 

Assistant Secretary for 

Aviation and International Affairs 
San Diego 

Regional 

Economic 

Development 

Corporation 

Match 9, 2012 

The Honorable Ray LaHood 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

1200 New JerseyAve,,SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

RE: Alaska Airlines' application for SAN~DCA, DocketNo. DOT-OST.;2012·0029. 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

This letter is in support .of the application or Alaska Airlines to provide one ·dally roundtrip 

flight between Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA) and San Diego International 

Airport (SAN). 

San Diego is currently the largest market to the Washington D.C. area without .a nonstop 

route to DCA. A direct route from SAN to DCA will provide residents of Southern 

California, particularly those in the greater San. Diego region, with much more convenient 

access to our nation's capital. 

Alaska is the right carrier for this market. The airline is growing its. presence· in San Dieg<:>, 

recently adding four new destinations to jts SAN network. By this summer, Alaska and its 

regional carrier, Horizon Air, will provide an average of 19 dally flights from SANto nine 

destinations in the United States and Mexico. With Alaska's strong customer service focus, 

track record for operational reliability and its financial strength, the carrier is bestsuited to 

serve San Diego with nonstop service to DCA. 

San Dleg0 presents a compelling business\ case for daily service to DCA. The dense 

geographic corridor of San Diego's innovation research community has strong ties to 

federal departments such as the Food & Drug Administration and National Institutes of 

Health, among others. Further, San Diego is home to more active military pers<:>nnel than 

any region in the country, whichinherently ties our interests with those of the Department 

of Defense. Daily SAN·DCA service would reinforce the clear lirtkages already in place 

between these two majortransportation hubs. 

I respectfully urge you to grant Alaska Airlines' application to .serve SAN·DCA. Thank 

you for your consideration. 

s~ 

Mark Cafferty 

President & CEO 

San Diego Regionai.Economic Development Corporation 

.sandiegobusiness~org