Local commercial air service terminated

DOT tentative decision calls for suspension of Big Sky service Aug. 1

MOSES LAKE — Citing concerns over low passenger numbers and high subsidy rates, federal regulators are poised to discontinue commercial airline flights to and from Grant County International Airport.

A letter from the U.S. Department of Transportation orders the tentative termination of the Essential Air Service program and allows Big Sky Transportation Company, Inc., doing business as EAS carrier Big Sky Airlines, to suspend service as of Aug. 1.

Letter recipients include the mayors of Moses Lake and Ephrata, Port of Moses Lake executive manager Craig Baldwin, the Washington State Department of Transportation, Gov. Chris Gregoire and EAS carrier Big Sky Airlines.

The department is directing interested persons to show cause within 20 days why the subsidy eligibility of the area under the EAS program should not be terminated.

"In spite of specific efforts on the part of Big Sky and the community to increase the number of local passengers, overall ridership of EAS at Ephrata/Moses Lake has remained flat or declined," the letter reads. Ephrata and Moses Lake are tied together for the Essential Air Service program due to the deregulation of airlines in 1978.

The department is prohibited from subsidizing EAS within communities where the subsidy amounts to more than $200 per passenger, unless they are more than 210 highway miles from the nearest large or medium hub. The letter states that Ephrata/Moses Lake is "well under" 210 miles from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, and subject to the $200 cap. It also notes that the area is approximately 61 highway miles from Pangborn Memorial Airport in Wenatchee, which offers four daily nonstop flights to Seattle.

"It appears that Big Sky's service may no longer be able to effectively compete with the Wenatchee service," the letter continues. "Nevertheless, whatever factor or factors have caused the demand for air service at Ephrata/Moses Lake to stagnate or decline, its subsidy remains above the $200 cap."

Big Sky president Fred deLeeuw said his company has worked with the community to improve services to the point where the operating performance is "stellar," with the majority of flights operating on time or early, with the exception of weather.

"The issue is getting enough people on airplanes," deLeeuw said, noting a special promotional fare from November to January got a lot of people on the planes, but once that special offering was over, boarding numbers were very low from February to May.

DOT spokesman Bill Mosley said another carrier or Big Sky could serve the community without a subsidy. Termination of service "happens from time to time," he said, and is almost always appealed.

"It's safe to say, most of the time (appeals are) not successful," Mosley said, noting the department goes by its calculations and the facts. But "from time to time," communities have sometimes shown facts that cause a reversal of the decision, although such instances are relatively rare, he said.

While no response from the airline is necessary, deLeeuw said, Big Sky will support the Moses Lake community as it decides what to do next, noting he does not want to stop service into the area.

"Moses Lake is one of our hub routes out of Boise, it connects us to Portland, so it's an important market for us," he said. "On the other hand, we lose a lot of money in Moses Lake because we don't carry enough passengers. The subsidy we get does not even come close to covering what it costs us to serve the market."

The arrival of new businesses into the area should help, deLeeuw added.

"But we're getting down to the last hours in this case," he said. "We will stand there with the community and do everything we can to make sure this thing works, or try and make it work."

DeLeeuw said there has been no change in service or employment at Big Sky in Moses Lake, "but we do have to make the route work. We can't continue losing money."

The local EAS program was put on probationary status for low passenger levels in 2004. In order to maintain the subsidy, the port district calculated, there would have to be at least 8,500 total passengers for a 12-month period. In 2004, the total number of passengers was 7,194.

In order to lower operational costs, the port began offering a new service in February 2005, offering flights to Portland, Ore., and Boise, Idaho, instead of to Seattle. Passenger numbers increased during a special promotion, but utilization fell dramatically in February, resulting in a subsidy of $213.15 for the year ending Feb. 28.

Baldwin said there appears to be a discrepancy between how Big Sky provides passenger numbers and what DOT accepts as passenger numbers.

Baldwin and Moses Lake Mayor Ron Covey are in the process of putting together a response voicing concern about the suspension of services and explaining the need for continuation, hoping the decision will be re-examined in the community's favor, he added.

Delone Kruger, president of the board of commissioners of the Port of Moses Lake, said Thursday morning that the board had not had time to sit down and review the letter, but hopes to meet with the cities of Ephrata and Moses Lake.

Baldwin said the port is aware of complaints within the community about Big Sky services, noting the airline has made tremendous effort and continues to improve. But regardless of one's personal feelings toward the airline, he said, people need to understand air service itself is important.

"The continuation of air service to Grant County International Airport is extre-mely important in that we are in the midst of a growth spurt in this area," Covey agreed. "Economic development is currently taking place, and we foresee a continuation of economic growth. That will require air service to Moses Lake. I think the suspension of air service would hurt us dramatically."

Baldwin said a meeting is planned for noon Monday at the airport to discuss the community's response and prepare a plan of action.