Tanana Air Service (Fairbanks International) has been awarded a two-year essential air service (EAS) contract on the Ekwok-Dillingham route in southwestern Alaska, starting December 1.

A US Department of Transportation (DOT) statement last week said the carrier will receive a total subsidy of USD208,668 for three round-trips a week using a 6-seat Piper (single piston) PA-32. The route is currently served by Grant Aviation (GV, Bethel) with the same frequency but at almost twice the subsidy.

Grant Aviation had submitted a proposal for a new two-year term but lost due to the higher price.

Tanana Air has an interline agreement with PenAir (Anchorage Ted Stevens) on the Dillingham-Anchorage Ted Stevens route, the carrier confirmed in the DOT filing.

Grant Aviation has been simultaneously re-awarded EAS contracts on Igiugig, Pilot Point and Ugashik Bay to King Salmon routes, as well as on a King Cove-Cold Bay service. Flights to Igiugig will be served 3x weekly using a 6-seat Cessna (single piston) C-207 or a 7-seat Gipps Aero GA8.

Flights to Pilot Point and Ugashik Bay will be served as one route 4x weekly using a 9-seat Cessna C-208, while the connection to King Cove will be operated 12x weekly using a 9-seat Piper Navajo Chieftain. Grant Aviation will receive a total subsidy of USD2.57 million for the two-year contracts on all of these routes. Frequencies and subsidies on these routes will remain at the same levels as in the previous two-year EAS contract with the airline, which expires on November 30.