SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.

Robert W. Kneisley

Associate General Counsel

1901 L Street, N.W. – Suite 640

Washington, D.C. 20036

(202) 263-6284

(202) 263-6291 Fax

bob.kneisley@wnco.com

_______________________________________________________________________________

December 19, 2012

Filed in the Docket Electronically 

The Honorable Susan Kurland

Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs

U.S. Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

Washington, DC 20590

Re: Application of Southwest Airlines Co. for Within-Perimeter Slot 

Exemptions (DCA-HOU); Docket DOT-OST-2000-7182 (Part 1 of 3)

Dear Ms. Kurland:

Southwest Airlines is pleased to submit a total of 61 letters – via three separate

submissions (due to file size limitations) – in support of our application for two withinperimeter slot exemptions for daily, nonstop service between Ronald Reagan 

Washington National Airport (DCA) and Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), with 

single-plane, beyond service to Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ). 

These letters come from a diverse array of federal and state elected officials, 

including four U.S. Senators and 30 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives 

(Part I); local elected officials and important state and local organizations (Part II); and 

finally organizations and businesses from jurisdictions throughout the United States 

(Part III). As these letters convey, the officials and organizations, and the constituents 

and employees they represent, would benefit immensely from Southwest’s proposed 

DCA-HOU-ABQ service and the large jet, low-fare competition it would provide. 

Sincerely, 

_____________________

Robert W. Kneisley

cc: All parties on Southwest’s service list
Letters Supporting

Southwest Airlines’ Proposed DCA – HOU – ABQ Service

PART I (*contained herein)

Federal Officials

1.) Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and Senator John Cornyn

2.) Texas Congressional Delegation – Representatives Pete Olson, Gene 

Green, Ted Poe, Charles Gonzalez, John Culberson, Sheila Jackson Lee, 

Michael McCaul, Blake Farenthold, Francisco “Quico” Canseco, Mac 

Thornberry, John Carter, Lamar Smith, Sam Johnson, Joe Barton, Randy 

Neugebauer, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Kay Granger, Bill Flores, Michael 

Burgess, Louie Gohmert, Ruben Hinojosa, Henry Cuellar, Michael 

Conaway, Ralph Hall, Kenny Marchant, Al Green, and Pete Sessions

3.) New Mexico Congressional Delegation – Senator Jeff Bingaman, Senator 

Tom Udall, Senator-elect and Rep. Martin Heinrich, Rep. Steve Pearce 

and Rep. Ben Ray Lujan

State Officials

4.) Texas Governor Rick Perry

5.) Texas State Representative Garnet Coleman

6.) Texas State Senator Rodney Ellis

7.) Texas State Representative Sylvester Turner

8.) Texas State Representative Harold V. Dutton, Jr.

9.) Texas State Representative Senfronia Thompson

10.) Texas State Representative Dr. Alma A. Allen

11.) Texas State Representative Jessica Farrar

12.) Texas State Representative Ana Hernandez Luna

13.) New Mexico State Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez

14.) New Mexico Economic Development Secretary Jon Barela

PART II (*sent via a separate submission)

Local Officials

15.) Houston Mayor Annise Parker

16.) Albuquerque Mayor Richard J. Berry

17.) Houston Mayor Pro-Tem and Council Member Ed Gonzalez

18.) Houston City Council Member Andrew C. Burks, Jr.

19.) Houston City Council Member Jack Christie, D.C. 

20.) Houston City Council Member James Rodriguez

21.) Houston City Council Member Melissa Noriega

22.) Houston City Council Member Larry V. Green

23.) Houston City Council Member Stephen C. Costello

24.) Houston City Council Member Ellen R. Cohen

25.) Mario Diaz, Director of Aviation, Houston Airports System
26.) James D. Hinde, Director of Aviation, City of Albuquerque/ABQ Airport

State/Regional Organizations

27.) Greater Houston Partnership

28.) Houston Area Urban League

29.) Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

30.) Tri-County Black Chamber of Commerce

31.) Texas Travel Industry Association 

32.) Texas Association of African American Chambers of Commerce

33.) Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership

34.) Greater Hobby Area Chamber of Commerce

35.) Houston East End Chamber of Commerce

36.) Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce

37.) Association of Commerce & Industry of New Mexico

PART III (*sent via a separate submission)

National Organizations 

38.) Transportation Workers Union of America (TWU) Local 556

39.) Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Association

40.) International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (Dora 

Cervantes, Assistant Secretary)

41.) United States Hispanic Leadership Institute

42.) VotoLatino

43.) Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund

44.) Council for Opportunity in Education

45.) Latino Leaders Network

46.) Earth Day Network

47.) US Business Leadership Network

48.) Dialogue on Diversity

49.) Organization of Chinese Americans

50.) Japanese American Citizens League

51.) America Society on Aging 

52.) National Asian American Coalition

53.) Asian American & Pacific Islander Association of Colleges & Universities

54.) National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce

Major Companies/Institutions

55.) University of Texas System

56.) George Washington University

57.) BMC Software

58.) Chicago Bridge & Iron (CB&I)

59.) Blue Bell Creameries, L.P.

