Operations In Jeopardy As Carrier Cannot Replace Them

Regional carrier PenAir, which filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 earlier this year, is now facing a mass exodus of its pilots which will likely force it to end all operations earlier than it had originally intended.

The airline news site CH-Aviation reports that the airline has advised the U.S. DOT that it will not be able to provide service to routes has cancelled in Kansas and Nebraska for the required period of time due to a lack of pilots and aircraft to fly those routes, which are subsidized by the federal government under the EAS program.

In the filing, PenAir said that at the time it gave notice on the cancellation of the routes, the carrier "fully intended to continue its EAS at the five communities in Nebraska and Kansas until a replacement carrier was selected and was in place to commence service. However, there has been a massive exodus of Saab 340 pilots. As of today, a total of seventeen PenAir Saab 340B pilots submitted resignation notices or have already left to work for other airlines."

PenAir said that because of its financial circumstances, it cannot shift pilots from other routes to cover the shortfall in Nebraska and Kansas, as that would create problems elsewhere in its networks.

The Alaska-based carrier will cease flying to the affected airports September 10, leaving them without any scheduled air service, according to a report from Fox News. The Western Nebraska Regional Airport Authority board in Scottsbluff began soliciting new bids for a carrier under the EAS program in July, but airport manager Darwin Skelton said that the best they can hope for is to have scheduled airline service resume at KBFF in February or March.

FMI: www.penair.com