THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, O.C. 20590



### The Honorable Dennis A. Cardoza U.S. House ofRepresentatives Washington, DC 20515 DearCongressman Cardoza: April 25, 2012**~1** ".f ""if] !L •. • !



### Thank you for your letter supporting the application ofVirgin America, Inc.• for four**beyond~** 

### perimeter slot exemptions at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Ifawarded those exemptions, Virgin America would provide two daily**round~trip** 

### flights from DCAto San Francisco. Under authority granted in the FAA Modernization and ReformAct of2012. the U.S. Department ofTransportation will be awarding to new entrantor limited incumbent carriers atotal 

### of eight slot exemptions atDCA, which would support four daily round trips. We received Virgin**America~s** 

### application on March 12, 2012. Othertimely applications were receive.d ftom Air Canada, proposing one.round trip to Vancouver. British Columbia; Alaska Airlines, one .round trip to Portland, Oregon, and one round trip to San Diego; FrontierAirlines, one round trip to

### Colorado Springs and beyond to San Diego; JetBlue Airlines, one round tripto San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one round trip to 

### Austin, Texas; SouthwestAirlines, one round trip to Austin and San Diego beyond; and Sun CountrY Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas. As the matter is still·pending, I cannot comment on the merits ofthe points raised in. your letter. However,! can assure you that all applications the Departmentreceived will be .given full and fair consideration and wiU 

### be evaluated against the selection criteria specified in the statute. The**Department~s** 

### actionon this matter is being administered through apublic docket. which allows all interested parties the opportunity to comment. Following ournormal practice, Iam placing acopy ofyour letter 

### ·s response in docket number DOT-2012•0029 I appreciate your interest iDENNIS A CARDOZA 18T@ISTRICT, CALIFORNIA
COMMITTEE ON RULES
COMMITIEE ON AGRICULTURE CI'IAIRMAN, SVOOOMMITTEE ON**~IORT!CUUIJA~** AND OnGA'liC AORICVl'lunE 

# (l[:ongress of 

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## of l\epresentatiiles Dasf)ington, 1J9(!t .20515-0518**SuocoMMITTE~** ON LovesrocK, DAtfiV AND PoULTRY

The Honorable Raymond H. LaHood Secretary U.S. Department

# ofTransportation 

### 1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20590 March 

### 30, 2012 WASI-IlNGTON OFFICE: 1224 LONC.WOIITH House 01'1'1(:" El

..Hli.>IN'l WASt·IINOTON, DC 20515 12021 225-6131 DISTRICT OFFICES: 2222 MSrntu. Sum 30& MEI1Ct0, CA 95340

(2091383-4455 1010 10TH**STAE~T,** SUITE 5800 MoDESTo. CA 95354

(209) 527-1914 137 EAST**WEB~R** AVENUt

STOCKTON, CA 95202

(209) 946-0361



### Re: Docket**No~** 

### OST-2012-0029, 

### Application of Virgin America Inc. for "BeyondPerimeter" Slots Dear Secretary LaHood: I am writing to express my strong support for Virgin America's proposal to provide two nonstop flights between San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Reagan National**A~rport** (DCA). With no cUrrent service at DCA and as :the only airlfne headquartered in California,- Virgin America is uniquely suited t.o bring meaningful**low~**fare competition to the largest market in the nation previously withoilftionstop flight service to DCA: the San Francisco Bay Area.



### .. ' As a result ofthe workby you, your department and Congress, the· Presidentrecently signed the FAA Modermzation and Reform Act of

### 2012, which inchided·a provision authorizing you to award new flights between DCA and domestic airports located beyond the current 

### 1,250 mile perimeter limit. Historically, the Bay Areahas been shut out from DCA nonstop service, with all**"beyond~perimeter"** flight awards being made to non-California airports

- with the exception ofa daily flight at Los Angeles. Previous DCA awards have been made to smaller markets, including: Denver (four roundtrip frequencies) and Phoenix (three roundtrip frequencies). In terms ofpassenger traffic, San Francisco dwarfs these and all other**beyond~**perimeter markets. Because SFO has been the largest**beyond~perimeter** market without nonstop flights to DCA, local consumers have· suffered with higher fares and limited options- either travel to Washington Dulles or a one-stop connecting flight when**·~** traveling to**do~~o·Wn** Washington, D.C. · When·making**~s** critical decision, I urge you to considerthe positive impact ofimproving the connection between Washington D.C. and.Silicon Valley's powerful innovation-based economy. · Allocation oftwo round-trip flights to Virgin America

- our hometown carrier

- Will provide assurance thatthe Bay Area will finally have efficient, modem and low-fare nonstop flight service to DCA. It will also guarantee that local consumers and businesses reap the benefit that only real competition can provide. · Since its launch in 2007, Virgin America has lowered fares and provided a unique new service option. According to the airline, when it enters long-haul markets with less competition from SFO it typically sees fares drop by one-third. The Wall StreetJournal went so far as to describe the low-fare 

# s 10-'120406-006

### " airtine's impact on fares as "the Virgin effect." 1 In 

### addition, the ca1Tier's decision to headquarter in my district (in Burlingame, Califomia) has created thousands oflocaljobs. The airline has grown to over 2,500 employees, withplans to add 500 newjobs 011 

### an**annu~l** 

### basis over the next three to five years. When more airlines compete, consumers and local economies win- with lower fares, improved service and localjob growth. Virgin Americahas been a case study for the positive impacts of competition in the Bay Area. The award oftwo roundtrip flights to the can·ier will both spur continued local economic growth and ensure that SFO-DCA travelers will finally benefit from real competition. Thank you for your consideration.



### ---------DENNISCARDOZA MEMBEROF CONG

Cross-Country Fares," Wall StreetJournal, October 30, 2007.