Full Notification

Today St. Paul Island Leadership met with the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) to discuss the potential for a lapse in regular scheduled passenger service to and from St. Paul Island.
 
USDOT made the commitment to undertake the following actions TODAY:  USDOT Deputy Assistant Secretary and staff will call Ravn to remind Ravn of their legal obligations to provide air service at least 4 days a week continuously, without interruptions. Ravn must fulfill this obligation whatever way they have to (i.e., chartering Ace or Security, etc.).  USDOT Deputy Assistant Secretary will also call the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regarding the Dash-8 certification and encourage the FAA to expedite the process and do whatever they can to get the Dash-8 certified ASAP. 
 
USDOT also stated that Ravn has a legal obligation to refund any tickets that have already been purchased if they cannot fulfill the travel.
 
We emphasized that a disruption to snow crab processing operations at the Trident Plant would be devastating to the local economy and have major ramifications for the largest commercial crab fishery in Alaska. It was further pointed out that such an event resulting from a man-made situation would be ‘headline news.’ 
 
Concerning the availability of flights via Dutch Harbor as a back-up option, we noted the impracticability and uncertainty, given the weather and conditions at Dutch Harbor’s airport, of that option.  
 
USDOT assured us they will have answers for us as soon as possible. USDOT agrees the situation is unacceptable and will do whatever they can to ensure there is no interruption in service.
 
We will continue to update the community regarding this transportation issue.