Bill Would Allow Service To MO From Love Field

Congress approved legislation Friday that, if passed by the president, might put another chink in the armor suit surrounding the Wright Amendment.

The transportation spending bill, which is expected to receive President Bush's signature, contains a provision allowing airlines to begin nonstop flights from Dallas's Love Field (DAL) to Missouri.

That would be the eighth state allowed to be served by airlines from Love Field -- further taking away bargaining power from nearby Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and its hub carrier, American Airlines, in the battle over repealing the controversial amendment limiting flights from the smaller airport.

"It's the first step to the end," said Pat White to the Dallas Morning News. "I can't imagine Southwest will stop with Missouri." White is the co-chair of the Love Field Citizens Action Committee, which opposes lifting the current restrictions on flights out of Love Field due to an expected increase in noise and traffic in neighborhoods surrounding the airport.

While Southwest is the largest presence at Love Field -- its home airport, at least for the moment -- the Wright Amendment has since 1979 precluded any airline from flying nonstop to any destination outside the immediately adjoining states of Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Arkansas.

In 1997, the passage of the Shelby Amendment added Kansas, Alabama, and Mississippi to the list of approved states. Southwest has never implemented nonstop flights to those states, however, citing the inability to generate connecting traffic from those regions.

Missouri is a different matter, and Southwest has already indicated plans to immediately begin service to Kansas City, MO and St. Louis upon passage of the law. The carrier has even quoted a one-way fare of $129 to those cities, once the bill passes, which is far below American's "generally available" fare of $599 out of DFW, according to the Dallas Morning News.

Southwest says it intends to use Missouri to demonstrate how its low-cost business model would work on longer-duration flights from Love Field. Rival American Airlines -- the biggest opponent to lifting restrictions at Love Field -- has not yet announced if it would also begin service from the smaller airport if the legislation is approved.

American leases three gates at DAL, although the carrier has not flown out of Love Field since September 2001, instead concentrating its operations out of its DFW hub.

Friday, representatives from American held a meeting with Love Field officials to discuss future plans for the carrier at the airport, although American has said it will not announce its plans for DAL regarding flights to Missouri until the bill is passed, and Southwest announces their plans.

While always a sticking point for Southwest, the Wright Amendment battle was joined one year ago when the low-cost carrier announced their bid to have the amendment repealed. Southwest maintains the amendment -- initially created to allow then-fledgling DFW to gain a foothold in the North Texas market -- is outdated, and DFW no longer needs to be shielded from the potential of lower-cost flights originating from DAL.

Opponents of repealing Wright, including DFW airport and American Airlines, say the amendment allowed DFW to establish itself as the region's primary airport, and Southwest is welcome to move its operations there anytime -- a move Southwest says wouldn't be consistent with its business model of focusing operations on smaller airports where available.

FMI: www.southwest.com, www.aa.com, www.house.gov