BEFORE THE
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, D.C.

_________________________________________ ) Application of ) ) TRANSCARGA INT'L AIRWAYS, C.A. ) DOCKET OST-2001-11231 ) for amendment/renewal of an exemption ) (Venezuela-U.S. charter, all-cargo service) ) _________________________________________ )

APPLICATION OF TRANSCARGA INT'L AIRWAYS, C.A.
FOR AMENDMENT AND RENEWAL OF AN EXEMPTION

Communications with respect to this document should be sent to:

John R. Mietus, Jr. Law Office of John Mietus, LLC 6701 Democracy Blvd., Suite 300 Bethesda, MD 20817-7500 (202) 747-5212 - Telephone (240) 396-5362 - Fax john@mietuslaw.com

Counsel for TRANSCARGA INT'L AIRWAYS, C.A.

NOTICE: Any person may support or oppose this application by filing an answer and serving a copy of the answer on counsel for Transcarga and upon persons served with this application no later than May 14, 2012.

April 27, 2012BEFORE THE
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, D.C.

_________________________________________ ) Application of ) ) TRANSCARGA INT'L AIRWAYS, C.A. ) DOCKET OST-2001-11231 ) April 27, 2012 for amendment/renewal of an exemption ) (Venezuela-U.S. charter, all-cargo service) ) _________________________________________ )

APPLICATION OF TRANSCARGA INT'L AIRWAYS, C.A.
FOR AMENDMENT AND RENEWAL OF AN EXEMPTION

Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 40109(c), Transcarga International Airways,

C.A. ("Transcarga") respectfully requ ests that the Department: (1) amend

the above-captioned exemption, granted by Notice of Action Taken dated

April 17, 2007 (the “Notice”), to remove the condition requiring that

Transcarga use wet-leased aircraft; (2 ) renew and extend for an additional,

one-year period the exemption as so amended; 1 and (3) grant such additional

or other relief as the Department may deem necessary or appropriate. So

that the Department may have a complete record on which to act, Transcarga

is restating 2 and updating all of the information required by 14 C.F.R. §

1 Transcarga applied on April 14, 2008 to renew the exemption granted by the Notice and invoked the automatic extension provisions of 5 U.S.C. § 558(c) and Part 377 of the Department's Special Regulations. Transcarga continues to rely on that renewal application to maintain its current, wet-lease-only authority in effect pending Department action.

2 Transcarga last provided updated in formation in its April 14, 2008 renewal application. While a foreign air ca rrier permit application filed by Transcarga remains pending in Docket OST-2001-11230, Transcarga is not specifically requesting that the Department act on the permit at this time.Transcarga Exemption Amendment and Renewal Page 2

211.20 in the Exhibits attached to th is application and in the following

narrative:

1. Transcarga is a Venezuelan-flag carrier headquartered in Caracas,

Venezuela. It is controlled and almost entirely owned by its Chairman and

CEO, Julio Marquez Biaggi, a Venezuelan citizen and legal permanent

resident of the U.S.

2. Transcarga has held Department authority since 2002 to engage in

charter foreign air transportation of property and mail between Venezuela

and the United States and other all-cargo charters in accordance with 14

C.F.R. Part 212. In addition to th e wet-lease condition discussed above,

Transcarga's exemption requires prior Department approval of cargo charter

operations; this condition was imposed by Notice of Action Taken dated

February 22, 2002 in this docket.

3. Transcarga is fit, willing, an d able to provide all-cargo, charter

foreign air transportation with its own ai rcraft to and from the United States.

Transcarga has operated safely in Venezuela for many years, and the Federal

Aviation Administration has rated Venezuela "Category 1" under the

International Aviation Safety Assessme nt Program since 2006. Transcarga's

key personnel possess substantial business and aviation experience, and the

carrier has the financial resources necessary to serve the United States safely

and without undue risk.Transcarga Exemption Amendment and Renewal Page 3

3. While the U.S.-Venezuela Air Transport Agreement does not

specifically provide for charters, both countries have approved the operation

of cargo charters. Indeed, Transcarga understands that a number of U.S. allcargo carriers currently operate charte rs to and from Venezuela. The

Department also has removed wet-lease conditions, identical to the condition

on Transcarga's current authority, from the authority held by other

Venezuelan carriers. See Santa Barbara Airlines, Notice of Action Taken

dated Jan. 24, 2007 in Docket OST-2000-8448 ; Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela,

Notice of Action Taken dated Nov. 16, 2006 in Docket OST-1998-3770.

