U.S.Depatrmentof Transportation Office of'the Secretary oflronsportalfon



### Mr. Michael W. Kelley Chairman Imperial County Board ofSupervisors 940 West Main Street, Suite 209 EI Centro, CA 92243
Dear

### Mr. Kelley: 

### Thank you for yourletterto Secretary ofTransportation Ray LaHood, supportingthe application ofAlaska Aitlines, Inc., for two beyond

..perimeter slot exemptions at Ronald. Reagan Washington National Airport(DCA) to serve San Diego International Airport with one round trip per day from DCA. Secretary LaHood asked that 

### Irespond to yoor letter. Underauthority granted in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act Qf

### 2012., the U.S. DepartmentofTransportation will be awarding to 

### new entrant or limited incumbent carriers atotal 

### ofeight slot exemptions at DCA, which would supportfour dailyround trips. We received Alaska's application, which alsoproposes one daily round trip to**Portland~** 

### Oregon, onMatch 12. Othertimely applications were received ftom Air Canada, proposing one round trip to Vancouver. British Columbia; FrontierAirlines, one round trip to Colorado Springs and beyond

### to San Diego; JetBlue**Airline~** 

### oneround trip to 

### San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one round trip to Austin, Texas; Southwest**Airlines~** 

### one round trip to Austin and San Diego beyond; Sun**Coun~** 

### Airlines, one round trip to Las 

### Vegas; and Virgin America. Inc., two round trips to San Francisco. As the matter is still pending. I cannot comment on the merits ofthe points raised inyour letter. Howevert Ican assure you that all applications the Department received wiU be given full and fair consideration $1d wUI be evaluated againstthe selection criteria specified in the statute..• 1


### Page 2, Kelley
The Department's action on this matter is 

### being administered through apublic dockett which allows all interested parties the 

### opportunity to comment. Following our normal practice. I 

### am 

### placing acopy ofyourletter and this 

### response in docket number DOT-2012·0029. 

### Iappreciate your interest

### ln. this 

### matter. Sincerely yours,

Susan L. 

### Kurland Assistant Secretary for Aviation and lntemational Affairs-DISTRICT 1 JOHN RENISON

. DISTRICT2

JACK TERRAZAS DISTRICT3 MICHAEL W. KELLEY DISTRICT4 GARY WYATT DISTRICTS RAY CASTILLO The Honorable Ray LaHood U.S. Department ofTransportation 1200 New Jersey Ave, SE Washington, DC 20590 COUNTY ADMINISTRATION CENTER 940 MAIN STREET, SUITE 209

.. . . . . EL CENTRO, CA, 92243-2871 TELEPHONE: (760) 482-4220 FAX: (760) 482-4215

March 20,2012

Re: SUPPORT Alaska Airlines' application for SAN-DCA, DocketNo. DOT-OST-2012-0029 Dear Secretary LaHood:



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## ---- ·-.----. The Board of Supervisors of the County of Imperial fully supports the application of Alaska Airlines for air service between San Diego and Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA). San Diego is the largest**reg~on** without announced service to DCA. Additionally, due to the profound community ofinterest between San Diego and the nation's capital, the region generates the largest passenger market demand without nonstop service to the convenient and close-in airport serving our nation's capital. ' San Diego's sheer market size coupled with the fact that San Diego,;.. Dulles average airfares are the highest of west coast cities should qualify it for a pair ofthe limited slots available. The high airfare is exacerbated when factoring in taxi fares from Dulles to Washington's city center that average about $60 each way. This means travelers between Washington's city center and San Diego via Dulles can pay on average close to $400 one-way. The situation for travelers from Imperial County is further exacerbated by the fact that the distance from this remote corner ofCaliforniarequires at least atwo hour drivejustto get to San Diego, before having to go through the check-in and security clearance process. This can add from $100 to $200 in fuel costs to the average traveler from Imperial County on top ofthe already high airfares**~nd** taxi fares that have become an accepted part of business travel for Imperial residents. There are also countless Imperial County-based entities that are engaged in government, agriculture, renewable energy, national security, and national defense that need quick and convenient access to Reagan national Airport. The County ofImperial has an immediate need for additional nonstop air service to our nation's capital. Alaska Airlines service would add a needed nonstop option to a primary gateway to Washington, DC. Imperial County joins with the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation, the World Trade Center San Diego, and the San Diego Regional Chamber ofCommerce in support ofAlaskaAirlines' application for San Diego Washington Reagan National Slots. We thank the Department ofTransportation for the opportunity to comment on the above referenced docket and we hope to hear ofa favorable review ofAlaska Airlines' San Diego- DCA proposal soon. Sincerely, 

## t} 

# ./VI;/ 14

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# ld K..ih_. /**«~airman** -/ Imperial County Board ofSupervisors 

## s1**0~** 

### 120321-054