U.S. Department ofTransportation Office of the Secretary ofTransportation



### Ms. SandraMcDonough President & 

### CEO Portland**Busin~ss** 

### Alliance 200 SW Market Street, Suite 150 Portland, OR 97201 DearMs. McDonough: Assistant Secretary 

### April 13, 2012 if)· l ·1**~~** • f I



### Thankyou for your letterto Secretary ofTransportation Ray LaHood, supporting the application ofAlaska Airlines, Inc. for two beyond-perimeter slot exemptions atRonald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Alaska's application proposes to serve Portland International Airport with one round trip per day from DCA. Secretary LaHood has asked me to respond to your letter. Underauthority granted in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of2012, the U.S. DepartmentofTransportation will be awarding to new entrant orlimited incumbent carriers atotal ofeight slotexemptions at DCA, which would support four daily round trips. We received Alaska's application, which also proposes one daily round trip to San Diego, on March 12. Othertimely applications were received from AirCanada, proposing one round trip to Vancouver, British Columbia; FrontierAirlines, one round trip to Colorado Springs and beyond to San Diego; JetBlue Airlines, one round trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one round trip to Austin, Texas; SouthwestAirlines, one round trip to Austin and San Diego beyond; Sun Country Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas; and Virgin America, Inc., two round trips to San Francisco. As the matter is still pending, Icannot comment on the merits ofthe points raised in your letter. However, Ican assure you that all applications the Departmentreceived will be given full and fair consideration and will be evaluated against the selection criteria specified in the statute.

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March 8, 2012
The Honorable Ray LaHood U.S. Department ofTransportation 1200 New Jersey Ave, SE Washington, D.C. 20590
Re: Alaska Airlines' application for PDX-DCA; Docket No. DOT-OST-2012-0029. Dear Secretary LaHood: The Portland Business Alliance, greater Portland's Chamber of Commerce, has 1,300small, medium and large members in the Portland-region, representing some 325,000 employees. As one of Oregon's leading business associations, we are writing to express our support for the application ofAlaska Airlines to provide a daily roundtrip flight between Reagan National Airport (DCA) and Portland International Airport (PDX). Many of our members travel to Washington, D.C., on a regular basis, and they consistently highlight the need for more nonstop service options for gettingto and from the Washington, D.C. area. We understand that, in terms of passengers per day, the Portland-Vancouver region is the second largest market to Washington, D.C. without nonstop service to DCA. With all ofthe existing demand for flights to Washington, D.C., the Portland-region is an ideal location for nonstop service to DCA. Currently, nonstop service from Oregon;southwest Washington is limited tojust a single daily flight between PDX and Washington Dulles (lAD). Adding nonstop service from PDX to DCA will benefit Oregon and southwest Washington businesses and their employees with the convenience of more flight options to and from Washington, DC.
Alaska Airlines and its regional sister carrier, Horizon Air, already have a significant hub presence at PDX, operating an annual average of more than 640 flights per week to 33 destinations, including locations throughout the Northwest. As a result, Alaska's nonstop flight to DCA would also improve service levels to Washington, D.C., for cities across Oregon and southwest Washington, in addition to the greater Portland-region

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. Gmterl'mttantfs 

### Chamber

## D/Commerce 200 SW Market St., Suite 150 • Portland, OR 97201 Phone 503.224.8684 FaK 503.32,.9186
·www.porttandalliance.comAlaska Airlines letter Page 2

This improved access to our nation's capital helps Oregon and southwest Washington businesses thrive and helps attract new businesses to the state. Alaska Airlines• strong presence, customer service focus and reliable operational performance make them an ideal carrier to provide nonstop service to DCA for Oregon and southwest Washington. We respectfully urge you to grantAlaska Airlines' application to provide PDX-DCA nonstop service. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely,

Sandra McDonough President 

### & CEOAlaska Airlines letter Page3