Runway inflation: how flying wedding chapels and Alaskan bush pilots landed a share of the airline bailout - attack on America, 2001, how some airlines benefited from the disaster, thanks to handouts of taxpayer's money by Congress

Washington Monthly, March, 2002 by Stephanie Mencimer

And while Congress rightly included smaller, regional airlines in its calculations, is Casino Express Airlines really a critical part of the nation's transit system? According to its web site, Casino Express flies tourists from around the country to exactly one place: the Red Lion Inn in Reno, Nev. But Casino Express was grounded just like American Airlines, so it received $829,389 from the bailout fund.

And what about Servicios Aereos Profesionales, an air charter service based not in the United States but the Dominican Republic? According to the Department of Transportation, SAP got $30,789 in American taxpayer dollars, even though it flies to more cities in Cuba than in the United States. (The airline flies only to Miami and Orlando.) SAP services almost entirely international locations unaffected by post-September 11 flight restrictions. But SAP holds a certificate from the FAA as a charter service, and as such, apparently felt compelled to get some compensation.

One recipient of government aid admits that his business was barely affected by September 11. Tex-Air Helicopters in Houston, which has received $41,220, gets 97 percent of its work from contracts, according to Anthony Loague, director of operations. As a result, Tex-Air lost mostly time, not money, because of the grounding. And while it took several days to catch up and return to a regular schedule, Loague says they had no reason to lay off employees. In fact, he says, the terrorist attacks actually brought in additional business afterwards.

Alaskan Pork

So how did the federal airline bailout become such a bonanza for flying wedding chapels and oil company shuttles? Back in the heady days after September 11, when Congress was hustling to keep the airlines airborne, major airlines like American and Northwest secured a package of cash grants and loan guarantees for themselves. Once Congress agreed to the big airlines' demands, the rest of the industry came running for a handout, too.

The mission of the bailout quickly changed from insuring the "short-term stability of the airlines" to compensating every mom-and-pop operator that missed a day of work because the big bad FAA shut down the airports after the terrorist attacks. By that definition, even Cinnabon ought to qualify for fat government checks.

After the smaller regional commuter airlines got a spiff, it wasn't long before the major cargo airlines started demanding their share, too. Companies like FedEx, UPS, DHL, and Airborne Express have now received payments totaling roughly $135 million and counting.

You'd think the handout list might have ended there, given the dwindling surpluses and the slumping economy. But that calculation would overlook a major factor in the debate: The Alaskan congressional delegation. Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) is the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and serves on the Commerce Committee's aviation subcommittee. Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) is chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. No airline bailout bill was going to make it through their committees without taking care of the constituents back home, including every little puddle-jumper company flying the Alaskan bush.