The Department of Transportation awarded five new round-trip flights at lawmakers’ favorite airport, thanks to a major aviation bill that Congress passed over the summer and President Joe Biden signed into law.
American Airlines was awarded a San Antonio round-trip flight from Reagan National Airport, and Delta Airlines will now have a Seattle flight. Alaska Airlines will add service between the Washington, D.C., airport and San Diego, while Southwest Airlines will operate a new flight between Washington and Las Vegas. United Airlines will receive the fifth slot, adding a second daily flight to San Francisco.
The campaign to add more flights at Reagan, known as DCA, has been simmering for over a year, and the Department of Transportation evaluated a number of applications. JetBlue, Spirit, and Frontier also applied for one of the five slots but did not receive any.
According to the legislation, the transportation secretary considered applications for slots from “incumbent air carriers qualifying for status as a non-limited incumbent.” According to those familiar with the process, this means the DOT was always likely to grant United Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Southwest Airlines one round-trip flight each.
The bill also said there will be two slots “available to incumbent air carriers qualifying for status as a limited incumbent carrier,” which meant Alaska and Frontier Airlines were forced to compete for the one remaining long-haul, round-trip flight.
When considering the applications, preference went to flights that “enhance options for nonstop travel to beyond-perimeter airports that do not have nonstop service,” according to the legislation.
Proponents of expanding the perimeter rule had been pushing for an additional 28 slots but ultimately only received five after lawmakers from the Washington area pushed back against the expansion, arguing the airport is already strained by traffic and noise disruption. However, Capital Access Alliance, a coalition of business groups that played a major role in lobbying for the expansion, applauded the new flights.
“For the first time in more than 10 years, air travelers have new direct flight options to and from our nation’s capital at DCA,” said Brian Walsh, a spokesman for CAA. “These five new flights will result in more competition and are a tremendous win for consumers. Travelers will benefit from more choices and convenience and hopefully see relief from Washington, D.C.’s highest-in-the-nation ticket prices, as more market competition will help reduce expansive airfare.”
The airport closest to Washington, D.C., has been subject to restrictions that limit the number of flights that travel more than 1,250 miles from Reagan for nearly 60 years in an effort to protect long-haul airline traffic at Dulles.
Extending the flight perimeter has been done in the past. In 1981, Congress extended the flight perimeter to 1,000 miles from the original 650 miles. In 1986, it was extended to the current 1,250 miles. Lawmakers have also made exemptions for a small number of flights to cities such as Austin, Texas, Seattle, Denver, and Phoenix.
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A group of bipartisan lawmakers over the last year have attempted to lobby for nonstop flights from their districts. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the ranking member of the Commerce Committee, took a victory lap after the new flights were announced.
“I’m proud to have led Republicans and Democrats in delivering a landmark victory not just for the City of San Antonio but the entire Lone Star State,” Cruz said in a statement. “The new American Airlines SAT-DCA flight is the culmination of a years-long effort to connect our nation’s capital with the fastest-growing city in the country.”