4. Transcarga's proposed operations with its own aircraft will benefit

the shipping public by providing addi tional, competitive price and service

options for shippers in Venezuela-U.S. markets and otherw ise are consistent

with the public interest for the reason s described herein. These operations

will have a limited environmental impact. 3 /

3 / Transcarga estimates that its forecast U.S. operations would not result in a net change in fuel consumption of 10,000,000 gallons of fuel or more annually. Accordingly, issuance of the re quested authority will not constitute a "major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment" within the meaning of section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act or a "major regulatory action" under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as impl emented in Part 313 of the Department's Regulations.Transcarga
Exhibit 1

INFORMATION SUPPLIED PURSUANT
TO THE DEPARTMENT'S REGULATIONS

Transcarga hereby supplies, in support of its application, the information required by the Department pu rsuant to 14 C.F.R. § 211.20.

(a) Name and address of applicant; form and country of organization.

Transcarga Int'l Airways, C.A. Av. Rio Caura, Torre Humboldt, Piso 5, Ofic. 513
Prados del Este
Caracas
VENEZUELA

Transcarga is a Venezuelan Compañía Anónima (public limited company).

(b) Government air transport auth ority of applicant's homeland.

Instituto Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil Av. José Félix Sosa con Av. Luis Roche, Torre Británica
Altamira Sur
Caracas
VENEZUELA

(c) Authority requested and proposed services.

Transcarga was first licensed by the De partment in 2002. It currently holds exemption authority, in force under th e automatic extension provisions of 5 U.S.C. § 558(c) and 14 CFR Part 377, to engage in charter foreign air transportation of property and mail between Venezuela and the United States, and other all-cargo charters in accordance with 14 CFR Part 212. Exercise of this authority is limited to aircraft wet-leased from a duly authorized and properly supervised U.S. or foreign air carrier and requires prior Department approval of specific operations.

By this application, Transcarga reques ts that the Department: (1) amend the above-captioned exemption, granted by Notice of Action Taken dated April 17, 2007 (the “Notice”), to remove the condition requiring that Transcarga use wet-leased aircraft; (2) renew and extend for an additional, one-year period the exemption as so amended; an d (3) grant such additional or other relief as the Department may deem necessary or appropriate.

Transcarga proposes to begin operating its own aircraft to Miami, airports in Puerto Rico, or other U.S. points to provide on-demand freighter service.Transcarga
Exhibit 1 Page 2

(d) Names, addresses, citizenship, an d experience of directors, officers, and key personnel of applicant.

The following individuals may be reached through the headquarters of Transcarga at the address listed above, and none are related by blood or marriage. Each person listed is a Venezuelan citizen.

Board of Directors

Julio J. Marquez Biaggi, President of the Bo ard of Directors and
Chief Executive Officer Mr. Perez, a legal permanent resident of the U.S., formed Transcarga in 1998. His 28 years' aviation experience includes 14 years as a pilot at Venezuelan carriers Avensa and Viasa, and he currently owns Heligolfo, a Colombian airline operating small aircraft, and a 25% share in Island Wings, Inc., a Part 135 air taxi based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Domingo Pérez Sanchez , Member of the Board and Vice President Mr. Perez's 50-year aviation career in cludes six years as a dispatcher and pilot at Avensa, 27 years at Viasa, and three years at Aeropostal before joining Transcarga in 2002.

Zulma Rodriguez Gotera , Member of the Board and Vice President-
Administration and Finance Ms. Rodriguez joined Transcarga in 2003 while completing her degrees in business administration and public accounting; she also holds an MBA from Universidad Metropolitana in Caracas.

Maria C. Fargione , Member of the Board and Legal Counsel Ms. Fargione joined Transcarga in 2007 after 16 years in private and corporate legal practice, particularly in business and tax matters, and as the
Secretaria Titular of a Caracas tax co urt. She holds a law degree and a Master's degree in tax law.

Other Officers and Key Personnel

Miguel Bolivar , Vice President Operations Captain Bolivar has been with Transc arga since 2009 and has logged more than 18,000 flight hours during his 40 years of aviation experience. He joined Transcarga from Sundance Air Venezuela and also flew for Viasa and Latin Cargo.Transcarga
Exhibit 1 Page 3

Carlos Osorio , Vice President Maintenance Mr. Osorio joined Transcarga in 2010 and has taught and managed aircraft maintenance activities for more than 20 years. His experience includes positions at two airlines, Sundance Air Venezuela and Aeroejecutivos.

