ASA and ExpressJet Win FAA Approval to Operate as a Single Carrier

SkyWest, Inc.’s wholly owned subsidiary, Atlantic Southeast Airlines and ExpressJet Airlines, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlantic Southeast, have received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for a single operating certificate.

This is the final regulatory step for the two merging airlines to operate as one carrier.

According to SkyWest, Inc., the carriers achieved the single operating certificate in record time while safely continuing daily operations. The FAA’s approval comes just 12 months after SkyWest, Inc. announced its acquisition of ExpressJet Holdings (ExpressJet Airlines’ parent company) and its plans to merge ExpressJet Airlines into Atlantic Southeast Airlines both legally and operationally.

Previously only a Delta Connection operator, Atlantic Southeast Airlines has operated 13 Bombardier CRJ regional jets on United Express service from early 2010 as a result of a series of financial and codesharing agreements reached between ASA's parent SkyWest, Inc. and United Airlines on October 20, 2009

From December 31 the combined airline will operate solely as ExpressJet Airlines and will be the largest regional airline in the world, with more than 400 aircraft operating 2,350 flights each day.

Parent holding company SkyWest, Inc. had planned to call the combined ASA-ExpressJet operation ‘SureJet’, but in a poll of the employees of the two carriers, SkyWest found they did not like the name and preferred to call the airline ExpressJet.

SkyWest, Inc. is the holding company for three scheduled passenger-airline operations and an aircraft leasing company and is headquartered in St. George, Utah.

The company’s scheduled passenger-airline operations include SkyWest Airlines (which is also based in St. George); Atlantic Southeast, which is based in Atlanta; and ExpressJet Airlines, which is based in Houston.

ExpressJet operates a large fleet of 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets, which it operates for the Continental Express and United Express networks

SkyWest Airlines operates as United Express and Delta Connection carriers under contractual agreements with United and Delta.  Also, SkyWest Airlines operates flights for Alaska Airlines under a contractual agreement.

Atlantic Southeast Airlines operates as United Express and Delta Connection carriers under contractual agreements with United and Delta.

ExpressJet Airlines operates as Continental Express and United Express under contractual agreements with Continental Airlines, Inc. and United and is a subsidiary of Atlantic Southeast.

Systemwide, SkyWest serves markets in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean with approximately 4,000 daily departures and a fleet of some 727 regional aircraft.