 

			  UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

		        DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

			  OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

			          WASHINGTON, D.C.

Issued by the Department of Transportation on January 15, 2004

NOTICE OF ACTION TAKEN -- DOCKET OST 2004-16910

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________

This serves as notice to the public of the action described below, taken
by the Department official indicated (no additional confirming order
will be issued in this matter).

Applicant:  VOLGA-DNEPR J.S. CARGO AIRLINE                              
        Date Filed:  January 13, 2004

Relief requested:  Exemption from 49 U.S.C. section 40109(g) to permit
the applicant to operate, on behalf of Lockheed Martin, two, one-way
cargo charter flights from North Island NAS, California, to Denver,
Colorado, during the period January 20-22, 2004, using its AN-124-100
aircraft.  On the first of these two flights, Volga-Dnepr plans to carry
one Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Atlas III Booster Launch Vehicle, and,
on the second flight, one Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Centaur III Upper
Stage.  The applicant stated that Lockheed Martin needs prompt shipment
of this cargo to Denver to meet an extremely tight final assembly and
test schedule, that the cargo is too large for transportation on
U.S.-carrier aircraft; and that surface transportation is not feasible
because of the delicate nature and high value of the cargo, and
conditions unsuitable to maintaining system integrity compliance.

Applicant representative:  Glenn P. Wicks, 202-457-7790         DOT
analyst:  Allen F. Brown, 202-366-2405

Responsive pleadings:  Volga-Dnepr served its application on those U.S.
carriers operating large all-cargo aircraft.  Each carrier indicated
that it did not have aircraft available to conduct the proposed
operation and that it had no comment or did not oppose grant of the
requested authority.

Statutory Standards:  Under 49 U.S.C. section 40109(g), we may authorize
a foreign air carrier to carry commercial traffic between U.S. points
(i.e., cabotage traffic) under limited circumstances.  Specifically, we
must find that the authority is required in the public interest; that
because of an emergency created by unusual circumstances not arising in
the normal course of business the traffic cannot be accommodated by U.S.
carriers holding certificates under 49 U.S.C. section 41102; that all
possible efforts have been made to place the traffic on U.S. carriers;
and that the transportation is necessary to avoid unreasonable hardship
to the traffic involved (an additional required finding, concerning
emergency transportation during labor disputes, was not relevant here).

                                                                        
        DISPOSITION

Action: Approved                                                        
                                             Action date:  January 15,
2004

Effective dates of authority granted:  January 15, 2004, through January
25, 2004

Basis for approval:  We are granting Volga-Dnepr’s request to operate
its proposed two, one-way flights from North Island to Denver, through
January 25, 2004.  We found that its request met all the relevant
criteria of 49 U.S.C. section 40109(g) for the grant of an exemption of
this type and that the grant was required in the public interest. 
Specifically, we were persuaded that the need to move the cargo promptly
in order to meet the urgent assembly and test schedule, the fact that
the cargo could not be transported by surface transportation because of
its delicate nature and high value, the potential negative impact of
delivery delay; and the unique, outsized nature of the cargo,
constituted an emergency not arising in the normal course of business. 
Moreover, based on the representations of the U.S. carriers, we
concluded that no U.S. carrier had aircraft available that could be used
to conduct the operations at issue here.  We also found that grant of
this authority would prevent unreasonable hardship to Lockheed Martin. 
Finally, we found that the applicant was qualified to perform its
proposed operation.

Except to the extent exempted/waived, this authority is subject to our
standard exemption conditions and to the condition that the applicant
must comply with an FAA-approved flight routing for the authorized
operation.

Action taken by:        Karan K. Bhatia

                                  Assistant Secretary

                     for Aviation and International Affairs	

An electronic version of this document is available on the World Wide
Web at:

http://dms.dot.gov//reports/reports_aviation.asp

