Horizon Air filed a new bid for EAS service between Pendleton and Portland in response to DOT’s resolicitation of two-year proposals to serve the city after Pendleton rejected earlier proposals because they were destined for Seattle.
“Sustained high fuel costs have dramatically changed airline economics, and we have had to carefully reevaluate how we serve every market, even those we’ve served for more than a quarter century,” said Dan Russo, vice president of marketing and communications. “It’s our sincere desire to continue serving the Pendleton community as we have since 1982, and we’re doing everything possible within the framework of our economics to ensure that outcome. While we believe our earlier proposal for two flights a day to Seattle met the EAS program’s requirements and added many new connection opportunities, we understand the community’s interest in continuing to have access to Portland. We’ve responded by working hard to find a way in our new proposal to include flights to Portland as well.”
Horizon’s flights would be operated with 76-seat Q400 aircraft, which are replacing the 37-seat Q200 aircraft. Horizon will continue to serve Pendleton at least through Nov. 28, in accordance with DOT guidance. For the 30 days leading up to this, Horizon is being allowed to operate per its previous proposal (two daily flights to Seattle with a stop in Walla Walla). As a result, Horizon has discontinued tickets sales on direct flights between Pendleton, Pasco and Portland for flights after Oct. 27 and will offer flights from Pendleton to Seattle (with a stop in Walla Walla) with connections to Portland and other cities throughout North America, starting Oct. 28.
The original EAS bidding process began on June 28, when Horizon filed a notice with the DOT of its intent to terminate subsidized service at Pendleton effective Oct. 27. Horizon’s notice was filed in order to trigger a request for proposals from the DOT for a new contract. In response to the first DOT order on July 7 soliciting bids, Horizon submitted a proposal to provide Pendleton with a combination of two one-stop (via Walla Walla) or nonstop Q400 roundtrips from Pendleton to Seattle each weekday and one over each weekend. A competing proposal offered five daily nonstop
roundtrips between Pendleton and Portland, using nine-seat Cessna 402s aircraft, for an amount more than $1 million higher than Horizon’s proposal.