Letter to Doug Voss, Chairman and President of Great Lakes Aviation, Re: Improve Downstate Service Through Codeshare Agreement

Letter

Letter to Doug Voss, Chairman and President of Great Lakes Aviation, Re: Improve Downstate Service Through Codeshare Agreement

Durbin Urges Great Lakes Aviation to Improve Downstate Service Through Codeshare Agreement

In a letter to the Chairman and President of Great Lakes Aviation, Doug Voss, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin today urged the airline to improve the quality and reliability of air service to Decatur, Quincy and Marion/Herrin, Illinois by signing a codeshare agreement with American Airlines. This agreement would allow costumers access to both airline networks which directly benefits the consumer through a streamlined ticket purchasing process, combined frequent flyer programs and increased destinations and flight choices. Great Lakes Aviation signed a letter of intent to enter into a codeshare with American Airlines in March of 2007, but still has not implemented the codeshare. Great Lakes Aviation has also been unable to fly a complete schedule of four flights per day from the downstate Illinois communities to St. Louis.

"These communities were subject to unreliable service for far too long and there is growing frustration over Great Lakes Aviation's delay in signing a code share agreement and flying a full schedule," wrote Durbin. "Each day with limited service means slower economic growth, decreased state and federal investment to the affected airports, and a greater uphill battle for you to regain the trust and loyalty of passengers. I encourage you to do everything you can to begin air service with the code share you promised to these communities and I stand ready to assist you in providing the people of Illinois with the most reliable, viable, and safe air transportation."

After Regions Air halted service in March of last year, Great Lakes Airlines was awarded the Essential Air Service contracts in Marion/Herrin, Quincy and Decatur, Illinois The two-year contract consists of a $3.5 million per year federal subsidy to operate the EAS program that was established by Congress in 1978 to ensure communities with commercial air service before airline deregulation could continue scheduled flights. Without EAS, many rural communities would have no commercial air service at all, and residents of smaller cities would have to travel significant distances for flights.

Durbin has worked with American Airlines, Great Lakes Airlines and the Department of Transportation to ensure the necessary planes; personnel and equipment are in place so that service between downstate communities and St. Louis Lambert International Airport could be put in place.

May 7, 2008

Doug Voss
Chairman and President
Great Lakes Aviation
1022 Airport Parkway
Cheyenne, WY 82001

Dear Mr. Voss:

I am writing to strongly encourage you to improve the quality of air service you are providing to the essential air service communities of Decatur, Quincy, and Marion, Illinois. Since November, Great Lakes has flown an incomplete schedule of flights from these communities to St. Louis without a codeshare agreement with American Airlines.

Decatur, Quincy, Marion and American Airlines have all reached out to you and expressed their frustration in the delay in signing a codeshare agreement. The Department of Transportation and the communities all supported your essential air service application believing that Great Lakes would fly under an American Airlines code. Great Lakes even signed a letter of intent with American promising Great Lakes would fly under an American Connection brand.

Illinois communities deserve convenient, reliable air service. Unfortunately, Great Lakes' refusal to sign a code share agreement has denied them this right. The current situation leaves air travelers without a convenient way to connect from St. Louis to their final destinations and hurts the airports who continue to suffer without the marketing commitment that comes with an American Airlines code share agreement.

These communities were subject to unreliable service for far too long and there is growing frustration over Great Lakes Aviation's delay in signing a code share agreement and flying a full schedule. Each day with limited service means slower economic growth, decreased state and federal investment to the affected airports, and a greater uphill battle for you to regain the trust and loyalty of passengers.

I encourage you to do everything you can to begin air service with the code share you promised to these communities and I stand ready to assist you in providing the people of Illinois with the most reliable, viable, and safe air transportation.

Sincerely,
Richard J. Durbin
U.S. Senator

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