Comment deadline approaching for federal subsidy

Ultimate fate of EAS program in Moses Lake still up in air

MOSES LAKE — There's still air service at Grant County International Airport, and for the moment, the Port of Moses Lake is operating like it will stay that way.

Port of Moses Lake executive manager Craig Baldwin said the number of passengers flying through Big Sky Airlines out of Moses Lake through the federally subsidized Essential Air Services program in the past two months has been really good, with June's passenger numbers up 43 over June 2005, for a total of 682 passengers, and July's passenger numbers also looking "really good."

"The numbers are still there, let the community know that the air service has not stopped," he said, noting some people still call in wondering if they should buy a ticket. "Right now, to date, we still have air service. We hope to continue having air service, and until we hear differently, we're moving forward as if we continue to have it. So we do urge the community to continue to support and fly from Moses Lake."

In June, the U.S. Department of Transportation sent out letters ordering the tentative termination of the federally subsidized EAS program, allowing carrier Big Sky airlines to suspend service Aug. 1. The department cited low passenger numbers as its reasoning.

The community originally had a deadline to respond by June 30, but the department granted an extension of the comment period through to Aug. 2 from the original deadline, also postponing the tentative order to terminate the services.

Next week, the department will receive a package from the community giving reasons why the service should not be terminated. After the package is received, the department will make a final decision, either deciding to terminate the service or giving a conditional use.

"Whatever the answer may be, we don't know at this point," Baldwin said of the department's decision.

During the last month, community members and businesses have written in letters of support, giving reasons why the air service has not been utilized and what they would like to see. Baldwin said there's no way of knowing when the DOT will respond to the comment package, but noted Gov. Chris Gregoire, Sen. Patty Murray and Congressman Doc Hastings have all indicated they will support the continuation of the services.

"We are working on the response package, trying to tell the story accurately, but in such a way the DOT can appreciate where the community stands," Baldwin said. "The fact is, we're over the $200 per passenger cap. That's what the federal law requires under the appropriations bill. We still exceed that."

It's not for certain by how much the cap has been exceeded, Baldwin added, explaining that there are apparently three different sets of numbers. Local representatives of EAS carrier Big Sky Airlines report to the port district how many people get on and off the plane, he said, while the airline's corporate office reports a number to the DOT, which in turn reported an official, yet different, number to the port when considering EAS qualifications in their tentative termination order.

"Based on those three sets of numbers, it puts us anywhere from $199 to $209 per passenger," Baldwin said. The department is showing the $209, which is still $9 over the cap, and Baldwin is still trying to determine where the differences come from, although he said he thinks it comes from the way those numbers are reported, with differences coming from revenued or paid passengers and passengers passing through Moses Lake from Portland, Ore., to Boise, or Boise to Portland. One of the items to be included in the package will be identification of how the numbers are calculated and what they really are, in able to determine the passenger numbers accurately.

Other items to point out in the package are reasons the community has not been fully utilizing the services, based on the letters. Baldwin said the letters indicate canceled and delayed flights and the difficulty of purchasing tickets through on-line travel Web sites are factors, and less so the locations to where Big Sky has been flying from Moses Lake.

"A lot of people have indicated they wanted Seattle service," he said. "That is important, but we are still looking at trying to figure out how to get into Seattle, but the locations really don't seem to be a complete issue. A lot of people like Boise, a lot of people like Portland."

The port met with Big Sky last week; Baldwin said the air carrier is working to correct those issues, and is committed to working to put the package together, but the carrier's concern is that they are losing money in the market, and trying to determine ways to cut costs.

The port has also spoken with several other air carriers, Baldwin continued, although he has not heard any final responses. Some have indicated that they don't know how to make air service work in the Moses Lake area, while others are still evaluating the possibility, including several smaller air carriers.

"So we are making moves towards trying to come up with an alternative program or a plan that might work with the community, and/or to be able to work with Big Sky to come up with something that is beneficial to the community and the airline, and is acceptable by the DOT," Baldwin said.

Thinking optimistically, Baldwin hopes it is possible to maintain some sort of commercial air service in Moses Lake, whether that's with Big Sky or another carrier, but that's a decision for the DOT to make after all facts and numbers have been evaluated.

If the department decides to continue with the termination process, Baldwin said, the port will look at other options, including a regularly scheduled charter service, and noted there are avenues to receive subsidies for a charter service instead of scheduled commercial service.

"That's not an angle we want to take right now," Baldwin said. "The idea right now is to maintain commercial service. Should that not work, we have other avenues that we would look at to maintain some type of air service in the community."

Even if the worst-case scenario takes place — total loss of commercial air service —Baldwin noted the airport would still exist, the military is still in Moses Lake and Japan Airlines is still in Moses Lake.

"(The loss of commercial air service) would not stop us from continuing to work with carriers to come up with some kind of a schedule that would work that we could then get back into the program," he said, noting the port would then have to show the new plan would significantly reduce the cost.

Termination of the subsidy does not necessarily mean the carrier immediately ceases its flights, nor does it mean that another carrier could not come in and provide air service.

"I think that they value being in the community and I think they would try to work something out," Baldwin said. "But it would have to be cost-effective to them."

Baldwin added that without a subsidy, the services would probably change into something financially feasible for the carrier, and said the port would have to support the cost of the airline through passengers and ticket costs. But the port is still looking to salvage the subsidy levels and remain eligible for them, he noted.

"The future is uncertain at this point, but we are pursuing multiple avenues of possibilities," said port commissioner Larry Peterson, adding that there's been very good cooperation in getting comments together for the department, particularly from Murray's office, a natural fit since the senator serves on the Senate transportation committee. "We're also looking for alternate service from Moses Lake to Boeing Field in Seattle. We're working our tail ends off."

Peterson also stressed that Big Sky continues to fly its regular schedule to Portland and Boise.