California Pacific Airlines: Will proposed airline get reprieve?

The backers of a proposed commercial airline that would fly out of McClellan-Palomar airport in Carlsbad have refiled papers seeking permission to operate from the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

California Pacific Airlines is asking for extensions after both agencies' deadlines for the company ran out. The transportation department's deadline to begin flights expired on Feb. 25. That department's licensing is needed for FAA approval, and the FAA deadline passed on March 10.

The overall federal application process for a new airline generally takes six to 18 months. California Pacific Airlines founder Ted Vallas wrote in a letter to the Department of Transportation that he expects a license from the FAA by summer. That would make it more than three years since Vallas originally filed his initial application with the FAA.

Vallas, who turned 92 on Monday, could not be reached for comment.

California Pacific expects to offer daily commercial flights to five destinations in the West, and eventually Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Its 72-seat Embraer landed to fanfare last summer, but has since been sitting on the tarmac unused -- at $200,000 per month in rent.

Last year, a dispute arose between the airline and the local FAA office, which resulted in California Pacific's application being moved to a preliminary phase. The FAA cited deficiencies in the application, while Vallas said the agency acted with bias against the airline.

In a Feb. 22 letter to the DOT requesting the extension, Vallas said his company is making progress. He said required positions -- such as operations and safety directors -- have been filled and that investors have spent $10 million on the airline so far.

The DOT is considering the request for an extension, agency spokesman Bill Mosley said. The local FAA office, which received the new application Friday, has yet to review the materials to determine whether to move the airline into a formal application phase, spokesman Ian Gregor said.

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