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Last week, I wrote about how Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) will see five new flights added that will each span over 1,250 miles. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved a bill that will allow five beyond-perimeter slots to be added. Each accommodate a flight that breaches the past limitation of the airport and airlines are already clamoring for these slots. The appeal of the airport is that it is much closer to the city than the other DC-area airports and therefore has greater appeal for politicians and tourists alike.
The perimeter rule was introduced in January 1966. It limited flights from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to 1,250 miles or less. The thought was that longhaul flights would operate out of Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and noise pollution would be reduced for DC residents. This is similar to the perimeter rule at New York LaGuardia Airport (LGA) that was introduced in 1984 and limits flights to 1,500 miles or less. There are exceptions on Saturdays and to/from Denver International Airport (DEN) every day.
Airlines have been vying for slots and Alaska, American, and Southwest have all made bids (along with some rumors of routes coming from Delta) (more here). Now, Spirit Airlines is hoping to secure one of the five slots to serve San José Mineta International Airport (SJC) from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
Matt Klein, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Spirit Airlines, said:
Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., share significant ties in the technology industry. New nonstop flights between the airports that sit at the heart of these two communities would make travel easier and foster opportunity for better collaboration between these influential markets. Our San José Guests have truly embraced Spirit during our first year of service at SJC, and we appreciate the support from the SJC team and our community partners in pursuing this new service.”
Spirit began serving San José Mineta International Airport (SJC) last year and currently flies from there to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport (LAS), and San Diego International Airport (SAN).
There is one issue with Spirit’s plans. The FAA Reauthorization Bill that authorized the addition of these five slots clearly states that only the five incumbent airlines (American, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest, and United) and one limited incumbent (Alaska) are eligible for these slots. Spirit could qualify as a limited incumbent as they used to fly to Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport (FLL) from DCA, but do not currently serve the route. The bill was not written to include them. We’ll see if the government can be persuaded to somehow change its mind.
Anthony’s Take: No decisions have been made by the US Department of Transportation (DOT), but the airlines are all making their cases for why they should get one of the five slots.
(Image Credits: Spirit Airlines and Harold Mendoza.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
