Seattle passengers may reap the benefits of a monthslong congressional fight over adding more flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport outside Washington, D.C.
Delta announced this month that it will seek federal approval for the coveted flight slot. The proposal has support from the Port of Seattle, which drafted a letter Friday to the U.S. Department of Transportation asking that the route be considered.
If approved, Delta would compete with Alaska Airlines, which is the only airline to run daily nonstop flights between Seattle and Reagan airport, the closest commercial airport to the U.S. Capitol.
The U.S. Department of Transportation will decide by mid-July which airlines and cities get the spots as part of an agreement in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization act, which required that the airport add five additional long-haul flights.
Slots at Reagan are highly coveted for the airport’s proximity to Washington, D.C., especially those for long-distance flights at the primarily short-haul airport. Aside from the daily Alaska flights, other airlines fly out of Dulles International Airport, which is about 30 miles from Washington D.C., or Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, which requires about a 40-mile commute.
The Reagan slots were one of the mostly hotly debated issues on the $105 billion FAA reauthorization act, which passed in May after months of negotiations led in part by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Everett. Neither Cantwell’s office nor Larsen’s responded to questions about Delta’s plans.
Under a federal regulation known as the perimeter rule, airlines can only operate flights between Reagan and destinations that are within 1,250 miles, which covers flights primarily in the Eastern U.S. The rule was enacted as one way to address congestion at the smaller airport — Reagan has 58 gates, while Baltimore/Washington has 73 and Dulles has 113. But the DOT has made exceptions over the years to add more flights, like an Alaska flight to Seattle added in 2001.
Delta President Glen Hauenstein said adding the Reagan flight would give Seattle customers “the additional competition and choice they deserve.” He announced Delta’s plans at a Port of Seattle news conference this month ahead of Delta’s first nonstop Seattle-Taipei flight, according to a news release.
In a letter to the DOT, leaders with the Port of Seattle, which operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, noted that only about a third of passengers traveling to Washington, D.C., go through Reagan, suggesting there is demand for more nonstop service.
“A potential new flight from SEA [Seattle] to DCA [Reagan] will enable Washington State and Pacific Northwest residents to travel there more conveniently and at lower costs, unlocking the countless benefits that access to our nation’s capital has to offer,” the Port of Seattle wrote in the letter, which will be included in Delta’s application.
During FAA reauthorization negotiations, lawmakers from D.C.-area districts opposed any proposed changes to the airport’s slot numbers and said their colleagues were sacrificing safety to add direct flights to their home states. One proposal would have added up to 28 round-trip flights, though those numbers were negotiated down as the months went on and funding for the agency was temporarily extended three times.
The FAA reauthorization act directs the DOT to prioritize cities that don’t have nonstop services to Reagan, but it’s unclear how many more airlines will jockey for spots.
Alaska said last month it plans to apply for one for a flight between Reagan and San Diego. American Airlines is working with San Antonio International Airport to add a San Antonio flight to its lineup. Southwest is seeking approval to add a flight to Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport.