Dallas Love Field is free Wright Amendment (article from DMN)

TonyTone

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This might be off-topic but it does involve transporation to Dallas
:)

For those that are outside of the Wright amendment states, Dallas Love Field will be able to accept flights from other parts of the country (As long there is a stop within a Wright Amendment State). This means the prices of airfares will drop because of Southwest.

http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/061606dnmetwright.8b2b8c5e.html

[SIZE=+2]Mayors sign Wright accord http://www.***BANNED-URL***/img/standing/video_icon.gif

[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]02:41 PM CDT on Thursday, June 15, 2006

[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News[/SIZE]
Also Online http://www.***BANNED-URL***/img/standing/videowordbold.gif Watch the news conference
Full statement (PDF)
No more Wright two-step?
Tracking the Wright amendment: History, opinions, links and FAQs


The mayors of Dallas and Fort Worth, flanked by the cities' respective airlines, unveiled an agreement Thursday afternoon that would lift flight restrictions at Love Field - a historic and highly anticipated resolution that must now pick up steam in Congress.
"Well, we did it," said Dallas Mayor Laura Miller. "We found a way to set Love free, but we stopped and thought about it a lot."
"In my 30 years of public service, I have never been involved in more intense ... negotiations," said Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief. "All parties have what I like to say is some 'skin' in this game. I believe this agreement is one that works."
Under the terms of the Wright amendment agreement:



• Southwest Airlines could begin immediate through ticketing at Love Field, meaning passengers could fly anywhere in the country if they first stop in a Wright state. All long-haul flight restrictions at Love would be lifted in 2014.
• Love Field's gates would be capped at 20 beginning in 2010, giving Southwest 16 gates and two gates each to American Airlines and Continental Airlines. The remaining 12 gates would be demolished or modified so they can't be used.
• American, which would give up one gate at Love, would not be forced to leave the city airport. But sources have said this scenario gives the airline, which has its largest hub at D/FW, a graceful way to give up its operations at Love.
• The compromise includes $150-200 million in upgrades to Love Field, to be funded by increasing landing fees at the airport.
• Dallas would put a voluntary noise curfew in place at Love Field that would prevent scheduled take-offs or landings between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.
• The cities both would agree to oppose new commercial passenger service at any other airport within an 80-mile radius of Love Field, such as Fort Worth's Alliance Airport, for the next eight years.
• Southwest would be forced to give up gates at Love Field if it chose to operate out of other local airports within an 80-mile radius of Love. This term would be in effect until 2025.
• In the event that Congress passes legislation that is not consistent with this agreement, and if Southwest starts non-stop long-haul service to or from Love Field, the airline agrees to voluntarily give up control of eight gates at the airport.
Dallas' deadline for reaching a compromise on the flight restrictions was Wednesday. The news conference was postponed until Thursday so the mayors could put finishing touches on the agreement, and make sure both airlines were on board. By Wednesday night, officials from both American and Southwest confirmed they'd be at today's press conference - held at D/FW's Grand Hyatt Hotel.
In March, North Texas legislators asked Dallas and Fort Worth to craft a local solution to the 1979 Wright law, which limits commercial service at Love to a nine-state region. A final decision on the compromise will be made on Capitol Hill. If Congress doesn't enact this compromise as legislation by the end of the year, city officials said all bets are off.
E-mail eramshaw@***BANNED-URL***
WRIGHT AMENDMENT Q & A Question: Remind me again, what is the law?
Answer: The 26-year-old Wright amendment limits flights from Dallas Love Field to Texas' adjoining states for planes with more than 56 seats.
The law reflects a compromise for the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth and Southwest Airlines Co., which has its headquarters at Love Field and didn't want to move to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport when it opened in 1974.
The law limits what Southwest Airlines Co. can do from its headquarters airport because it only uses Boeing 737s, all of which are above that seat limit.
A counterpart, the 1997 Shelby amendment, allows flights to Mississippi, Alabama and Kansas. Southwest doesn't offer nonstop service from Love to any of those states.
Last year, Congress added Missouri to the permitted cities, and both Southwest and American Airlines Inc. now fly to St. Louis and Kansas City from Love Field.
Question: What is happening now?
Answer: The cities of Dallas and Fort Worth began talking to each other, American Airlines Inc., Southwest, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport after Southwest began pressuring Congress and local governments to do away with the amendment.
They’ve come up with a compromise that has two major parts. First, through-ticketing would be allowed. Second, all the Wright amendment limitations would be eliminated over time.
Question: What is through-ticketing?
Answer: Through-ticketing means that a passenger at Love Field could buy a ticket to anywhere, as long as he or she makes a stop somewhere inside the Wright geographical limits. For example, a Dallas resident could buy a ticket to Los Angeles and fly there with a stop in Albuquerque or El Paso, traveling on to Los Angeles on a second flight.
The Wright amendment doesn’t allow passengers or airlines to through-ticket. A traveler to Los Angeles, for example, must buy a ticket to the intermediate city and a separate ticket from that city to Los Angeles. The passenger has to get off the first airplane and check in separately for the second flight, even if it’s on the same airplane.
American and Continental Airlines Inc. offer through-ticketing from Love Field through Austin and Houston. However, they use regional jets that don’t go over the 56-seat limit.
Question: How will through-ticketing affect fares?
Answer: The presumption is that if Southwest can sell tickets to fly from Dallas to such cities as Los Angeles, Seattle or Orlando, fares will go down even if there’s a stop involved. That also presumes that competitors operating out of Love or Dallas/Fort Worth Airport would bring their fares down to match Southwest’s.
Question: What about nonstop flights beyond the current perimeter?
Answer: Those would be allowed after a stated period, supposedly eight years. After that, airlines out of Love Field would be able to fly nonstop beyond the current perimeter.
Question: What does this mean for Love Field itself?
Answer: Reports are that the city of Dallas will shrink the number of gates from the current maximum of 32.
 

Bob Sacamano

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I remember when I was working for Southwest Airlines, how big a deal this was, and is if it got passed, good for them, Herb is truly a great man
 
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