Wright Amendment
Encyclopedia
The Wright Amendment of 1979 is a federal law governing traffic at Dallas Love Field, an airport in Dallas, Texas. It originally limited most nonstop flights to destinations within Texas and neighboring states. The limits began phasing out in 1997 and 2005. In 2006, the amendment was repealed leaving some restrictions intact until 2014 but with an added restriction on the number of gates allowed.
(FAA) determined that Love Field in Dallas and Greater Southwest International Airport
in Fort Worth, Texas
were unsuitable for expected future air traffic demands, and the FAA refused to provide continued federal funding for the municipal airports. The Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) then ordered the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth to find a new site for a joint regional airport. The result was Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW International), which first opened to commercial air traffic in 1974. To make the new airport viable, each city agreed to restrict its own passenger-service airports from commercial passenger service use, and all airlines serving the old airports at that time signed an agreement to relocate.
Southwest Airlines
, which was founded after the agreement between the airlines and cities to relocate to DFW International was reached, was not a party to the agreement, and felt that their business model would be affected by a long drive to the new airport beyond the suburbs. Therefore, prior to the opening of DFW International, Southwest filed suit to remain at Love Field, claiming that no legal basis existed to close the airport to commercial service and that they were not bound by an agreement they did not sign. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that, so long as Love Field remained open as an airport, the City of Dallas could not preclude Southwest from operating from the field. However, the ruling was in the pre-deregulated environment where the CAB did not have control of travel within a state, the type of service Southwest offered at the time.
When DFW International opened in 1974, every airline, except Southwest and Braniff (which continued to operate a few flights from Love in addition to the new airport), moved to the new, larger airport. With the drastic reduction in flights, Love Field decommissioned most of its concourses.
of the U.S. airline industry in 1978, Southwest Airlines entered the larger passenger market with plans to start providing interstate service in 1979. This angered the City of Fort Worth, DFW International Airport, and Braniff International Airways
, which resented expanded air service at the airport within Dallas. To help protect DFW International Airport, Jim Wright
, a Fort Worth congressman
, sponsored and helped pass an amendment to the International Air Transportation Act of 1979 in Congress that restricted passenger air traffic out of Love Field in the following ways:
While the law deterred other major airlines from starting service out of Love Field, Southwest continued to expand as it used multiple short-haul flights to build its Love Field operation. This had the effect of increasing local traffic to non-Wright-Amendment-impacted airports such as Houston/Hobby Airport
, the New Orleans Airport
, and the El Paso and Albuquerque airports.
Some people managed to "work the system" and get around the Wright Amendment's restrictions. For example, a person could fly from Dallas to Houston or New Orleans, change planes, and then fly to any city Southwest served — although he or she had to do so on two tickets in each direction, as the Wright Amendment specifically barred airlines from issuing tickets that violated the law's provisions, or from informing customers that they could purchase multiple tickets that would enable this.
of Alabama modified the Wright Amendment to allow flights to Alabama
, Kansas
, and Mississippi
. However, due to lack of demand, Southwest only recently started operating service to Alabama. There is still yet to be service from Love Field to Kansas and Mississippi, although Southwest has flights to and from Jackson-Evers International Airport
, Mississippi's largest airport. Wichita Mid-Continent Airport
is the only airport in Kansas serving large planes, and Southwest does not fly to Wichita, instead focusing on Kansas City, Missouri.
In 2000, a new low-fare carrier called Legend Airlines
attempted to bypass the Wright restrictions by reconfiguring several McDonnell Douglas DC-9
jets to hold 56 passengers. These were flown from Love Field to Los Angeles, New York City, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. American Airlines tried several times to force Legend to abandon this concept (even offering the same service to LAX), and Legend eventually folded in 2001. Many people who supported repealing the Wright Amendment blamed Legend's demise on American Airlines, DFW International Airport, and the city of Fort Worth.
In 2005, Sen.
Kit Bond
of Missouri
attached an amendment to a transportation spending bill to exempt his state from the Wright restrictions. After the bill's passage, Southwest began nonstop flights from Love Field to St. Louis
and Kansas City
. At the same time, American Airlines offered competing flights to the Missouri destinations from Love Field - though low passenger loads would force American to downgrade these routes to 50 seat regional jets, and eventually discontinue the service entirely.
to passenger service to relieve congestion at DFW. But DFW opposed both proposals, and the end result was the Shelby Amendment which added Kansas, Mississippi, and Alabama to the Wright zone.
