Order: 2012-9-17

Served: September 14, 2012

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Issued by the Department of Transportation

on the 14th day of September, 2012

ORDER ESTABLISHING CONTRACT END DATE

Summary

By this Order, the Department of Transportation is establishing the Essential Air Service (EAS)

contract end date at Ironwood, Michigan/Ashland, Wisconsin (Ironwood), as May 31, 2014.

Background

On March 7, 2012, the Department issued Order 2012-3-5 selecting Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. 

(Great Lakes) to provide EAS at Ironwood and Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The Order established 

subsidy rates and stated that the contracts would be effective through the 24-month period 

following the start of Great Lakes’ full EAS at both communities.

On June 11, 2012, however, Great Lakes sent an e-mail to the Department encouraging the resolicitation of proposals for EAS at Rhinelander.1 Great Lakes explained that it had recently 

experienced an aggressive expansion, was in the process of re-engineering its business model 

(including its approach to code-sharing and the associated reservation system infrastructure), had

concerns regarding availability of gates and facilities to expand further at Minneapolis-St Paul, 

and did not want to hinder communities from considering other alternatives. While Great Lakes’ 

service under Order 2012-3-5 at Ironwood began on March 11, 2012, the original Order selecting 

the carrier stated that the contracts would cover the 24-month period following the Great Lakes’ 

commencement of service at both communities. After rebidding the EAS contract for 

Rhinelander, the Department recently issued Order 2012-9-11, September 11, 2012, selecting 

SkyWest Airlines. Thus, it is now necessary to establish an end date for Great Lakes’ Ironwood 

EAS contract. The Department will establish the contract end date as May 31, 2014, which will 

synchronize Ironwood with a number of other Great Lakes’ EAS contracts for service to its

Minneapolis-St. Paul hub.

 1 Great Lakes also asked the Department to re-bid its EAS contracts at Iron Mountain/Kingsford, Michigan, and 

Brainerd and International Falls, Minnesota.

Essential Air Service at:

IRONWOOD, MICHIGAN/ASHLAND, WISCONSIN

Under 49 U.S.C. 41731 et seq.

Docket DOT-OST-1996-

1266
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This Order is issued under authority assigned in 14 CFR Part 385.12(k)(5).

ACCORDINGLY,

1. The Department sets the termination date of EAS contract awarded to Great Lakes Aviation, 

Ltd., to serve Ironwood, Michigan/Ashland, Wisconsin, under Order 2012-3-5, as May 31, 2014; 

and

2. We will serve copies of this Order on the Mayor and airport manager at Ironwood, 

Michigan/Ashland, Wisconsin, and Great Lakes Aviation;

Persons entitled to petition the Department for review of this Order under the Department’s 

Aviation Economic Regulations, 14 CFR Part 385.50, must file such petitions within ten (10) 

days after the date of service of this Order.

This Order will be effective immediately, and the filing of a petition for review shall not preclude 

its effectiveness.

By:

TODD M. HOMAN

Director

Office of Aviation Analysis

(SEAL)

An electronic version of this document is available

on the World Wide Web at http://www.regulations.gov