June 29, 2005
Vol. 13, No. 1

High Costs Drive Airlines To Reconsider
Their Commitment to Sea-Tac Airport
Citing the high cost of doing business at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Southwest Airlines & King County Executive Ron Sims announced on 14 June that the County and Southwest Airlines were in negotiations to enable low-cost carrier Southwest to shift its local operations from Sea-Tac to King County International Airport (Boeing Field, or BFI). On 23 June, Alaska Airlines said that while it opposed the move by Southwest...more

After Years of Inaction, Legislature
Passes Bill For Major Study of
Statewide Airport Needs; State
Department of Transportation Begins Work
After years of inaction, the Legislature passed a bill, ESSB 5121, at the recent session, directing that the state conduct a statewide long-term air transportation study on general aviation and commercial airports. ...more

RCAA – Keeping a Low Profile
But Still Working Hard
An interview with Larry Corvari, President of the
Regional Commission on Airport Affairs ...more

More Protection for Des Moines Creek
As Ecology Accepts City's Action Request
Des Moines Creek and its East Tributary are slated to receive much higher protection against pollution as the result of action in early June by the Department of Ecology to add both streams to the Department's list of water bodies that need special protection because of ongoing, intractable violations of state water quality standards, as provided by sec. 303 (d) (5) of the federal Clean Water Act. ...more

Airport's Water Pollution Permit Improved by Department of Ecology
The State Department of Ecology has issued a draft revision of the main water pollution permit for Sea-Tac Airport which includes greatly improved protection for the environment. Incorporating changes ordered by the state's Pollution Control Hearings Board, the draft was issued for public comment in mid-May. ...more

Editorial
Leaks in the dike – Major airlines talk about fleeing Sea-Tac's high costs; Port of Seattle, other airlines, & neighbors fret
RCAA is still trying to sort out the news that Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines might leave Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to escape the big cost increases for airlines being levied to pay for the expansion. ...more

Runway embankment work ongoing
– and a long way still to go
According to a Port spokesman, the third-runway embankment is 52 percent complete as of this date. The embankment portion of project will require placement of 19.84 million cubic yards of fill (which will settle down & be compacted to 17 million cubic yards). TIA calculates that the third runway will actually require 21.11 million cubic yards of fill. ...more

Summer Break for C.A.S.E.
Regular monthly meetings of Citizens Against Sea-Tac Expansion (C.A.S.E.) are suspended for the summer, & will resume on Wednesday, 7 September, at 7 p.m.. C.A.S.E. meetings are held at the “ERAC” (Highline School District administrative building), 15675 Ambaum Blvd. S.W., Burien. All are welcome.

---

Truth in Aviation Available by Email
You can now subscribe to have this newsletter conveniently delivered directly by email. Just click here, and then choose send.

Back issues of Truth in Aviation

Visit our homepage at rcaanews.org... Don't forget to check our What's the Latest Page for updates between newsletters.