Yesterday President Bush signed legislation that adds Missouri to the list of states exempted from the Wright Amendment thereby allowing flights from Dallas Love Field to Kansas City and St. Louis. Both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines will offer service from Love to both cities. Southwest Airlines will announce their service plans and schedules today while American is expected to make similar announcements in the next few weeks.

With 14 operational gates it is assumed that Southwest will begin service within weeks. American has not served Love Field since shortly after 9/11but owns three gates at Love Field. However none is ready for service. There are no jet ways to connect the gates with the planes and no reservations systems for American’s counters. Industry experts’ estimate it will be three to four months before such facilities can be ready. In the interim American is expected to lower its existing fares from DFW Airport to match Southwest’s fare from Love.

Although neither airline has confirmed their plans there is considerable speculation as to whether Southwest might offer a stop in Wichita Kansas on the way to either Kansas City or St Louis. Kansas was exempted from the Wright Amendment in the late eighties. There is also speculation that American may decided to challenge Southwest on some of its existing routes from Love Field including Dallas to Houston.

The battle to either exempt additional states such as Tennessee and Arizona or lift the Wright Amendment altogether is expected to continue in the next session of Congress. Southwest is pressing to lift all restrictions. American Airlines, DFW Airport and Fort Worth oppose such as move claiming it would badly damage the viability of DFW. American says that it cannot allow Southwest to compete for passengers at Love unchallenged and will move as many flights as necessary from DFW to Love on any routes covered by Southwest.

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