### UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY WASHINGTON, D.C.

Issued by the Department of Transportation on January 22, 2010



### NOTICE OF ACTION TAKEN -- DOCKETS DOT-OST-1997-2651 and DOT-OST-2007-29273

________________________________________________________________________________________________________ This serves as notice to the public of th e action described below, taken by the Department official indicated (no additional confirming order will be issued in this matter).

Applicant: SERVICIOS AERONAUTICOS Z, S.A. de C.V. (DOT-OST-1997-2651) Date Filed: December 16, 2009

Date and citation of last action: Decembe r 20, 2007, in the referenced Docket Applicant representative: Daniel Elizondo, 210-927-2581

Applicant: AEROTRANSPORTES RAFILHER, S.A. de C.V. (DOT-OST-2007-29273) Date Filed: December 31, 2009

Date and citation of last action: Janua ry 29, 2008, in the referenced Docket Applicant representative: Eugene E. Smith, 210-590-1630

Relief requested: Renewal of exemptions from 49 USC §41301 to permit the applicants to conduct passenger charter operations between Mexico and the United States, and othe r passenger charters in accordance with 14 CFR Part 212, using small equipment. The applicants also request rene wal of their stopover privileges and continued relief from the requirement to provide advance notice of each flight, or ser ies of flights, between Mexico and the United States.

DOT analyst: Robert J. Finamore, 202-366-2405

Responsive pleadings: None.

DISPOSITION

Action: Approved Action date: January 22, 2010

Effective dates of authority granted: January 22, 2010, through January 22, 2012.

Basis for approval (bilateral agreement/reciprocity): Unite d States-Mexico Air Transport Services Agreement (“the Agreement”).

Except to the extent exempted/waived, this authority is subj ect to the terms, conditions, and limitations of our standard exemption conditions (attached).

Special conditions/Remarks: In the conduct of these operations, the carriers must adhere to all applicable provisions of the Agreement and may only use aircraft capable of ca rrying no more than 60 passengers and having a maximum payload capacity of no more than 18,000 pounds (small equipm ent). The above grant includes authority to operate

Third and Fourth Freedom charters. Wh ile we have subjected, consistent w ith the provisions of the Agreement, Mexican carriers conducting charter operations with large airc raft to prior approval or submission of notice for their Third and Fourth Freedom charters, we determined that any such requirement was not necessary on public interest grounds in the case of these carriers, since the carriers will be conducting these operations so lely with small aircraft. 1

(Other charter operations to/from the United States under th is authority, however, are subject to prior approval under 14 CFR Part 212.) Further, we are continuing to allow Mexican carriers conducting passenger charters using small equipment to make stopovers in the United St ates in the conduct of such operations.

Action taken by: Paul L. Gretch, Director, Office of International Aviation

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1 We note, however, that the applicants mu st meet any reporting requirements set forth in their FAA Operations Specifications.Under authority assigned by the Department in its regulations, 14 CFR Part 385, we found that (1) our action was consistent wit h Department policy; (2) the applicants were qualified to perform their proposed operations; (3) grant of the authority was consi stent with the public interest; and (4) grant of the authority would not constitute a majo r regulatory action under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975. To the extent not granted/deferred/dismi ssed, we denied all requests in the referenced Dockets. We may amend, modify, or revoke the authority granted in this Notice at any time without hearing at our discretion.

Persons entitled to petition the Department fo r review of the action set forth in this Notice under the Department’s regulation s, 14 CFR §385.30, may file their petitions within seven (7) days after th e date of issuance of this Notice. This action was effecti ve when taken, and the filing of a petition for review will not alter such effectiveness.

An electronic version of this document is available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.regulations.gov

### Foreign Carrier Exemption Conditions

In the conduct of the operations authorized , the foreign carrier applicant(s) shall:

(1) Not conduct any operations unless it holds a currently effective authorization from its homeland for such operations, and it has filed a copy of su ch authorization with the Department;

(2) Comply with all applicable requirements of the Fe deral Aviation Administration, the Transportation Security Administration, and with all applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning security, including, but not limited to, 14 CFR Parts 129, 91, and 36 and 49 CFR Part 1546 or 1550, as applicable. To assure compliance with all applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning secur ity, the holder shall, before commencing any new service (including charter flights) from a foreign airport that would be the holder’s last point of departure for the United States, contact its International Industry Representative (IIR) (form erly referred to as International Principal Security Inspector) to advise the IIR of its plans and to find out whether the Transportation Security Administration has determined that security is adequate to allow such airport(s) to be served;

(3) Comply with the requirements for minimum insurance c overage contained in 14 CFR Part 205, and, prior to the commencement of any operations under this authority, file evid ence of such coverage, in the form of a completed OST Form 6411, with the Federal Aviation Administration’s Pr ogram Management Branch (AFS-260), Flight Standards Service (any changes to, or termination of, insu rance also shall be filed with that office);

(4) Not operate aircraft under this authority unless it compli es with operational safety requirements at least equivalent to Annex 6 of the Chicago Convention;

(5) Conform to the airworthiness and airman competency requirements of its Government for international air services;

(6) Except as specifically exempted or otherwise provided for in a Department Order, comply with the requirements of 14 CFR Part 203, concerning waiver of War saw Convention liability limits and defenses;

(7) Agree that operations under this authority constitute a waiver of sovereign immunity, for the purposes of 28 U.S.C. 1605(a), but only with respect to those actions or proceedings instituted against it in any court or other tribunal in the United States that are: (a) based on its operations in intern ational air transportation that, according to the contract of carriage, include a point in the United States as a point of or igin, point of destination, or agreed stopping place, or for which the contract of carriage was purchased in the United States; or (b) based on a claim under any international agreement or treaty cognizable in any court or other tri bunal of the United States. In this condition, the term "international air transportation" means "international tran sportation" as defined by the Warsaw Convention, except that all States shall be considered to be High Cont racting Parties for the purpose of this definition;

(8) Except as specifically authorized by the Department, orig inate or terminate all flights to/from the United States in its homeland;

(9) Comply with the requirements of 14 CFR Part 217, concerning the reporting of scheduled, nonscheduled, and charter data;

(10) If charter operations are authorized, except as otherwi se provided in the applicable aviation agreement, comply with the Department's rules governing char ters (including 14 CFR Parts 212 and 380); and

(11) Comply with such other reasonable terms, conditions , and limitations required by the public interest as may be prescribed by the Department, with all applicable orders or regulations of other U.S. agen cies and courts, and with all applicable laws of the United States.

This authority shall not be effective during any period wh en the holder is not in compliance with the conditions imposed above. Moreover, this authority cannot be sold or otherwise transferred without explicit Department approval

under Title 49 of the U.S. Code.

12/2007