THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION



### TheHonorable Ron Wyden United States Senate Washington, DC 20510

Dear SenatorWyden: WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590

April19, 2012 'Hl\'1 •• 1' ,t;,_ Cj: 

### 20**J.~fJ** ll. y



### Thankyou for your letter supporting the application ofAlaska Airlines, Inc., for two**oeyond~perimeter** 

### slotexemptions atRonald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).**Alaska~**s

### application proposes to serve Portland International Airport with one round trip per day from DCA.
Underauthority granted inthe FAA Modernization and Reform Act of2012" the U.S. Department ofTransportation will be awarding to new entrant or limited incumbent carriers atotal ofeight slot exemptions at DCA. which would support four daily round trips.

We received Alaska's application, which also proposes one daily roundtrip to San**Diego.~** 

### on March. 12. Othertimely applications were received from Air**Canad~** 

### proposing one round trip to Vancouver, British Columbia; Frontier Airlines, one round trip to Colorado Springs and beyond to San Diego.; JetBlue Airlines, 'One round tdpto San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one round trip to Austin, Texas; Southwest Airlines, one roundtrip to Austin and San Diego beyond; Sun Country Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas; and Virgin America, Inc.,two ro1;1nd trips to San Francisco. '
As the matteris still pending, l cannot comment on the merits ofthe points raised in yom letter. However1 

### Ican assure you that all**appli~;:ations** 

### the Departmentreceived will be.given full and fair consideration andwill be evaluated against the selection criteria specified·in the statute.
The Departmenfs action ori this matter is being administered through apublic docket, which allows all interestedparties the coh1ttlent. FolloWing outnormal**practice~** 

### I am placing a.eopy ofyour.letter and in.do.cketnumher DOT,.201

I appreciate your interest inRONWYDEN OREGON

22:3 DIRKSCN SENATE (JI'FfC(; Ul.IILDING WASI·IINGTON. DC:: 20f>J(l (20'2) 22•1·-{\244 

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The Honorable Ray LaHood Secretary U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, D.C. 20590

Dear Secretary LaHood: WASHINGTON, DC 20510-3703 March 20,2012 COMMilTEES: COMMn"IU: ON "n-llo ElUDGtT COMMITTEE ON ENEBm' AND NATURAL RESOURCES**Sl!6COM~1flTEE** ON PUBUC I,.ANOS AND FOHE..STS SPfCII\1.. COMMI'ITf£ ON AGING SELECT COMMfn'££ ON INT£LUGENCr: COMMITIF.E ON FINANCE

Iwrite today in support ofthe application submitted by Alaska Airlines, Inc. for two ofthe eight "beyond- perimeter slot" exemptions at Ronald Regan National Airport (DCA). The approval ofAlaska Airlines' application would provide a daily nonstop roundtrip flight between DCA and Portland International Airport (PDX). As you know, the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of2012 provides for additional flights between DCA and destinations like PDX that are more than 1,250 miles away.
The addition oftwo AlaskaAirlines slots for aroundtrip flight between DCA and PDX could have significant economic implications for Oregon and the greater Northwestregion, which continues to struggle with higher than average unemployment. Oregon is one ofthe most underserved states for air service to and from Washington, D.C. Giving the Pacific Northwest anotherconnection to the East Coast could greatly boost economic development in ourregion. Increasingly, thetechnology industry is becoming a vital part ofOregon's economy, and D.C. is the center oftechpolicy. Increased direct
access to Washington, D.C. can only be aboost to Oregon's economic prospects.
Furthermore, Washington, D.C. is one ofPortland's top 10 destinations; howeve,r there are not enough nonstop travel options between Portland and Washington, D.C. to meet the demand. There is only one daily flight--between PDX and Dulles International Airpo11 on United Airlines. An estimated 267,000 passengers travel between Portland the Washington, D.C. metro area each year. Despite this high volume oftraffic, the existing nonstop service can only accommodate 13 percent ofthese travelers. Opening an additional slot for anew nonstop flight would offer more time efficient travel options, as well as competition in the marketplace for consumers and businesses.

For these reasons, I support Alaska Airlines' application to provide this critical service for Oregon businesses and residents. Please give their application full and fair consideration.

911 NE 11TH AVENUl surrt c,:;o POI'lTI.IIND. OR 97Z:IJ?

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# s 1 0-120327-04{1 'IOf> f.IIST !>TH 1\Vt SUJTE2020 F.OGI'.Nf., OR 97401 <r•'' H 'l:n-o2:!\) Sincerely,

# ~~ Ron Wyden United States Senator

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