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Presque Isle council recommends JetBlue, asks DOT to waive 12-week minimum and approve four-year term
Summary
After presentations from American Airlines and JetBlue, the Presque Isle City Council voted to recommend JetBlues Essential Air Service bid, grant a waiver of the 12-weekly-flight EAS minimum, and urge that DOT consider a four-year contract to support continuity and growth.
The Presque Isle City Council voted on March 25 to recommend JetBlues bid in the U.S. Department of Transportations Essential Air Service (EAS) selection and to ask DOT to waive the statutory 12-weekly-flight minimum so JetBlues seven-weekly schedule can be considered. Councilor Craig Green moved the recommendation and requested support for JetBlues four-year option; the motion was seconded and carried.
The recommendation follows competing presentations by American Airlines, which proposed a 12-weekly-frequency plan split between Boston and Philadelphia with regional jets and a requested subsidy of roughly $8 million, and JetBlue, which proposed seven weekly flights on Airbus A220-300 mainline aircraft with lower fares and a four-year bid option. Airport director Scott Wardwell told the council that the citys objective is "the air service model that will maximize long-term passenger use at the Presque Isle International Airport," and he summarized the trade-offs between frequency (American) and capacity/connectivity (JetBlue).
Council debate centered on medical-travel access, reliability, community partnerships and cost to taxpayers. Public commenters and nonprofit representatives described extensive JetBlue support for medical travel in partnership with Angel Flight (JetBlue staff and community partners cited more than 1,200 donated medical tickets over the last 18 months). Several councilors said those community-health benefits weighed heavily in their decision.
Councilor Craig Green moved the recommendation, explicitly asking staff to send a letter of support for JetBlue and to request DOT approval of the waiver and the four-year contract term. After council discussion the motion carried. The council and airport advisory committee will forward their recommendation and the record of written public comments to the DOT, which retains sole authority to select the carrier and set final contract terms.
Next steps: the city will post submitted letters and the meeting record online and submit the councils recommendation to the Department of Transportation for final selection and contract award.