In late 2004, Southwest Airlines announced its opposition to the Wright Amendment. Shortly thereafter, the company began trying to garner public support for the repeal of the Wright Amendment by launching a massive public relations campaign. Print media, the Internet, billboards, and TV spots were all used, directing the viewer or reader to visit the Set Love Free website, created by Southwest Airlines. In response, a group opposed to the repeal of the amendment, spearheaded by the DFW Airport Board and American Airlines
, launched their own media campaign directing visitors to their Keep DFW Strong site (DFW Airport has even painted advertising on one of its water tanks on the north side of DFW).
Critics of the amendment assert that the restrictions on long-haul travel from Dallas Love Field are anti-competitive. They ask for the "freedom to fly" from Love Field to any destination. They also argue that the restrictions on full use of Love Field artificially inflates fares at the DFW Airport. They believe that eliminating the amendment, and thus allowing any airline to fly long-haul service out of DAL, would allow the so-called "Southwest effect" to occur, where new, inexpensive capacity will increase traffic at both airports (assuming that the market effect of low fares on flights into and out of Love Field will serve to drive down fares on corresponding routes at DFW); these projections are based upon historic results in other air travel markets in which low-fare carriers, most frequently, Southwest, have initiated service. Wright opponents also argue that DFW's main tenant, American Airlines, can charge high prices out of DFW because, with AA controlling in excess of 80% of air carrier traffic at DFW, there is little competition on most routes, a problem which has recently been attributed to Delta Air Lines
discontinuing its usage of DFW as a hub.
Supporters of the amendment say that DFW Airport is the economic engine of the metroplex area, and do not wish for a competing airport to either take traffic from DFW or drive the prices down there, although they do concede that American's fares are often higher than from other airports. What's more, DFW Airport recently completed construction of a $2.5-billion people mover system to transport passengers between terminal buildings. DFW Airport is concerned that the financial burdens caused by such things as the people mover project and the recent pull down of Delta Air Lines' hub will hamper airport profitability and sustainability if a direct competitor to DFW is introduced into the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. A primary concern of many in the DFW area is that American is the largest employer in the North Texas area and many people associated with DFW and American Airlines are reluctant to put any jobs at risk, especially when considering the chronic financial difficulties that modern airlines, other than Southwest, face.
The proposed compromise was opposed by JetBlue Airways
and other low-fare carriers, who argued that the gate reductions at Love would harm their ability to begin service there, and by area congressmen who opposed provisions of the deal that they believed would restrict competition in passenger service at other airports within an 80 miles (128.7 km) radius of DFW and Love, including Collin County Regional Airport in the nearby city of McKinney
. The compromise was also opposed by Love Field Terminal Partners who own the old Legend Airlines
terminal. They claimed that the announcement of the compromise prevented them from selling the six gate terminal to Pinnacle Airlines
who had shown interest in purchasing or leasing the gates and have several law suits to prevent the compromise's implementation.
On July 25, 2006, a leaked memorandum from an employee of the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division
raised concerns about airline competition in North Texas and urged legislators to force a renegotiation of the deal. It also stated that the removal of gates and a cap of 20 gates for the airport would violate federal anti-trust legislation. This capping of gates would affect the other airlines that might be attracted to getting gates at Dallas Love Field airport.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison
responded to the memorandum by stating "They [Justice] are not taking a position at all on the legislation... That memo did not go through the channels. And it probably was one person's view, but it's not the Justice Department's."
Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner also had some complaints about the anti-trust issues that he thought would arise from the proposed legislation.
After extensive negotiations with the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, the compromise bill passed both Houses of Congress on Friday, September 29, just before the 109th Congress
adjourned for the November elections. Hutchison led the effort to pass the bill in the Senate while Rep. Kay Granger
led a bipartisan Texas House coalition to see the bill through to a successful conclusion in the House. President George W. Bush
signed the bill into law on October 13, 2006. Southwest and American airlines then required approval from the Federal Aviation Administration
to begin one-stop flights from Love Field to destinations outside the Wright limits.
Even though non-stop flight
s are restricted until 2014, Southwest Airlines announced on October 17, 2006 that it would begin direct flight
and connecting service between Love Field and 25 destinations outside the Wright zone on October 19, 2006. American Airlines also made indirect connecting travel between Love Field and locations outside the Wright zone available by October 18, 2006.
