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Swanson, Brian (OST) 

Friday, May 04, 2012 11 :53 AM 

'khuber@ lancasterairport.com'; 'deberly@ lancasterairport.com'; 

'pridenour@washco-md.net'; 'glarsen @washco-md.net' ?ii 17 

Devany, Dennis (OST); 'David Hackett'; 'tlcooper@gosunair.com'' ., • 

Soliciting Comments on Proposal for EAS at Hagerstown, Maryland, 

and Lancaster, Pennsylvania - Due May 24, 2012 

I would like to update you on the Essential Air Service (EAS) situation at Hagerstown, 

Maryland, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and give you an opportunity to submit comments 

if you wish. 

In response to the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (P. L. 112-95), which, 

among other things, extended both communities' eligibility for subsidized EAS through 

September 30, 2015, and because no proposals were submitted in response to Order 2012-2-

13 (the first request for EAS proposals at the two communities), the Department issued 

Order 2012-3-16 on March 23, 2012, soliciting a second-round of proposals at either or 

both of the communities, through September 30, 2015. 

Sun Air Express, LLC d/b/a Sun Air International (Sun Air) was the only carrier to 

submit a proposal. However, there are two options for your consideration, and we want 

to give you an opportunity to submit any comments for the record that you may have 

before we make a recommendation to the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and 

International Affairs. 

Copies of the proposal may be accessed online through the Federal Docket Management 

System at: http://www.regulations.gov, by doing a "search" on Dockets DOT-OST-2006-

25228 (Hagerstown) or DOT-OST-2002-11450 (Lancaster). For your convenience, Sun 

Air's proposal is briefly summarized below. 

Sun Air submitted an inseparable proposal for both communities utilizing nine passenger 

twin-engine Piper Chieftain aircraft with service to either Baltimore/Washington 

International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) or Washington Dulles International 

Airport (lAD). At Hagerstown, the carrier would provide 24 nonstop round trips a week 

to BWI for an annual subsidy requirement of $1,724,486, or to lAD for $1,785,638. At 

Lancaster, the carrier proposed to provide 30 nonstop round trips a week to BWI for an 

annual subsidy rate of $2,350,403, or to lAD for $2,504,174. We note that Sun Air, a 

registered air taxi operator, does not currently have the requisite operating authorities 

from either the Department or the Federal Aviation Administration to provide scheduled 

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------------------ passenger operations more than four round trips per week between two or more points 

according to a published schedule. While Sun Air has submitted an application for the 

necessary economic authority to allow it to engage in more than the four round trips per 

week as described above, that application is still pending before the Department. 

Please note that the average passenger fares shown in each proposal do not necessarily 

reflect the average local fare passengers would actually pay, but, rather, reflect a prorated 

portion of the total ticket price (e.g., Hagerstown- BWI- Atlanta ticket) that the 

subsidized carrier would realize. Also, the fare shown is net of certain charges such as 

Federal transportation security fees, excise or ticket taxes, and Passenger Facility 

Charges. Of course, carriers have the discretion to charge fares they deem appropriate, 

and the passenger fares presented in their proposals have been developed for subsidy rate 

computation purposes only. Based on the cost elements incorporated in the carriers' 

computation summaries, the carriers would have to realize passenger fares comparable to 

the averages shown in their proposals in order to achieve break-even or profitable 

operations without subsidy. 

You should also note that the carrier's schedule may change to reflect changing 

conditions (e.g., to better meet shifting connecting bank times at the hub). The 

Department does expect subsidized air carriers to maintain well-timed and well-spaced 

flights in order to ensure full compensation. 

We request that you submit any comments you may have as soon as possible, but in any 

case no later than May 24, 2012. Please send your comments by fax to 202-366-7638 or 

by email to both dennis.devany@dot.gov and brian.swanson@dot.gov. Our rules require 

that you send your comments to the applicant as well. If you have any questions, or need 

more time to reply, please feel free to contact Brian Swanson of my staff at 202-366-

5392. 

Sincerely, 

Dennis J. DeVany 

Chief, Essential Air Service Division, X-53 

Office of Aviation Analysis 

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