U.S. Senators Jim Inhofe and James Lankford are supporting a code-share agreement which is being held up in court by the U.S. Department of Justice, six states and Washington, D.C.
American Airlines and JetBlue Airways announced it’s “Northeast Alliance code-sharing” agreement last year. The Trump Administration approved the agreement, but since then the DOJ and the states filed the lawsuit alleging it violates anti-trust laws.
Inhofe and Lankford have penned a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to consider the benefits the agreement would bring to Oklahoma and other smaller market destinations.
You can read the test of Inhofe and Lankford’s letter below.
Dear Attorney General Garland and Secretary Buttigieg:
We are writing to express our support for the Northeast Alliance code-sharing agreement between American Airlines and JetBlue Airways and the benefits it will bring to the flying public in Oklahoma and across the country.
As our Nation continues to recover from the pandemic, the Northeast Alliance is creating good-paying aviation industry jobs, more jobs in construction and infrastructure development, and a host of indirect benefits for the communities and companies that rely on the travel and tourism industry.
This partnership will enable American to grow mainline operations domestically and internationally. For example, as a result of the Northeast Alliance, American will begin new direct flights from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) to Will Rogers World Airport (OKC) after shuttering this direct flight at the onset of the pandemic. Reconnecting Oklahoma businesses and communities to more gateway airports is significant and allows for a more affordable service and seamless connection to other American and JetBlue travel destinations. Oklahoma City is not the only city that is already seeing benefits from this Alliance; other smaller markets like Omaha, NE, Rapid City, SD and Columbus, OH also now have service to New York City or Boston because of this agreement.
Over the past 16 months, Congress has passed substantial relief legislation to ensure that the airline industry would be ready to meet demand as our economy recovers. The Northeast Alliance will accelerate American and JetBlue’s recovery, directly benefiting Oklahoma and our entire Nation, while helping drive our economy forward.
As the Department of Justice and the Department of Transportation conduct any reviews related to the Northeast Alliance code-sharing agreement, we urge you to ensure that these valuable benefits are given all due consideration.
Sincerely,
