2009 Annual Report EMB_MOVE_RAA_REG_ANNUAL.pdf 1 8/18/09 11:43 AM C M Y CM MY CY CMY K Report from the Chairman Rick Leach Dear RAA Members and Friends, 2009 has proven to be perhaps the most challenging year for the regional airline industry. Safety issues have been at the forefront, and as such, this year has stretched our bounds to make our industry even safer. The Regional Airline Association (RAA) plays a key role in the success of the industry. Over the past decade, the RAA has helped its 32 regional airlines form a seamless operation with their major partners, and the organization has played an integral role in our nation’s air system. Right now, more than 51 percent of daily flights are conducted by regional airlines, and we carry approximately one-quarter of our nation’s passengers. Without our service, 77 percent of US communities would cease to have any 2008-2009 air service at all. We have become a significant, and essential contributor to the airline industry and Board of Directors to the overall American economy. We employ some 60,000 professionals, and we greatly value their contribution to the regional airline industry. Chairman Scheduled passenger service has evolved to where regional and mainline airlines operate seamlessly to Rick Leach benefit the traveling public. The passenger buys one ticket and expects one level of service, so there can Trans States Holdings be only one industry safety standard. Vice Chairman Aviation safety, by its very nature, is a shared responsibility. I know all the regional airlines work closely Russell “Chip” Childs with other aviation stakeholders — our employees, our suppliers, other airlines and most importantly, SkyWest Airlines the FAA — to identify and inventory their best practices and share it collectively. The RAA and the regional airlines have been doing this for almost 35 years. Treasurer I urge each of you to be proactive in sharing information that can make our industry even safer. We James Rankin Air Wisconsin continue to be a growing industry, and we can and must continue to work better. Thanks to the RAA, we are pushing forward with safety initiatives and continuing discussions with key stakeholders. We have an unparalleled commitment to safety, and we look forward to addressing these issues and others Secretary at our 2010 Annual Convention in Milwaukee on May 24th through 27th. Dan Wolf Cape Air On a more personal note, I want to extend my deepest thanks and appreciation for the hard work of the RAA Board and its staff members who have often assisted us over the past year working with Directors Congress, the media and the public as we educate them about our industry. It has been an honor Peter Bowler working for you and serving as your 2009 Chairman. American Eagle Airlines Tim Komberec Sincerely, Empire Airlines Jim Ream ExpressJet Doug Voss Great Lakes Aviation Dave Hackett Rick Leach Gulfstream International Airlines RAA Chairman Joseph Randell Jazz Air Steve Farrow Piedmont Airlines Bryan Bedford Republic Airways RAA 2009 Annual Report 1 M>;D9ED:?J?EDI7H;7JJ>;?HMEHIJ" OEKÊH;7JOEKH8;IJ$ (&&/HeYam[bb9ebb_di"?dY$7bbh_]^jih[i[hl[Z$ >emZeoekYecfb[j[j^[d[nj\b_]^jiW\[bo"[l[d_dhWf_ZboY^Wd]_d]YedZ_j_edi57jHeYam[bb9ebb_di"_jijWhjiXo fkjj_d]j^[l_jWb_d\ehcWj_edf_bejid[[ZÅIodj^[j_YL_i_ed"m_dZi^[Wh"JhW\\_YWdZ9ebb_i_ed7le_ZWdY[Ioij[cWb[hji WdZceh[Åh_]^j_d\hedje\j^[_h[o[i$?dYh[Wi[Zi_jkWj_edWbWmWh[d[iiWdZef[hWj_edWbX[d[\_jij^WjWbbem\ehW X[jj[hh[ifedi[je[l[dj^[mehijYedZ_j_edi$H[ikbj_d]_d\[m[hZ[bWo[ZehYWdY[bb[Z\b_]^ji$ <ehceh[_d\ehcWj_ed"YedjWYjHeYam[bb9ebb_diWj!')'/$(/+$*&.+ehl_i_jekhm[Xi_j[$ mmm$heYam[bbYebb_di$Yec 038791_RWC_HUD_NewTemplate_v2.indd 1 8/7/09 7:59:40 AM Foreword from RAA President Roger Cohen Dear RAA Members and Friends, People have asked me on countless occasions this year — amidst the tough press and the public scrutiny — if I still thought this was the best job in Washington, DC. The answer is a simple, unequivocal yes. Our entire RAA team shares that same passion about telling the true story about the achievements, contributions and total commitment to safety of our nation’s regional airlines. It is a well-known fact: flying is the safest form of travel. Airlines have gotten increasingly safer over each decade, regional airlines have helped lead this progress and we are committed to keeping it that way. Our members continuously address all potential issues, and they build, brick by brick, the culture of safety that is the fundamental cornerstone of the aviation industry. RAA’s own Strategic Safety Initiative (SSI) continues to push for new advances in aviation safety, including examining the new frontier of human factors in order to avoid incidents in the future. Our SSI will rely on science, impartial safety experts and our front line industry professionals to take a close look at any issue that could lead to an accident. Working closely with Congress, the FAA, industry and labor groups, the SSI’s goals and initiatives will directly align with the steps that Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Aviation Administrator Randy Babbitt have called on for action. Throughout this year, our member airlines have helped guide the valuable dialogue that Congress has urged and that the FAA has conducted. During these safety summits held across the country, we addressed our shared safety goals with our associates in labor, in government and with our mainline partner airlines. But this cooperative commitment to safety is not something new to RAA. Improving safety was the driving force behind RAA’s creation in 1975, and it has been our guiding principle ever since. Not just at our Annual Convention at which thousands of airline, supplier and government officials gather. Not only at the dozens of face-to-face meetings held each calendar year. But every day, RAA shares this critical safety information across the front lines of commercial aviation. Back in the day it was sent via mail. Then it was faxed, and today it’s shared instantly in real time via the internet. And RAA has been doing it each and every day for the past 35 years. RAA has proudly nurtured regional airlines’ unwavering commitment to safety, and in the coming months we will rededicate even more resources to promoting M>;D9ED:?J?EDI7H;7JJ>;?HMEHIJ" the highest safety ideals. OEKÊH;7JOEKH8;IJ$ RAA has managed through difficult challenges in the past, and because of these collective efforts, our members are stronger and more importantly, safer today. Today’s challenges have provided us with another opportunity to reflect back on times when we stood at the forefront of decision making for the aviation industry, and helped to make it better and safer for the American public. Thank you for your loyal support which has helped to inspire and invigorate RAA this year. We are confident that by the time we meet in Milwaukee next (&&/HeYam[bb9ebb_di"?dY$7bbh_]^jih[i[hl[Z$ May, our collective efforts will have proven to the public and policy makers alike the true facts about the safety, the professionalism and the importance of America’s regional airlines. >emZeoekYecfb[j[j^[d[nj\b_]^jiW\[bo"[l[d_dhWf_ZboY^Wd]_d]YedZ_j_edi57jHeYam[bb9ebb_di"_jijWhjiXo fkjj_d]j^[l_jWb_d\ehcWj_edf_bejid[[ZÅIodj^[j_YL_i_ed"m_dZi^[Wh"JhW\\_YWdZ9ebb_i_ed7le_ZWdY[Ioij[cWb[hji WdZceh[Åh_]^j_d\hedje\j^[_h[o[i$?dYh[Wi[Zi_jkWj_edWbWmWh[d[iiWdZef[hWj_edWbX[d[\_jij^WjWbbem\ehW X[jj[hh[ifedi[je[l[dj^[mehijYedZ_j_edi$H[ikbj_d]_d\[m[hZ[bWo[ZehYWdY[bb[Z\b_]^ji$ <ehceh[_d\ehcWj_ed"YedjWYjHeYam[bb9ebb_diWj!')'/$(/+$*&.+ehl_i_jekhm[Xi_j[$ Roger mmm$heYam[bbYebb_di$Yec RAA 2009 Annual Report 3 038791_RWC_HUD_NewTemplate_v2.indd 1 8/7/09 7:59:40 AM CF34_E_215,5x279,4_RAA_Annual_Report.qxd 26.09.2008 10:33 Uhr Seite 1 Great service for small engines Outstanding MRO for the CF34™ A perfect match: The GE CF34™, the best selling engine in its class, and MTU Maintenance, the world’s largest inde- pendent provider of commercial engine MRO services. 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CF34™ AOG +49 3378 824 888 CF34_E_215,5x279,4_RAA_Annual_Report.qxd 26.09.2008 10:33 Uhr Seite 1 Table of Contents Report from RAA Chairman Rick Leach .........................................................................1 2008-2009 RAA Board of Directors ...............................................................................1 Foreword from RAA President Roger Cohen ..................................................................3 RAA Staff ......................................................................................................................7 2009 Convention Sponsors ...........................................................................................8 2008 Fall Meeting and 2009 Summer Seminar Sponsors ...............................................9 US SUMMARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2008 10-Year Industry Traffic Statistics 1999-2008 .........................................................13 US Regional Aircraft Fleet ......................................................................................13 Service at US Airports ............................................................................................13 10-Year