Essential Air Service

Essential Air Service (EAS) is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which, prior to deregulation, were served by certificated airlines, maintained commercial service. Its aim is to maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service to these communities that otherwise would not be profitable. This came in response to the Airline Deregulation Act, passed in 1978, which gave U.S. airlines almost total freedom to determine which markets to serve domestically and what fares to charge for that service.^[1] The program is codified at 49 U.S.C. §§ 41731–41748.

Areas in the continental United States served by the Essential Air Service.

The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) subsidizes airlines to serve rural communities across the country that otherwise would not receive any scheduled air service.^[1] As of November 1, 2013, the Essential Air Service subsidized 160 communities, of which 43 were in Alaska,^[2][3] whose guidelines for service are separate and distinct from the rest of the country. The decision as to what degree of subsidized service a community requires is made based on identifying a specific hub for the community and from there determining the number of trips, seats, and type of aircraft that are necessary to reach that hub.^[1]

The budget for EASs increased from $131.5 million in 2011^[4] to $214 million in 2012^[5] to $234 million in 2013 and to $241 million in 2014.^[6][7]

Cessna 402 in Essential Air Service flight to Mayagüez, Puerto Rico (November 2008)

Controversy

Critics question the economic efficiency of the service.^[8] According to a 2006 New York Times article on the program, the subsidy per passenger, averaged across the entire program excluding Alaska, is approximately $74, and much higher on some particularly poorly-patronized flights^[9] where subsidies are as high as $801 per passenger.^[10]

Patronage on many flights is very low. The majority of EAS airplanes have fewer than 20 seats, and flights typically are less than half full.^[11] However, the program is politically popular in the cities receiving the subsidized flights, many of which use an airport with scheduled service as a selling point to attract industry to their regions.

Several subsidized airports are within an hour's drive from an unsubsidized airport.^[12] For example:

• The subsidized Lancaster Airport (Pennsylvania) is a 36-minute drive to Harrisburg International Airport.^[13]
• The subsidized Visalia Municipal Airport is a 42-minute drive to Fresno Yosemite International Airport.^[14]
• The subsidized Eugenio María de Hostos Airport in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico is a 43-minute drive to Rafael Hernández Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
• The subsidized Pueblo Memorial Airport is a 45-minute drive to Colorado Springs Airport.^[15]
• The subsidized Muskegon County Airport is a 50-minute drive from Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan.^[16]
• The subsidized Owensboro-Daviess County Regional Airport in Kentucky is a 51-minute drive to Evansville Regional Airport in Indiana.
• The subsidized Memorial Field Airport is a 55-minute drive to Little Rock National Airport

^[17]

Some subsidized airports are within driving distance of multiple unsubsidized airports. For example:

• The subsidized Decatur Airport is a 53-minute drive to University of Illinois Willard Airport in Champaign, Illinois,^[18] and a 59-minute drive to Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in Springfield, Illinois.^[19]

Some of the subsidized airports also have a daily Amtrak service.

• The subsidized Kingman Airport (Arizona) has a daily Amtrak Southwest Chief service from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California.
• The subsidized Merced Municipal Airport has a daily Amtrak San Joaquin service from Bakersfield, California to Sacramento/Oakland, California.
• The subsidized Southeast Iowa Regional Airport has a daily Amtrak California Zephyr service from Chicago, Illinois to Emeryville/San Francisco, California.

Some of the subsidized airports have two daily Amtrak services.

• The subsidized Quincy Regional Airport has two daily Amtrak services, the Illinois Zephyr and the Carl Sandburg.
• The aforementioned Lancaster Airport in Pennsylvania, in addition to being relatively close to unsubsidized Harrisburg International Airport, serves a community with multiple Amtrak services, including one daily Pennsylvanian in each direction (eastbound to New York via Philadelphia and westbound to Pittsburgh via Harrisburg); the Keystone Service also serves Lancaster with thirteen trains eastbound (twelve to New York via Philadelphia, one terminating in Philadelphia) and thirteen trains westbound to Harrisburg every weekday, seven trains each direction every Saturday, and seven each direction on Sunday, for a total of fourteen weekday and eight weekend services in each direction.^[20]

Congressional panels expected the funding for the program to increase slightly to $114 million in 2007. However, the George W. Bush Administration sought to reduce the cost of the program to $50 million by stricter eligibility criteria and requiring the local governments of the areas served to contribute to the cost. The Heritage Foundation argued in 2014 that rural airports should receive no federal subsidies through the Essential Air Service program; rather, state and local governments that value the air services should support them.^[21]

Alternative Essential Air Service

The Alternative Essential Air Service program designates funds directly to the municipality or airport authority instead of the airline. This allows the community to recruit air service that would not otherwise meet EAS guidelines, such as less-than-daily service, flights to differing destinations at different times of the year or week, air taxi service, or even ground transportation. This is often done under a public charter arrangement. The first airport to enter this program was Manistee County Blacker Airport in 2012.^[22] Victoria Regional Airport joined the program in 2014. In both cases, the airports went through multiple rounds of traditional Essential Air Service bidding where no acceptable bids were received.

Subsidized routes

The following tables list all subsidized Essential Air Service routes. This is based on reports issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT),^[23] most recently in October 2015,^[24][25] and updated to reflect changes based on DOT orders published at [Regulations.gov]. Docket and order numbers link to their respective pages on the docket management site, which typically includes the original files in PDF and other formats.

Areas excluding Alaska

Alaska

Airports formerly having EAS subsidized routes

The following tables list airports which formerly had Essential Air Service subsidized routes.

Former EAS excluding Alaska

Former EAS in Alaska

See also

• Category:Essential Air Service for airports subsidized by the EAS program
• Category:Former Essential Air Service airports for airports formerly subsidized by the EAS program
• Public service obligation

External links: Essential Air Services airports

• Island Air Service - Kodiak, AK: Home Page
• Alaska Seaplane Service: Home Page
• Ward Air, Inc.: Home Page
• 40 Mile Air: Home Page
• Evergreen International Aviation, Inc.: Home Page (Web Archive)
• Copper Valley Air: Home Page
• Reeve Air Alaska: Home Page

References

External links

• US Department of Transportation: Policy - Essential Air Service
• US Department of Transportation: Policy - Essential Air Service Reports
• Regulations.gov - Federal Docket Management System