US Says Subsidies for Rural Airline Service to End as Early as This Weekend
Federal officials has stated that financial support from a federal initiative that supports airline routes to remote airfields are scheduled to end as soon as Sunday due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Federal transportation authorities stated that subsidies under the Essential Air Service initiative are expected to expire as early as this weekend after the agency transferred unrelated funding from the Federal Aviation Administration as an advance.
Transportation officials is currently notifying airline operators about the funding shortfall and informing communities about possible impacts.
The government provides approximately $350m in annual funding for the program.
In recent months, the administration suggested reducing funding by $308m for the Essential Air Service, which enjoys popularity among Republican lawmakers because it offers connectivity to rural, largely Republican areas.
Throughout the initial term of the former president, the administration suggested terminating the Essential Air Service program – but lawmakers opted to increase funding instead.
This initiative typically supports two return flights each day using medium-sized planes – or more frequent flights with smaller aircraft. According to the department that under the program, approximately 65 areas in the northern state have air access and 112 locations across the other 49 states and Puerto Rico that likely wouldn't have any airline service.
“Every state across the country will be impacted,” the transportation chief commented during a media briefing, observing the program had bipartisan support. “We lack the funding for that initiative moving forward.”
