US Says Subsidies for Rural Airline Service to Expire as Soon as Sunday
The Trump administration has announced that funds from a US government program that supports airline routes to rural airports are set to expire as soon as Sunday due to the current federal funding lapse.
The US transportation department stated that subsidies under the Essential Air Service initiative are expected to expire as early as this weekend after the department moved separate financial resources from the Federal Aviation Administration as an advance.
The department is currently notifying airline operators about the funding shortfall and alerting local areas about possible impacts.
The government allocates approximately $350 million in annual funding for the program.
Earlier this year, the administration suggested reducing financial support by $308 million for the Essential Air Service, which has support among GOP legislators because it offers connectivity to predominantly Republican rural regions.
Throughout the initial term of Donald Trump, the White House suggested terminating the Essential Air Service initiative – but lawmakers opted to increase financial support instead.
This initiative typically subsidizes two round trips daily using 30- to 50-seat aircraft – or more frequent flights with smaller aircraft. Officials report that under the program, approximately 65 areas in Alaska receive service and 112 communities across the other 49 states and the territory that otherwise might not receive any airline service.
“Every state nationwide will be impacted,” the transportation chief commented during a media briefing, observing the service had bipartisan support. “We lack the money for that program going forward.”