Except as provided in subsection (c), notwithstanding any other provision of law, neither the Secretary of Transportation, the Civil Aeronautics Board, nor any other officer or employee of the United States shall issue, reissue, amend, revise, or otherwise modify (either by action or inaction) any certificate or other authority to permit or otherwise authorize any person to provide the transportation of individuals, by air, as a common carrier for compensation or hire between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points outside the State of Texas, except (1) charter air transportation not to exceed ten flights per month, and (2) air transportation provided by commuter airlines operating aircraft with a passenger capacity of 56 passengers or less.
Except as provided in subsections (a) and (c), notwithstanding any other provision of law, or any certificate or other authority heretofore or hereafter issued thereunder, no person shall provide or offer to provide the transportation of individuals, by air, for compensation or hire as a common carrier between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points outside the State of Texas, except that a person providing service to a point outside of Texas from Love Field on November 1, 1979 may continue to provide service to such point.
Subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply with respect to, and it is found consistent with the public convenience and necessity to authorize, transportation of individuals, by air, on a flight between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points within the States of Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas by an air carrier, if (1) such air carrier does not offer or provide any through service or ticketing with another air carrier or foreign air carrier, and (2) such air carrier does not offer for sale transportation to or from, and the flight or aircraft does not serve, any point which is outside any such State. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to give authority not otherwise provided by law to the Secretary of Transportation, the Civil Aeronautics Board, any other officer or employee of the United States, or any other person.
This section shall not take effect if enacted after the enactment of the Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act of 1979.
Background
In the early 1960s, the Federal Aviation AdministrationFederal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
(FAA) determined that Love Field in Dallas and Greater Southwest International Airport
Greater Southwest International Airport
Greater Southwest International Airport was the commercial airport serving Fort Worth, Texas from 1953 until 1972. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport opened in 1974 on property adjacent to the north side of the airport.-Early history:...
in Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
were unsuitable for expected future air traffic demands, and the FAA refused to provide continued federal funding for the municipal airports. The Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) then ordered the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth to find a new site for a joint regional airport. The result was Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW International), which first opened to commercial air traffic in 1974. To make the new airport viable, each city agreed to restrict its own passenger-service airports from commercial passenger service use, and all airlines serving the old airports at that time signed an agreement to relocate.
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
, which was founded after the agreement between the airlines and cities to relocate to DFW International was reached, was not a party to the agreement, and felt that their business model would be affected by a long drive to the new airport beyond the suburbs. Therefore, prior to the opening of DFW International, Southwest filed suit to remain at Love Field, claiming that no legal basis existed to close the airport to commercial service and that they were not bound by an agreement they did not sign. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that, so long as Love Field remained open as an airport, the City of Dallas could not preclude Southwest from operating from the field. However, the ruling was in the pre-deregulated environment where the CAB did not have control of travel within a state, the type of service Southwest offered at the time.
When DFW International opened in 1974, every airline, except Southwest and Braniff (which continued to operate a few flights from Love in addition to the new airport), moved to the new, larger airport. With the drastic reduction in flights, Love Field decommissioned most of its concourses.
Passage of the Wright Amendment
After the deregulationAirline Deregulation Act
The Airline Deregulation Act is a United States federal law signed into law on October 24, 1978. The main purpose of the act was to remove government control over fares, routes and market entry from commercial aviation...
of the U.S. airline industry in 1978, Southwest Airlines entered the larger passenger market with plans to start providing interstate service in 1979. This angered the City of Fort Worth, DFW International Airport, and Braniff International Airways
Braniff International Airways
Braniff International Airways was an American airline that operated from 1928 until 1982, primarily in the midwestern and southwestern U.S., South America, Panama, and in its later years also Asia and Europe...
, which resented expanded air service at the airport within Dallas. To help protect DFW International Airport, Jim Wright
Jim Wright
James Claude Wright, Jr. , usually known as Jim Wright, is a former Democratic U.S. Congressman from Texas who served 34 years in the U.S. House of Representatives and was the Speaker of the House from 1987 to 1989.-Early life:...
, a Fort Worth congressman
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, sponsored and helped pass an amendment to the International Air Transportation Act of 1979 in Congress that restricted passenger air traffic out of Love Field in the following ways:
- Passenger service on regular mid-sized and large aircraftAircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
could be provided from Love Field only to locations within TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
and the four neighboring statesU.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
: LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, ArkansasArkansasArkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, OklahomaOklahomaOklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, and New MexicoNew MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. At the time, all of Southwest's destinations were within this zone, so the law had no immediate effect on Southwest's operations. - Long-haul service to other states was permissible, but only on commuter aircraft with no more capacity than 56 passengerPassengerA passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....
s.