Jaime Pérez , Project Manager and Maintenance Advisor Mr. Perez, who joined Transcarga in 2008 and acted as its director of maintenance until 2010, has 26 years' av iation experience at Viasa and Air Aruba and at Raytheon Beechcraft and Servisair operations in Venezuela. He holds a degree in aeronautical en gineering and an FAA A&P license.

(e) Persons having a substanti al interest in the applicant.

Julio J. Marquez owns 92% of the stoc k of Transcarga; the remainder is held by Famarca, C.A., a Venezuelan company owned by members of the Marquez family.

(f) Ownership or control of other airlines or transportation companies.

Transcarga does not hold any interest in (1) any U.S. air carrier, (2) any other foreign air carrier, (3) any person engaged in the business of aeronautics, or (4) any common carrier or any person wh ose principal business is the holding of stock in, or control of, any air carrier.

(g) Relationship between applicant and its homeland government.

There is no relationship, other than th at occasioned by regulatory oversight, between Transcarga and the Venezuelan government.

(h) Insurance coverage.

The carrier is covered by insurance that meets or exceeds the requirements of
14 C.F.R. Part 205 and will file OST Form 6411 with the Federal Aviation
Administration.Transcarga
Exhibit 1 Page 4

(i) Applicant's homeland operating authority.

Exhibit 2 contains a copy of the curre nt Air Operator Certificate (AOC TIWA-027) issued to Transcarga by INAC. Pursuant to this authority, Transcarga is authorized to operate worldwide, all-cargo service "on demand" ( i.e. , as charter service).

(j) Operating history of the applicant.

Transcarga began operations in Venezuela in 1998 and first received Department exemption authority for a ll-cargo charters in 2002. Its most recent U.S. operations occurred duri ng 2007-2008, when Transcarga operated Venezuela-U.S. cargo service using aircraft wet-leased from Centurion Air Cargo.

k) Fleet information.

Transcarga's fleet currently includes two Embraer EMB-120 aircraft owned by Transcarga and registered in Venezuela as YV2546 and YV2694, one
EMB-120 aircraft leased from World Aircra ft Leasing Ltd. and registered as N210AS, and one Airbus A300 aircraft, registered as N261AX and leased
from Southern Aircraft Charters. Both lessees are based in the British Virgin Islands. Transcarga intends to conduct initial U.S. operations with
one or more of these aircraft.

(l) Aircraft maintenance.

For routine maintenance, Transcarga relies on its own INAC-licensed personnel and, for the Airbus aircraft, Av ocet Aviation Services in Sanford, FL. Its maintenance programs ar e based on manufacturer Master Maintenance Program Documents, are approved by INAC, and comply with annexes 1, 6 (Part I), and 7 to the Conv ention on International Civil Aviation, to which Venezuela is a contracting party. The FAA has rated Venezuela "Category 1" under the International Av iation Safety Assessments program.

(m) Agreements with other carriers.

No agreements with other carriers w ill affect the proposed U.S. services.Transcarga
Exhibit 1 Page 5

(n) Financial data summaries.

Transcarga is submitting in Confid ential Exhibit A an English-language summary of its private 2010 financial statements. These statements are submitted under seal together with a request for confidential treatment
under Rule 12.

(o) Homeland government financial assistance.

None. See item (g) above.

(p) Financial forecast.

Confidential Exhibit B, which has been filed under seal together with a motion for confidential treatment under Rule 12, includes a forecast for Transcarga's initial, own-aircraft operatio ns to and from the United States.

(q,r) Bilateral agreement; homeland government policy with respect to
U.S. carriers.

Venezuela-U.S. air transportation is governed by a 1953 Air Transport Services agreement. While that agreem ent does not specifically provide for charter services, both countries have long permitted such services on a reciprocal basis. Indeed, U.S. carriers continue to conduct the bulk of U.S.- Venezuela air cargo charter service with Venezuelan approvals. When last renewing Transcarga's authority on Ap ril 17, 2007, DOT based its action on
"the current state of aviation relation s between the U.S. and Venezuela," and a similar finding is warranted here.

(s) Accidents or safety or tariff violations.

Transcarga has not experienced any sa fety or tariff violations or fatal accidents in the past five years.

(t) OST Form 4523; family assistance and passenger manifest plans.

Transcarga has previously filed OS T Form 4523 with the Department in
Docket OST-1995-236 and its family assistance plan with the Department (inTranscarga
Exhibit 1 Page 6

Docket OST-1998-3304) and the National Transportation Safety Board. Transcarga will file with the Depa rtment (in Docket OST-1998-3305) the passenger manifest plan required by 14 C.F.R. Part 243.