US scheduled commuter carrier SeaPort Airlines has petitioned the US Department of Transportation (DoT) to reconsider its decision to award rival Air Excursions LLC approval to provide essential air services (EAS) to two communities in Alaska, saying it was based on facts that were “incorrect, incomplete or mischaracterized”.
In a letter submitted to the DoT on September 21, the Portland-based carrier said “significant events” had occurred in the four months between Air Excursions made its bid to operate the EAS and the DoT’s awarding of the service which meant the Department should instead award the service to SeaPort.
SeaPort said community support in Kake, a predominately Native American town on the Alaskan coast, favoured SeaPort over Air Excursions. Reviewing comments submitted to the DoT in support of each carrier revealed seven public declarations for SeaPort against five in support of Air Excursions.
Seaport said the DoT had “mischaracterized” a fatal accident involving an Air Excursions aircraft as an incident, contrary to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) guidelines adding that public support for its bid spiked in July shortly after a fatal crash by an Air Excursions aircraft, and said its classification as an accident by the NTSB, was “incorrect”.
“In SeaPort’s view, the occurrence of two accidents (one being fatal) and one incident between submission of carrier proposals and carrier selection constitutes a ‘material change’ to the information on which communities were asked to comment,” the petition states. “Destruction of the aircraft and fatality of the pilot (who was the only occupant) is not an ‘incident’ but rather is an ‘accident’.”
Seaport further quoted flight data to allege that Air Excursions had misled the public that it intended to predominately operate its single Piper Chieftain on the service but that it had used the aircraft very infrequently to Kake “if at all” during Summer 2012. Finally, SeaPort said the DoT had incorrectly stated Air Excursion was a locally owned company in its decision to award it the service rights.
“With respect to Air Excursions, that carrier was purchased earlier this year by the same group which in April 2011 purchased Alaska Seaplanes Service. The largest interest in that group is believed to be held by Craford Aviation Investments which, according to the LinkedIn profile of Kent Craford, is headquartered in Portland, Oregon,” it said.
Air Excursions won its bid to continue operating the EAS to Kake and additionally to Excursion Inlet earlier this month and was awarded $341,195 of Federal grant money to operate 14 weekly nonstop round trips from Kake to Juneau during the 21-week peak season between and seven weekly direct round trips during the 31-week off-peak season and three weekly nonstop round trips to Juneau from Excursion Inlet during the 21-week peak season with PA-32 Cherokee VI aircraft, and one weekly direct round trip during the 31-week off-peak using Cessna 206 float aircraft.
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