While the law deterred other major airlines from starting service out of Love Field, Southwest continued to expand as it used multiple short-haul flights to build its Love Field operation. This had the effect of increasing local traffic to non-Wright-Amendment-impacted airports such as Houston/Hobby Airport
William P. Hobby Airport
William P. Hobby Airport is a public airport in Houston, Texas, located from Downtown Houston. The airport covers and has four runways. Hobby Airport is Houston's oldest commercial airport and was the city's primary air terminal until the opening of Houston Intercontinental Airport in 1969...
, the New Orleans Airport
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is a Class B public use international airport in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is owned by the City of New Orleans and is located 10 nautical miles west of its central business district. The airport's address is 900 Airline Drive...
, and the El Paso and Albuquerque airports.
Some people managed to "work the system" and get around the Wright Amendment's restrictions. For example, a person could fly from Dallas to Houston or New Orleans, change planes, and then fly to any city Southwest served — although he or she had to do so on two tickets in each direction, as the Wright Amendment specifically barred airlines from issuing tickets that violated the law's provisions, or from informing customers that they could purchase multiple tickets that would enable this.
Alterations and bypass efforts
In 1997, a law authored by Sen. Richard ShelbyRichard Shelby
Richard Craig Shelby is the senior U.S. Senator from Alabama. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007....
of Alabama modified the Wright Amendment to allow flights to Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, and Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. However, due to lack of demand, Southwest only recently started operating service to Alabama. There is still yet to be service from Love Field to Kansas and Mississippi, although Southwest has flights to and from Jackson-Evers International Airport
Jackson-Evers International Airport
Jackson-Evers International Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located in Jackson, Mississippi, five nautical miles east of the central business district of Jackson, across the Pearl River....
, Mississippi's largest airport. Wichita Mid-Continent Airport
Wichita Mid-Continent Airport
Wichita Mid-Continent Airport is a commercial airport located in southwest Wichita, in Sedgwick County, Kansas, USA. It is the busiest airport in the state of Kansas . In 2008, passenger traffic continued to grow despite increased fuel prices and economic troubles, with 1,615,075 passengers...
is the only airport in Kansas serving large planes, and Southwest does not fly to Wichita, instead focusing on Kansas City, Missouri.
In 2000, a new low-fare carrier called Legend Airlines
Legend Airlines
Legend Airlines was an airline that had its headquarters on the grounds of Dallas Love Field. Legend flew primarily from Love Field, Dallas, Texas, USA for a matter of months, during the year 2000...
attempted to bypass the Wright restrictions by reconfiguring several McDonnell Douglas DC-9
McDonnell Douglas DC-9
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is a twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliner. It was first manufactured in 1965 with its maiden flight later that year. The DC-9 was designed for frequent, short flights. The final DC-9 was delivered in October 1982.The DC-9 was followed in subsequent modified forms by...
jets to hold 56 passengers. These were flown from Love Field to Los Angeles, New York City, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. American Airlines tried several times to force Legend to abandon this concept (even offering the same service to LAX), and Legend eventually folded in 2001. Many people who supported repealing the Wright Amendment blamed Legend's demise on American Airlines, DFW International Airport, and the city of Fort Worth.
In 2005, Sen.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Kit Bond
Kit Bond
Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond is a former United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, he defeated Democrat Harriett Woods by a margin of 53%-47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004...
of Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
attached an amendment to a transportation spending bill to exempt his state from the Wright restrictions. After the bill's passage, Southwest began nonstop flights from Love Field to St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
and Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
. At the same time, American Airlines offered competing flights to the Missouri destinations from Love Field - though low passenger loads would force American to downgrade these routes to 50 seat regional jets, and eventually discontinue the service entirely.
Repeal efforts
By the 1990s, DFW International Airport's annual air traffic had exceeded the airport's capacity. A 1996 study suggested repealing the Wright Amendment and opening Fort Worth Alliance AirportFort Worth Alliance Airport
Fort Worth Alliance Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located north of the central business district of Fort Worth, city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States....
to passenger service to relieve congestion at DFW. But DFW opposed both proposals, and the end result was the Shelby Amendment which added Kansas, Mississippi, and Alabama to the Wright zone.
In late 2004, Southwest Airlines announced its opposition to the Wright Amendment. Shortly thereafter, the company began trying to garner public support for the repeal of the Wright Amendment by launching a massive public relations campaign. Print media, the Internet, billboards, and TV spots were all used, directing the viewer or reader to visit the Set Love Free website, created by Southwest Airlines. In response, a group opposed to the repeal of the amendment, spearheaded by the DFW Airport Board and American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
, launched their own media campaign directing visitors to their Keep DFW Strong site (DFW Airport has even painted advertising on one of its water tanks on the north side of DFW).
