### BEFORE THE

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

__________________________________________ )

Essential Air Service at )

)



### Beckley, West Virginia ) OST

- 1997

- 2761

)

Under 49 U.S.C. §41731 et s eq. )

__________________________________________

SUN AIR INTERNATIONAL P ROPOSAL

TO PROVIDE S UBSIDIZED ESSENTIAL AIR SERICE

By Order 2014

- 7

- 11 , the Department requested proposals from carriers interested in providing

Essen tial Air Service to the community of Beckley, West Virginia. Pursuant to that order, Sun

Air Express, LLC . (“Sun Air”) cordially submits this proposal to provide subsidize d air service to

that com munity

.

Correspondence with regard to this document s hould be addressed to:

David Hackett

Chief Executive Officer

Sun Air Express, LLC

. d / b / a Sun Air International

3201 Griffin Road, Suite 202

Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33312

Telephone: 954

- 660

- 9865

Fax: 954

- 894

- 0367

E

- Mail: dhackett @gosunair.com



## Bid Summary

Sun Air hereby offers proposal s to provide serv ice to the community of Beckley

, West Virginia

from Charlotte Douglas International airport and/or Pi ttsburgh International Airport

Sun Air proposes to operate high frequency, low fare service using 8

- passe nger Piper Chieftain

“Panther” aircraft. Sun Air’s management believes that this model provides the proper sized

aircraft for the market, relatively low cost per departure, and needed aircraft performance

capability given the unique challenges of BKW

. Fl ights are timed for convenient connections

and low

- priced local fares to facilitate interline connections. Capacity is restricted to 8

passengers instead of the traditional 9 seats due to the airline’s policy of including First Officers

on its’ scheduled flights.Sun Air is prepared to make substantial investment s , both operationally as well as in the sales and

marketing area, to aid the community in recover ing air passenger demand potential. Sun Air’s

management believes strongly that the combination of affordable fares, more frequent flights and

consistently reliable operations are critical ingredients to providing the air service that these

communities need.

Sun Air’s operating plans are based upon having multiple back

- up aircraft , of the same type, a nd

an ample availability of reserve flight crews. The plans for service to PIT as well as the PIT/CLT

combination provide for two aircraft to be positioned in BKW, allowing for staged morning

departures and needed schedule flexibility to ensure that passe nger connections are both well

timed and efficient.

The Panther version of the Piper Chieftain is a substantially upgraded type with modifications to

propellers and wings that improves climb performance, and in particular, single engine

- climb

performan ce, which is important given the terrain surrounding BKW.

Sun Air’s proposal is for a four

- year period , which the company believes is necessary relative to

the size of its’ planned investment in these communities and to avoid excessive annual subsidy

requ irements

.

Flights will be displayed in all the major travel agent systems, and also available for booking on

the company’s web site. Interline connections are available with most U.S. major airlines via Sun

Air’s contracted distribution capabilities.

The proposed subsidy amounts for each service option are listed in Schedule 1 included herein.



## Service Proposal

Sun Air offers two service proposals:

1. Three weekday nonstop roundtrip flights to CLT, one weekend nonstop roundtrip flight

to CLT and one d aily round trip to PIT 7 days per week. Subject to coordination and

discussion with BKW, weekend frequencies to CLT may be substituted for weekend

flights to PIT, however no change in the requested subsidy would be made. The

maximum annual subsidy requir ement would be approximately $3.66 million.

2. Four daily round trip flights to PIT on weekdays and two daily nonstop roundtrip flights

on the e ach weekend day. The maximum annual subsidy requirem ent would be

approximately $3.46 million.

Local fares would be set for effectiveness of “add

- on” prices to flights from PIT and CLT,

generally in the $39 to $7 9 range each way (including tax)

.

Sun Air would also undertake a comprehensive marketing plan that ensures awareness of service

in BKW as well as buildi ng passenger traffic from a number of sources and aiding local economic

recovery.

Interline connections are available through major travel systems, including the ability for

through

- checking of baggage. Sun Air has installed enhanced baggage storage feat ures on its

aircraft which improve capacity for checked baggage handling , and meets all relevant TSA

requirements. Previously, the company’s aircraft have had limitations on baggage capacity,

particularly with respect to large r hard

- sided bags that did no t fit in the existing storage facilities.

### About Sun Air International

Sun Air Express, LLC d / b / a Sun Air International is a Fort Lauderdale, FL based commuter air

carrier currently serving markets in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland and Texas.

The airli ne has operated charters and limited scheduled service within Florida and the Bahamas

for a number of years. New management was brought in near the end of 2013, and since that

time has focused on improving operations and initiating a range of marketing ac tivities.

The company’s operating philosophy is to ensure the highest possible levels of reliability through

full

- time availability of back

- up aircraft (including those times when scheduled or unscheduled

maintenance is required), reserve pilot staffing a nd schedules that allow for recovery in the event

of unforeseen delays. BKW has endured a lengthy period of sub

- standard service levels, and Sun

Air is committed to providing reliability levels that are needed to provide the foundation to

properly serve t he community and rebuild passenger traffic levels.



## SCHEDULE 1

Annual Projected Operations

BKL

- CLT/PIT BKW

- PIT

Passenger Revenue $3 76,484 $ 309,129

Flight Operations 1,290,401 1,208,26 0

Maintenance 899,576 84 0,266

Sales & Service 988,012 869,965

Aircraft Ownership 476,000 476,000

Other Expenses 194,000 194,000

Total Operating

Costs 3,847,990 3,588,491

Operating

Profit/(Loss) $ (3,471,506) $ (3,279,262 )

Profit Element (5%) (192,400) (179,425 )

Subsidy Required $ (3,663,905) $ (3, 458,787 )

. .ASMs 3,532,414 3,738,209

RPMs 1,548,145 1,420,520

Load Factor 43.8% 38 .0%

Block Hours 3,390 3,147

Annual Departures 2,421 2,421

Available Seats 19,369 19,369

Enplaned

Passengers 8,555 7,360

Average Segment Fare $ 44.01 $ 42 .00

Subsidy per Departure $1,513 $ 1,429

In conclusion, Sun Air believes that its proposal will provide excellent leve ls of serv ice to the

community, ensure s that they have proper access to the nat ional air transportation network,

offer ing cost

- effective options that meet the requirements of the Essential Air Service Program.

Respectfully Submitted: July 31 , 2014

____ __________________ David F. Hackett

C hief Executive

Sun Air Express, LLC

d/b/a Sun Air International