Tatitlek 

CORPORATION 

A TRAOmON OF EXCELLENCE 

••/•,afMENT OF 

An Alaska Native Village Corporation 

r>(ii K.isi 30i h wcnu e • AI K horaj^e, Alaska (t<»r,o;i 

Phone: (9()7) J7H-4()00 • Fa\ : (007) i;7H +0511 

www.iaiiilck.coni 

TATITLEK CONTRACTORS INC • TATITLEK MANAGEMENT,'JNc(^*^'^:^/Tifcyf'?'fi^P°'~'SE: SERVICES INC • TATITLEK SUPPORT SERVICES INC 

TATITLE^K TECHNOLOGIES INC • SUPE R SIGNS LTD " TATITLEK TRAINING SERVICES INC 

5:."i P 1--5U ACTIO N 

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SlO-110124-021 

CONTROL NO 

January 14, 2011 

The Honorable Ray LaHood 

Secretary 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. 

Washington, D.C. 20590 

Re: Continuation of Alaska Airlines' Essential Air Service at Cordova. Gustavus. 

Petersburg. Wrangell and Yakutat Alaska. Docket OST 1998-4899 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

This letter is to express strong support for the selection of Alaska Airlines to continue to provide 

essential air service to Cordova Alaska. 

Alaska's current pattern of service-using jet aircraft-meets crucial needs that w/ould be difficult, if not 

impossible, to meet with any other type of service or aircraft type: 

Alaska's service connects Southeast Alaska passengers to one or more major communities of interest, 

with single-plane service to Anchorage, Juneau, Ketchikan or Seattle. From these hubs, our community 

can access the airline's extensive route system and benefit from its marketing relationships with other 

carriers. The 737-400 combination {"combi") passenger and cargo aircraft, which Alaska Airlines 

proposes to continue using on this route, provides freight, mail and cargo capacity that a non-jet carrier 

simply cannot provide. Further, the 737-400 combi aircraft Is equipped with Required Navigation 

Performance Technology precision technology, which enables the airline to reliably access the airport 

during inclement weather, thus reducing diversions and cancellations and, in turn, enabling people and 

products to dependably reach the community. In sum Alaska jet service is critical to the well being of 

Cordova Alaska. 

It is important to continue the level of Alaska Airlines service to Cordova since our local Cordova 

Chamber of Commerce has promoted our community year round as a tourist destination. We have the 

annual festivals which attract many visitors to our community-Cordova Iceworm Festival, Copper River 

Shorebird Festival, PWSSC Copper River Nouveau, Copper River Wild Salmon Days, Cordova 4-H Music 

Camp, Cordova Fungus Festival, and the Native Village of Eyak Sobriety Celebration. 
The airplane configurations also allows us to receive freight from Seattle and Juneau Alaska. 

For these reasons, we respectfully urge DOT to select Alaska AiHines to continue to provide essential air 

service to Southeast Alaska, as the airline has successfully done for more than thirty years. 

Sincerely, 

The Tatitlek Corporation 

Darrel Olsen 

Office Manager 

Ref-11-005 

Dto 

cc: 

Susan Kurland, Assistant Secretap/ for Aviation and Internal Affairs 

Dennis Devany, Chief, EAS and Domestic Analysis 

The Honorable Sean Parnell, Governor State of Alaska 

Marc A. Luiken, Commissioner, Alaska State Department of Transportation and Public Facilities