Battle to add new flights at Reagan airport with longer distances faces opposition
Samantha-Jo Roth
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A lobbying fight to allow longer flights out of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is now facing new opposition after United Airlines and groups supporting Dulles International Airport launched a campaign that argues expanding long-haul domestic flights to Reagan will “increase traffic, noise, congestion, and delays.”
The Coalition to Protect America’s Regional Airports launched Wednesday with the backing of United Airlines, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, and other groups in an effort to push back against a proposal to relax rules that limit nonstop long-distance flights at the airport closest to Washington, D.C.
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The group argues the airport “is already at capacity, and any changes to the slot and perimeter rules will increase traffic, noise, congestion, and delays” and warns existing routes could “lose access to the long-haul flights airlines will prioritize instead.”
The Federal Aviation Administration released a memo this week, providing groups against the expansion more ammunition. The FAA said adding “20 more daily roundtrip operations would increase delay by 25.9% and an increase of 25 daily roundtrip operations would increase delay by 33.2% at DCA.”
The latest developments come after the Capital Access Alliance, a coalition of business groups, proposed lawmakers alter the perimeter requirements at Reagan airport as part of the FAA reauthorization in late April. Both Reagan and Dulles are owned by the federal government, which means Congress has the power to decide how they operate.
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. The group, which includes Delta Air Lines, is encouraging Congress to increase the number of flights by as many as 25 daily trips. They also make the point that large cities such as San Antonio and San Diego, the nation’s seventh- and eighth-largest cities, respectively, don’t have any nonstop flights from Reagan.
Reps. Burgess Owens (R-UT) and Hank Johnson (D-GA) introduced a bill earlier this month that would allow airlines to offer more long-distance service out of Reagan and 28 more flights daily.
“By limiting the number of flights in and out of National Airport, we are squeezing consumers — they are the ones paying the price,” Johnson said in a statement after the bill was released. “Travelers who want to visit the capital region face the most expensive domestic ticket prices compared to other major markets because of limited competition.”
A number of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have come out in support of expanding the number of flights. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), whose district includes San Antonio, has been fighting for a direct flight to Reagan, arguing that the military presence in the area makes the route necessary. At a recent House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing, Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) called for an exemption through the FAA for the perimeter rule, pushing for nonstop flights between El Paso and Reagan.
However, the measure has drawn opposition from regional lawmakers. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and 13 lawmakers from Virginia and Maryland wrote to the House Transportation Committee to oppose relaxing the rule. Additionally, Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) issued a joint statement in April strongly opposing attempts to change the perimeter rules, pointing out that lawmakers have already carved out exemptions for a small number of flights to cities such as Phoenix, Austin, Seattle, and Denver.
“Congress has made changes to these rules that have disrupted the balance in this two-airport system by adding additional flights from Reagan to destinations outside the 1,250-mile perimeter,” the senators wrote in their statement. “These changes in flight activity have produced significant stress on Reagan’s facilities, from strained roadways and limited parking availability to overburdened baggage systems, and created frustrations for travelers, businesses, and local residents.”
Brian Walsh, a spokesman for Capital Access Alliance, disputed claims from the Coalition To Protect America’s Regional Airports, which warned regional airports could risk losing access or delays at Reagan as a result of adding more long-haul flights.
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“For any regional airports concerned about maintaining access to and from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, they should support, not oppose, the bipartisan Direct Capital Access Act,” Walsh said in a statement. “Each of them could potentially benefit from additional service since the DCA Act calls for adding 28 in- and beyond-perimeter direct flights at DCA, not swapping or removing flights.”
Capital Access Alliance released a survey last week that found a majority of residents in Virginia supported adding more flights at Reagan. In April, the coalition dropped a study by Boston Consulting Group that found the addition of long-haul flights could benefit all airlines equally. It also estimated that expanding the number of long-distance flights at Reagan could reduce ticket prices by an average of $60 and generate as much as $400 million in economic benefits and $70 million in additional federal and state tax revenue for the region.