\\DC - 040601/000003 - 4951786 v2 BEFORE THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Application of SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO. under 49 U.S.C. § 41718 for pendente lite authority to operate slot exemptions between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Kansas City (DCA-MCI) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Docket DOT-OST-2000-7182

ANSWER OF REPUBLIC AIRLINE INC. IN OPPOSITION TO APPLICATION OF SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
Communications with respect to this document should be addressed to:
Scott L. Durgin Vice President, Administration Ethan J. Blank, Vice President, General Counsel 

### REPUBLIC AIRLINE INC. 8909 Purdue Road Indianapolis, Indiana 46268 Robert E. Cohn Patrick R. Rizzi HOGAN LOVELLS US LLP Columbia Square 555 Thirteenth Street, NW Washington, DC 20004 +1 202 637 4999/5659 robert.cohn@hoganlovells.com patrick.rizzi@hoganlovells.com Counsel for REPUBLIC AIRLINE INC.

August 6, 2013\\DC - 040601/000003 - 4951786 v2 BEFORE THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Application of SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO. under 49 U.S.C. § 41718 for pendente lite authority to operate slot exemptions between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Kansas City (DCA-MCI) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Docket DOT-OST-2000-7182

August 6, 2013

ANSWER OF REPUBLIC AIRLINE INC. IN OPPOSITION TO APPLICATION OF SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO. Republic Airline Inc. (“Republic”) hereby opposes the application of Southwest Airlines Co. (“Southwest”) for pendente lite authority to use two slot exemptions to enable Southwest to operate service between Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) and Kansas City (MCI). The two slot exemptions Southwest proposes to use are slot exemptions that have been allocated to Republic and used by Republic for service between DCA and MCI. There is no lawful basis for the Department to withdraw Republic’s slot exemptions and place them in a carrier selection proceeding. For the reasons stated below, Southwest’s application should be denied. Southwest’s application is based on the erroneous assertion that Republic’s service between DCA and MCI would cease on January 5, 2014. (Southwest Appl. at 1-2.) But no such basis exists. Republic operates DCA-MCI service under the Frontier Airlines brand. Frontier’s current schedules for the winter 2014 season, beyond January 5, 2014, include DCA-MCI service. Republic uses two within-perimeter slotAnswer of Republic Airline Inc. in Opposition Page 2

\\DC - 040601/000003 - 4951786 v2 exemptions allocated by the Department to provide this service. See DOT Order 2012-3-8. The DCA-MCI flights are available and being sold in the marketplace via flyfrontier.com and other distribution channels. 1 Since the slot exemptions were restored to Republic in 2012, Republic has continually used those slot exemptions for service between DCA and Kansas City. Republic is currently using the two slot exemptions and has no plans to terminate nonstop service between DCA and MCI with the two slot exemptions allocated to it for that service. Accordingly, there is no legal, regulatory or factual basis for the Department to confiscate these two slot exemptions and reallocate them to Southwest, much less on a pendente lite basis. Any such action would be reversible error.2
Republic urges the Department to promptly deny Southwest’s application.
Respectfully submitted,

_________________________________ Robert E. Cohn Patrick R. Rizzi HOGAN LOVELLS US LLP Columbia Square 555 Thirteenth Street, NW Washington, DC 20004 Counsel for REPUBLIC AIRLINE INC.

1 In an effort to avoid burdening the Department with having to deal with a legally and factually unsupported application, Republic’s counsel informed Southwest’s counsel that Frontier’s schedules beyond January 2014 include DCA-MCI nonstop service and that Southwest could and should independently verify that fact. Southwest apparently verified that the schedules were in place, but nonetheless refused to withdraw its application, and thus Republic is compelled to file this answer in opposition. 2 See, e.g., Republic Airline Inc. v. DOT, 669 F.3d 296 (D.C. Cir. 2012).\\DC - 040601/000003 - 4951786 v2 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing Answer of Republic Airline Inc. has been served this 6th day of August 2013, upon each of the following persons:
bob.kneisley@wnco.com; leslie.abbott@wnco.com; marshall.sinick@squiresanders.com; robert.wirick@aa.com; francis.heil@aa.com; sascha.vanderbellen@delta.com; chris.walker@delta.com; jhill@dowlohnes.com; perkmann@dowlohnes.com; jyoung@yklaw.com; dkirstein@yklaw.com; Thomas.Ting@suncountry.com; dan.weiss@united.com; steve.morrissey@united.com; howard_kass@usairways.com; benjamin.slocum@usairways.com; john.varley@virginamerica.com; pmurphy@lopmurphy.com; mark_vanloh@kcmo.org; tom_mckenna@kcmo.org; todd.homan@dot.gov; Dennis.devany@dot.gov; brian.ctr.meehan@faa.gov; peter.irving@dot.gov.; cindy.baraban@dot.gov; bob.goldner@dot.gov Phil.Sunderland@MWAA.com; info@airlineinfo.com

Jonathan Echmalian