(Reuters) - The U.S.
Department of Transportation said on Tuesday it is looking into a
complaint that Delta Airlines Inc used "unfair and deceptive practices"
to block development of a second major airport near Atlanta.
The agency's action comes
in response to a complaint filed by county commissioners and a private
group trying to develop commercial air service at Silver Comet Field, a
small airport about 40 miles from Atlanta. The DOT also received a
letter opposing the plan from newly elected county commissioners due to
take office in January.
The DOT action is not a
formal investigation, as requested by airport proponents. The agency
told Reuters it is "looking into the matter" after receiving the
complaint in a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx last
week.
The developments, which
have not been previously reported, are the latest in a long-running
dispute over efforts to create an alternative to Hartsfield-Jackson
Atlanta International Airport.
Atlanta, the No. 9 U.S.
metropolitan area, is the only one of the top 10 without at least one
secondary airport, according to Census Bureau and Federal Aviation
Administration data.
Last October, the
Paulding County Board of Commissioners said it planned to bring
commercial air service to Silver Comet Field, in a county northwest of
the city.
In 2012 it signed a deal
to develop airport infrastructure with Propeller Investments, a New
York-based private equity firm. Allegiant Travel Co , a low-cost
carrier, has said it intends to serve Silver Comet Field.
Delta has long opposed a
second commercial airport in the Atlanta area. Chief Executive Richard
Anderson has said it would divide investment and "ultimately be an
economic and community failure." Atlanta's mayor has also opposed the
development.
In the letter to Foxx,
Paulding County Commission Chairman David Austin and Robert Aaronson,
Chairman of Propeller Airports and a former senior official at FAA and
the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said Delta wants to
preserve its dominance in Atlanta.
They said Delta is
"interfering" with efforts to develop low-cost air service around
Atlanta, even though the Silver Comet plan has been "endorsed by
Paulding County, the State of Georgia and the FAA."
Delta's actions "are harming consumers and stifling economic development in the region," they said in the letter.
Paulding County and
Propeller officials said, that since the agreement was signed last
October, a series of incidents has stalled the project. These include
lawsuits challenging the development brought be country residents
through an Atlanta law firm did not charge them legal fees.
A detailed chronicle of
events filed with the DOT complaint letter also notes break-ins at the
homes of a state representative whose district includes Paulding County,
and the county commission chairman, who support the project.
In a separate letter last
week, three newly elected members of the five-member Paulding County
Board of Commissioners asked Foxx and FAA Administrator Michael Huerta
to halt commercialization of the airport.
The members, who take
office in January, said the current county board "conspired behind
closed doors" to start air service at Silver Comet, despite objection by
residents who voted in three "anti-commercialization" candidates last
May.
Delta said its objections
are shared by local property owners, environmental groups and labor
unions. The airline declined to comment on the legal backing of local
residents who oppose the airport expansion.
"The proposal is a waste
of taxpayer dollars, violates the city's restrictions on the land, and
would siphon off increasingly scarce federal funding that's more needed
at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport," Delta spokesman
Trebor Banstetter said.
"Metro Atlanta is best
served by a single, strong airport at Hartsfield-Jackson," which has
enough room for new airlines to being service, he added. Delta has
agreed to work with the airport to accommodate new entrants if
necessary."
- Source: http://www.reuters.com
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