60.) SER-Jobs for Progress National, Inc.

61.) Winstead, P.C.





Posr oFF¡c¡ Box 12428 AusïN, TsxAS 78711 (512)463-2000 (VoIcn)/Dtx 7-t-t ron R¡I.IY Srnvtcss

The Honorable Raymond L. LaHood

Secretary

U.S. Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

Waslrington, D. C. 20590Dear Secretary LaHood:

I am writi¡g this letter in support of the development of a non-stop route between the Williani P. Hobby Airport

(HOU) in Houston and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) in Washington, D.C. This new routewill help support travel and encourage greater business relationsl-rips between the two cities. Travelers from

Texas und th" Washington, D.C. area will benefit fi'om increased conrpetition and more efficient travel.

As one of the country's leading travel and tourism destinations, Texas hosted more than 200 million travelers in

20 1 I 

, 

with direct spending totaling $63.2 billion across the state. With 90 percent of travel to Texas destinations

coming fi.o¡r doméstic markets, increasing the number of direct routes to Texas from major U.S. cities would

further boost the state's econon-ìy.

ln 2011, the Houston area was visited by more than 33 million domestic travelers who, along with international

visitors, supported local jobs by spending approximately $15.6 billion. Houston is among the top travel

destinations in Texas duà to its growing meeting and conventions nrarket, world-class shopping, intemationally

famous theater district and multiple professional sports teams.Houston is also a major business travel destination, in part due to its status as the nation's energy capital. The

¡retropolitan area is irome to the headquarters of 21 Fortune 500 energy companies, including ConocoPhillips and

Halliburton. This corporate concentration makes Houston a vital hub of the u.s. and international economies.

I support the development of this non-stop route between the William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) and Ronaldn"ugãn Washington National Airport (DCA) to provide greater competition and more efficient travel betweenWashington, D.Ó. and Texas. Thànk you for your consideration of this important route development effort and

your support of a HOU-DCA route'

W

Governor

RP:eck

Vrsrr vww.TrxesONLrl¡.col.l rnr O¡ncr.lr'$ørs SlrE or fin Sr¡rs or Trxls
STATE of TEXAS 

HOUSE of REPRESENTATIVES

GARNET F. COLEMAN

STATE REPRESENTATIVE 

DISTRICT 147

December 11, 2012 

The Honorable Raymond H. LaHood 

Secretary of Transportation 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re: Docket DOT-OST-2000-7182 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

I write you to lend my full support to Southwest Airline’s application to begin daily, non-stop flight service 

between Washington D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) and Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport 

(HOU). 

The Houston and Washington D.C. metropolitan areas are two of the largest in the country, yet there are 

currently no direct flights between the two areas’ most convenient airports. In fact, there is only one airline that 

provides any service at all between DCA and the entire Houston metropolitan area, and that is through the 

George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), which is more than a 20 mile drive from downtown Houston. 

Allowing Southwest to provide daily, nonstop flights would introduce much needed competition to both areas, 

providing more and better options for the people in and around Houston and Washington D.C. 

My district, House District 147, includes Hobby Airport and much of the area it serves, including downtown. 

Therefore, I know firsthand what a great, mutually beneficial arrangement this will be for both Houston and 

Washington D.C. 

For these reasons, I kindly ask that the Department of Transportation give serious consideration to Southwest 

Airline’s application to provide daily, nonstop flights between DCA and HOU. Thank you for your attention to 

this matter. 

Sincerely 

Garnet F. Coleman 

Texas State Representative 

District 147 










December 13, 2012 

The Honorable Raymond H. LaHood 

Secretary of Transportation 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re: Docket No. DOT-OST-2000-7182 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

I write in strong support of Southwest Airlines’ (Southwest's) application to provide daily nonstop 

service between Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) and Ronald Reagan Washington National 

Airport (DCA). Along with Southwest’s proposed same-plane service between Albuquerque 

International Sunport (ABQ) and DCA, Southwest's proposal will benefit thousands of travelers looking 

for a more convenient and less expensive way to get to/from the nation’s capital. 

The ABQ-DCA market is overpriced and underserved. Greater Albuquerque boasts a population of 

nearly a million people. Among the area’s major employers are Kirkland Air Force Base and Sandia 

National Laboratories, two major federal installations that rely heavily on access to/from Washington, 

DC. Despite the size and importance of the Greater Albuquerque area, existing commercial air service 

between DCA and ABQ is relatively sparse, indirect and expensive. 

For this reason, I strongly support Southwest's application for weekday, roundtrip DCA-HOU-ABQ 

same-plane service. There is strong demand within the Greater Albuquerque area for better and more 

frequent service to/from DCA. We are especially pleased to have ABQ’s largest airline, Southwest 

Airlines, offer this service. For over 41 years, Southwest has been a leader in offering dependable, highquality, low-cost air service. I can think of no better airline to offer this vastly improved service between 

DCA and ABQ, which Southwest proposes to start by the end of 2013. 

Southwest's application is clearly in the public's interest, and we respectfully urge your approval. Thank 

you for your attention to this matter. 
Sincerely, 

Jonathan Barela 

Cabinet Secretary 

New Mexico Economic Development Department