Critics of the amendment assert that the restrictions on long-haul travel from Dallas Love Field are anti-competitive. They ask for the "freedom to fly" from Love Field to any destination. They also argue that the restrictions on full use of Love Field artificially inflates fares at the DFW Airport. They believe that eliminating the amendment, and thus allowing any airline to fly long-haul service out of DAL, would allow the so-called "Southwest effect" to occur, where new, inexpensive capacity will increase traffic at both airports (assuming that the market effect of low fares on flights into and out of Love Field will serve to drive down fares on corresponding routes at DFW); these projections are based upon historic results in other air travel markets in which low-fare carriers, most frequently, Southwest, have initiated service. Wright opponents also argue that DFW's main tenant, American Airlines, can charge high prices out of DFW because, with AA controlling in excess of 80% of air carrier traffic at DFW, there is little competition on most routes, a problem which has recently been attributed to Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
discontinuing its usage of DFW as a hub.
Supporters of the amendment say that DFW Airport is the economic engine of the metroplex area, and do not wish for a competing airport to either take traffic from DFW or drive the prices down there, although they do concede that American's fares are often higher than from other airports. What's more, DFW Airport recently completed construction of a $2.5-billion people mover system to transport passengers between terminal buildings. DFW Airport is concerned that the financial burdens caused by such things as the people mover project and the recent pull down of Delta Air Lines' hub will hamper airport profitability and sustainability if a direct competitor to DFW is introduced into the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. A primary concern of many in the DFW area is that American is the largest employer in the North Texas area and many people associated with DFW and American Airlines are reluctant to put any jobs at risk, especially when considering the chronic financial difficulties that modern airlines, other than Southwest, face.
Repeal compromise
On June 15, 2006, it was announced that American, Southwest, DFW Airport and the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth had all agreed to seek full repeal of the Wright Amendment, with several conditions. Among them: The ban on nonstop flights outside the Wright zone would stay in place until 2014; through-ticketing to domestic and foreign airports (connecting flights to long-haul destinations) would be allowed immediately; Love Field's maximum gate capacity would be lowered from 32 to 20 gates; and Love would handle only domestic flights non-stop.The proposed compromise was opposed by JetBlue Airways
JetBlue Airways
JetBlue Airways Corporation is an American low-cost airline. The company is headquartered in the Forest Hills neighborhood of the New York City borough of Queens. Its main base is John F. Kennedy International Airport, also in Queens....
and other low-fare carriers, who argued that the gate reductions at Love would harm their ability to begin service there, and by area congressmen who opposed provisions of the deal that they believed would restrict competition in passenger service at other airports within an 80 miles (128.7 km) radius of DFW and Love, including Collin County Regional Airport in the nearby city of McKinney
McKinney, Texas
McKinney is a city in and the county seat of Collin County, Texas, United States, and the second in population to Plano. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 131,117 The Census Bureau listed McKinney as the nation's fastest growing city from 2000 to 2003 and again in...
. The compromise was also opposed by Love Field Terminal Partners who own the old Legend Airlines
Legend Airlines
Legend Airlines was an airline that had its headquarters on the grounds of Dallas Love Field. Legend flew primarily from Love Field, Dallas, Texas, USA for a matter of months, during the year 2000...
terminal. They claimed that the announcement of the compromise prevented them from selling the six gate terminal to Pinnacle Airlines
Pinnacle Airlines
Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline, which is a subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corp., and operates as Delta Connection for Delta Air Lines...
who had shown interest in purchasing or leasing the gates and have several law suits to prevent the compromise's implementation.
On July 25, 2006, a leaked memorandum from an employee of the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division
United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division
The United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division is responsible for enforcing the antitrust laws of the United States. It shares jurisdiction over civil antitrust cases with the Federal Trade Commission and often works jointly with the FTC to provide regulatory guidance to businesses...
raised concerns about airline competition in North Texas and urged legislators to force a renegotiation of the deal. It also stated that the removal of gates and a cap of 20 gates for the airport would violate federal anti-trust legislation. This capping of gates would affect the other airlines that might be attracted to getting gates at Dallas Love Field airport.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison
Kay Bailey Hutchison
Kathryn Ann Bailey Hutchison, known as Kay Bailey Hutchison , is the senior United States Senator from Texas.She is a member of the Republican Party. In 2001, she was named one of the thirty most powerful women in America by Ladies Home Journal. The first woman to represent Texas in the U.S....
responded to the memorandum by stating "They [Justice] are not taking a position at all on the legislation... That memo did not go through the channels. And it probably was one person's view, but it's not the Justice Department's."
Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner also had some complaints about the anti-trust issues that he thought would arise from the proposed legislation.
After extensive negotiations with the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, the compromise bill passed both Houses of Congress on Friday, September 29, just before the 109th Congress
109th United States Congress
The One Hundred Ninth United States Congress was the legislative branch of the United States, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005 to January 3, 2007, during the fifth and sixth years of George W. Bush's presidency. House members...
adjourned for the November elections. Hutchison led the effort to pass the bill in the Senate while Rep. Kay Granger
Kay Granger
Kay Granger , a Republican politician from the U.S. state of Texas, currently represents the 12th congressional district in the U.S...
led a bipartisan Texas House coalition to see the bill through to a successful conclusion in the House. President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
signed the bill into law on October 13, 2006. Southwest and American airlines then required approval from the Federal Aviation Administration
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
to begin one-stop flights from Love Field to destinations outside the Wright limits.
Even though non-stop flight
Non-stop flight
A non-stop flight, especially in the aviation industry, refers to any flight by an aircraft which does not involve any intermediate stops. A "direct flight" is not the same as a "non-stop flight"...
s are restricted until 2014, Southwest Airlines announced on October 17, 2006 that it would begin direct flight
Direct flight
A direct flight in the aviation industry is any flight between two points by an airline with no change in flight numbers, which may include a stop over at an intermediate point. The stop over may either be to get new passengers or a mere technical stop over...
and connecting service between Love Field and 25 destinations outside the Wright zone on October 19, 2006. American Airlines also made indirect connecting travel between Love Field and locations outside the Wright zone available by October 18, 2006.
Text of amendment
The original text of the Wright Amendment (from International Air Transportation Competition Act):Except as provided in subsection (c), notwithstanding any other provision of law, neither the Secretary of Transportation, the Civil Aeronautics Board, nor any other officer or employee of the United States shall issue, reissue, amend, revise, or otherwise modify (either by action or inaction) any certificate or other authority to permit or otherwise authorize any person to provide the transportation of individuals, by air, as a common carrier for compensation or hire between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points outside the State of Texas, except (1) charter air transportation not to exceed ten flights per month, and (2) air transportation provided by commuter airlines operating aircraft with a passenger capacity of 56 passengers or less.
Except as provided in subsections (a) and (c), notwithstanding any other provision of law, or any certificate or other authority heretofore or hereafter issued thereunder, no person shall provide or offer to provide the transportation of individuals, by air, for compensation or hire as a common carrier between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points outside the State of Texas, except that a person providing service to a point outside of Texas from Love Field on November 1, 1979 may continue to provide service to such point.
Subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply with respect to, and it is found consistent with the public convenience and necessity to authorize, transportation of individuals, by air, on a flight between Love Field, Texas, and one or more points within the States of Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas by an air carrier, if (1) such air carrier does not offer or provide any through service or ticketing with another air carrier or foreign air carrier, and (2) such air carrier does not offer for sale transportation to or from, and the flight or aircraft does not serve, any point which is outside any such State. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to give authority not otherwise provided by law to the Secretary of Transportation, the Civil Aeronautics Board, any other officer or employee of the United States, or any other person.
This section shall not take effect if enacted after the enactment of the Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act of 1979.
External links
- Love Field Citizens Action Committee (a pro-Wright Amendment coalition of residents of the Love Field area)
- Text of Rep. Michael C. BurgessMichael C. BurgessMichael Clifton Burgess, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003, and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.-Early life, education, and early career:...
's support for the Wright Amendment on June 22, 2005 - Text of Rep. Kenny MarchantKenny MarchantKenny Ewell Marchant is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes several wealthy areas around Dallas and Fort Worth.-Early life, education and career:...
's support for the Wright Amendment on May 17, 2005 - Text of Rep. Sam JohnsonSam JohnsonSamuel Robert "Sam" Johnson is an American politician and a retired career U.S. Air Force officer and fighter pilot. He currently is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the 3rd District of Texas...
's opposition to the Wright Amendment on June 14, 2005 - U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee’s Aviation Subcommittee hearing on the Wright Amendment - Thursday, November 10, 2005