Order: 2014-9-20 

Served: September 26, 2014 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 

Issued by the Department of Transportation 

on the 26th day of September, 2014 

Air Transportation to Noneligible Places 

LOS ALAMOS, NEW MEXICO 

Under 49 U.S.C. 41736 

 DOT-OST-2014-0127

ORDER DENYING APPLICATION 

Summary 

By this Order, the Department is denying the application of Los Alamos, New Mexico, for 

inclusion in the Air Transportation to Noneligible Places (ATNEP) program. 

Background 

In accordance with 49 U.S.C. § 41736(a), a State or local government may propose that the 

Department assist in providing compensation to an air carrier to provide air transportation to a 

community that is not eligible for Essential Air Service (EAS). The Department shall designate 

the community as eligible and approve a proposal for compensation if a party is willing and able 

to pay 50 percent of the compensation for providing the transportation, and if the Department 

determines the proposal to be reasonable. In determining whether a proposal is reasonable, the 

Department must consider, among other things, (1) the traffic-generating potential of the point; 

(2) the cost to the Federal government of providing the proposed transportation; and (3) the 

distance from the point to the closest hub airport. 

By letter dated July 14, 2014, the County Administrator of Los Alamos County, on behalf of the 

city of Los Alamos (the community), requested that Los Alamos be included in the ATNEP 

program and that the U.S. Department of Transportation authorize compensation to be provided 

to an air carrier to supply air transportation to/from Los Alamos. 
- 2 - 

Proposal of Los Alamos 

The community has asked for a grant of a revenue guarantee of 50% of any shortfall, but not to 

exceed $250,000 per year, for a period of five years. The community has agreed to fund the 

balance of any revenue shortfall. In support of its proposal, the community states that it received 

scheduled air service as far back as 1948 from funding provided by the Atomic Energy 

Commission and generated 35,000 passengers in the late 1980s. The community lost service in 

1996. In 2013, Los Alamos received a grant from the Department’s Small Community Air 

Service Program (SCASDP) of $272,000 to restart commercial air service. The County 

contracted with Pacific Wings, LLC (d/b/a New Mexico Airlines) to provide three daily round 

trips to from Los Alamos County Airport (LAM) to Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) 

with nine-seat Cessna Caravan aircraft at a one-way ticket price of $49. The community states 

that passenger levels are increasing and all trends are positive. The community cites a number of 

economic and environmental benefits of the commercial air service. 

Decision 

After carefully reviewing the community’s application to receive compensation under 

49 U.S.C. § 41736(a), we have decided to deny it. 

We have assessed the community’s proposal under the criteria listed in 49 U.S.C. § 

41736(a)(2).1 In terms of traffic-generating potential, according to the community’s application, 

LAM generated 6,324 passengers from April 2013 through May 2014, an average of 486 per 

month. It appears that the community divided the total passengers by 13 months to get the 

average per month. However, it appears that the time period the community used, as reinforced 

by the chart in their Attachment B, comprises 14 months, not 13. For the most recent 12 months 

for which data are available, Los Alamos generated 5,722 inbound and outbound passengers. 

(See Appendix A.) In calculating enplanements per day for EAS purposes, longstanding 

program practice is to take total annual origin and destination passenger numbers divided by two 

to get passengers in one direction (enplanements at the EAS community), and then by 313 days 

to get average daily enplanements at the EAS community. We do not use 365 days in our 

calculation because EAS is typically the equivalent of six-day-a-week service, i.e., reduced 

service on weekends. Consistent with that methodology, Los Alamos averaged 9.1 

enplanements per day in the most recent year. 

In addition, according to the community, Los Alamos is 97 miles from ABQ, classified as a 

medium hub. ABQ offers 92 weekday departures to 24 airports on 7 airlines.2 Furthermore, 

Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF) is less than 50 miles away, and it receives daily jet service 

from United Express to Denver (DEN) and American Eagle to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and 

Los Angeles (LAX), thus, providing the community with multiple options for air service. The 

proximate availability of that service further inhibits the community’s ability to generate 

significant passenger levels. 

 

1 In determining whether a proposal is reasonable, the Department must consider, among other things, (1) the 

traffic-generating potential of the point; (2) the cost to the Federal government of providing the proposed 

transportation; and (3) the distance from the point to the closest hub airport. 

2 Based on published schedules for August 2014.
- 3 - 

In order to approve a community’s application for inclusion in ATNEP, the Department must 

conclude that the proposal is “reasonable.” Given the community’s proximity to two airports 

with scheduled jet service, one being a medium hub, its current low enplanements, and our 

finding that the community does not have significant traffic generating potential, we find that the 

proposal is not reasonable.3 

In addition, we view the community’s application in the broader context of the entire EAS 

program. In two recent laws, The Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2011, Pub. L. 112-27, 

and The FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Pub L. 112-95, Congress enacted several 

reforms to the EAS program that tightened the criteria for continued qualification as an “eligible 

place” (except for Alaska and Hawaii). 

Thus, we deny the petition of Los Alamos for inclusion in the Air Transportation to Noneligible 

Places (ATNEP) program. 

This Order is issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR part 1.56a(f). 

ACCORDINGLY, 

1. We deny the application of Los Alamos, New Mexico, for inclusion in the “Air 

Transportation to Non-eligible Places” program under 49 U.S.C. § 41736(a); 

2. This docket will remain open until further order of the Department; and 

3. We will serve copies of this Order on the civic officials of Los Alamos, New Mexico. 

By: 

SUSAN L. KURLAND

Assistant Secretary for 

Aviation and International Affairs 

(SEAL) 

An electronic version of this document is available at 

http://www.regulations.gov 

 

3 49 U.S.C. § 41736(a)(2).
Appendix A 

TRAFFIC 

Los Alamos County Airport, NM (LAM)1

Apt Year Month Uniquecarriername Enplaned pax Deplaned pax Totals

LAM 2013 4 Pacific Wings Airlines 141 58 199

LAM 2013 5 Pacific Wings Airlines 247 156 403

LAM 2013 6 Pacific Wings Airlines 257 161 418

LAM 2013 7 Pacific Wings Airlines 286 186 472

LAM 2013 8 Pacific Wings Airlines 293 209 502

LAM 2013 9 Pacific Wings Airlines 273 185 458

LAM 2013 10 Pacific Wings Airlines 227 159 386

LAM 2013 11 Pacific Wings Airlines 275 219 494

LAM 2013 12 Pacific Wings Airlines 296 204 500

LAM 2014 1 Pacific Wings Airlines 259 166 425

LAM 2014 2 Pacific Wings Airlines 254 165 419

LAM 2014 3 Pacific Wings Airlines 275 219 494

LAM 2014 4 Pacific Wings Airlines 335 200 535

LAM 2014 5 Pacific Wings Airlines 342 277 619

5,722

(Total, 12

months of traffic

‐ June 1, 2013,

through May 31,

2014)

9.1

enplanements

per day (June 1,

2013, through

May 31, 2014)

5,722 divided by

313 divided by 2

 

1 Department of Transportation T-100 Market data. 
Appendix B 

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May

AXIS TITLE

ENPLANED PASSENGERS

Attachment A: Los Alamos Airline Service Emplanements

2013‐14