.. 

THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590 

The Honorable Jackie Speier 

U.S. House of Representatives 

Washington, DC 20515 

Dear Congresswoman Speier: 

April 16,2012 

Thank you for your letter supporting the application of Virgin America, Inc., for four beyondperimeter slot exemptions at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). If awarded 

those exempti.ons, Virgin America wot1ld pi'Ovide two daily round-trip flights from DCA to 

San Francisco. 

Under authority granted in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of20 12, the 

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

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

(j: 0 

We received Virgin America's application on March 12,2012. Other timely applications were 

received from Air Canada, proposing one round trip to Vancouver~ British Columbia; Alaska 

Airlines, one round trip to Po.rtland, Oregpn, and one round trip to San Diego; Frontler Airllnes, 

one round trip to Colorado Springs and beyond to San Diego; JetBlue Airlines, one round trip to 

San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one round trlP to Austin, Texas; Southwest Airlines, one round trip to 

Austin and San Diego beyond; and Sun Country Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas. 

As the matter is stilt pending, I cannot comment on the merits of the points raised in you.r letter. 

However, I can assu.re you that allapplications the Department received will be given ftill and 

fair consideration and will be evaluated against the selection criteria specified in the statute. 

The Department's action on this matter it~. be 

allows .all interested parties the apport\ 

placing a copy of yo\.lr letter and this 

1 appreciate your interest in 

ministered through a public docket. which 

ment. Following our normal practice~. I am 

in docket number DOT-20 29. 
,. 

,\;, 

JACKIE SPEIER COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY 

12111 01SintCI. CAliiORNIA 

.. SUBCOMMITTEES; 

211 CANNOt! HOUSE OffiCE BUILtiiNG 

WASiiiNGTON, DC 2051 &·0512 

12021 225·3531 ([Congress of tbe Wnttd.l ~tates 

~oust of ~tpresentnt0.1es 

Dasbington, jj9([ 20515-0512 

f1AN~ING Mt~•s-.A tw CouNrtnrtnno~•sM 

AND INTEUIGENC£ 

TnANt,rQflTAlfON Sf.C•J~Il'f 

FAA! 12021 226 .. 4183 

400 s. EL CM!INO llMt., SUII~ 410 

SAN MAI£0, CA 94402 

16501 342-0300 

FAx: 16501 376-82 70 

WWW.$P£1ER.ttDUSI.GOV 

March 19,2012 

The Honorable Raymond H. LaHood 

Secretary 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. 

Washington. D.C. 20590 

COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND 

GOVERNMENT REFORM 

SUBCOMMITTEES; 

REOULI\Tonv AFFAIRS, STIMULUS Ovtnslour ANO 

GOVEI\tiMENT SPENDING 

TARP, F»IANCIAL S£AVICGS J\110 

BAILOUT& OF PUD1.1C AND PRIVATE PROGRAMS 

TECHNOLOGY, hiFORMATIOtl POI.ICV, AND 

PROCUREMENT REFORM 

lication of Vir in America Inc. fo1· "Be ond-

~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 Airport (DCA). 

With no current service at DCA and as the only airline headquartered in California, Virgin 

America is uniquely suited to bring meaningful low-fare competition to the largest market in the 

nation ·previously without nonstop flight service to DCA: the San Francisco Bay Area. In 

addition, Virgin America is the only carrier to apply to provide service between DCA and SFO. 

As you are well aware, the recently signed FAA Modernization and Reform Act of2012 

authorizes you to award new flights between DCA and domestic airports located beyond the 

current 1,250 mile perimeter limit. Historically, the Bay Area has been shut out from DCA 

nonstop service, with all "beyond-perimeter" flight awards being made to non-California airports 

- with the exception of a daily flight at Los Angeles. Previous DCA awards have been made to 

smaller markets, including: Denver (four roundtrip frequencies) and Phoenix (three roundtrip 

fr~quencies). In terrrie of passenger traffic, San Frn.t"lciSCO dwarfs these and all other beyondperimeter markets. Because SFO has been the largest beyond-perimeter market without nonstop 

flights to DCA, local travelers have had limited options- either trav~l to Washington Dulles or a 

one-stop connecting flight when traveling to downtown Washington, D.C. 

When making this critical decision, I urge you to consider the positive impact of improving the 

connection between Washington D.C. and the dynamic innovation-based economy in San 

Francisco and the Silicon Valley. Allocation of two round-trip flights to Virgin America will 

provide assurance that the Bay Area will finally have efficient, modern and low-fare nonstop 

flight service to DCA. 

Since its launch in 2007, Virgin America has lowered fares and provided a unique new service 

option. In addition, the cruTier's decision to headquarter in my district (in Burlingame, 

S10-120327-108 
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California) has created thousands of local jobs. Virgin America has established a maintenance 

hub at SFO, and is providing pilot simulator training locally. The airline has grown to over 2,500 

employees, with plans to add 500 new jobs on an annual basis over the next three to five years. 

When more airlines compete, consumers and local economies win- with lower fares, improved 

service and local job growth. The award of two roundtrip flights to the carrier will both spur 

continued local economic growth and ensure that SFO-DCA travelers will finally benefit from 

real competition. Thank you for your consideration of my request. 

All the best, 

' 

s 10-120327-'108