Office of the Secretary July 12, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Essential Air Service (EAS) program was created in 1978, as part of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, to ensure that small and isolated communities continued to receive air service by providing federal subsidy when necessary to maintain continuous service. 49 U.S.C. 41731. Vision 100Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act, Pub. L. 108-176, Title IV, Subtitle A, Section 406, requires the Secretary of Transportation to establish a pilot program, under which the Secretary may require air carriers receiving EAS subsidy and major carriers serving large hub airports to participate in code-share arrangements for up to 10 EAS communities. The statutory language reads as follows: