 

			  UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

		        DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

			  OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

			          WASHINGTON, D.C.

Issued by the Department of Transportation on March 26, 2004

NOTICE OF ACTION TAKEN -- DOCKET OST 2004-17412

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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:  POLET AIRLINES, LTD.                                        
                                   Date Filed:  March 25, 2004

Relief requested:  Exemption from 49 U.S.C. section 40109(g) to permit
the applicant to operate one, one-way, cargo charter flight from
Columbus, Ohio, to Boeing Field, Washington, on March 27, 2004, using
its AN-124-100 aircraft to transport one GE 90 aircraft engine, on
behalf of General Electric Aircraft Engines.  The applicant stated that
General Electric urgently requires delivery of the engine on that date
for immediate installation on an aircraft being produced by the Boeing
Commercial Aircraft Company for completion and delivery; that the cargo
is too large for transportation on U.S.-carrier aircraft; and that
surface transportation would take ten days.

Applicant representative:  Lester M. Bridgeman, 251-432-1414        DOT
analyst:  Allen F. Brown, 202-366-2405

Responsive pleadings:  Polet Airlines 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 operations and that it had no comment or did not oppose grant
of the requested authority to Polet Airlines.

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:  March 26,
2004

Effective dates of authority granted:  March 26, 2004, through March 27,
2004.

Basis for approval:  We are granting Polet Airlines’ request to
operate its proposed flight today from Columbus to Boeing Field.  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 of the urgent need to move the cargo promptly in order to meet
the delivery schedule, 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 which could be used to conduct the operation at
issue here.  We also found that grant of this authority was necessary to
prevent unreasonable hardship to General Electric and Boeing.  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
flight.

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

