The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced it has dismissed an application filed by Avatar Airlines (Las Vegas Harry Reid) for permission to operate scheduled interstate flights.
Having failed to secure the same authority back in 1993 under its then name Family Airlines (Las Vegas Harry Reid), Avatar Airlines filed a renewed application in 2008 for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to conduct scheduled, interstate flights ferrying persons, property, and mail.
At the time, the start-up's business plan focused on raising USD300 million needed to acquire thirty B747-400s that it would configure with 539 seats in the main cabin and 42 in business class. The high-density jets would then be used to run scheduled flights between San Francisco, Las Vegas Harry Reid, Honolulu, San Diego International, Phoenix Sky Harbor, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami International, Orlando International, Tampa International, New York JFK, Philadelphia International, Chicago O'Hare, Los Angeles International and San Juan Luis Muñoz Marin. A funding roadshow was held in 2016 though its degree of success is unknown.
As such, the DOT said in an order published on Thursday, September 14, that while Avatar Airlines' initial application had contained most of the information required for processing, it lacked details about its proposed funding.
"Between 2008 to 2014, the Department sent Avatar several letters requesting additional information and Avatar filed several partial responses to the Department’s requests, the last of which was dated March 7, 2014," the DOT said. "In that letter, Avatar stated that the applicant intended to raise $300 million through a new private placement and stated that it would submit to the Department, a copy of its revised private placement memorandum, as well as an organizational chart, additional information about its key executives, and an updated list of shareholders. To date, this information has not been received by the Department."
As it stands, the DOT said that as Avatar has not filed any further correspondence since 2014, and that its application is now stale apropos other areas of fitness, it would now dismiss the application without prejudice.
"Since more than 3 years have elapsed with no communication from Avatar, we have no reason to expect that that the applicant will be able to obtain the financing necessary to meet our financial fitness requirements in the foreseeable future," the DOT said. "Even if Avatar were to submit updated information about its finances, as a practical matter, the application would still have to be revised in the most fundamental respects. Considering the above, we have decided to dismiss without prejudice, Avatar’s application."
