The Wright Amendment Consumer Penalty
A Study by the Campbell-Hill Aviation Group, Inc.

The Wright Amendment imposes an economic cost to travelers and communities throughout the U.S. by prohibiting competition from Dallas Love Field in air travel between North Texas and any point outside a seven-state perimeter, which includes 85% of the U.S. population.

The study calculates the economic impact of the Wright Amendment by observing what would happen if the law were repealed and Southwest Airlines were permitted to enter 15 now-prohibited markets from Love Field, with three daily roundtrip flights daily in each. Using empirical, publicly available data, the study concludes that:

• 3.7 million more passengers would travel in the 15 studied, now prohibited, markets annually due to new competition and lower fares.
  
  
• Passengers would save nearly $700 million annually with the Wright restrictions lifted, when compared to current airfares charged by American Airlines at DFW Airport without competition with Southwest Airlines at Love Field.
  
  
• North Texas would reap an additional $1.7 billion in economic activity annually due to increased air travel in the region.
  
  
• The total burden caused by the Wright Amendment on air travelers, North Texas, and cities beyond the seven-state perimeter exceeds $4 billion per year.

North Texas and its residents now suffer from a lack of competition and high fares in longer-haul air travel. American Airlines provides over 80% of the service from DFW, and more than a third of American's nonstop DFW routes are monopolies. Repeal of the Wright Amendment would allow competition by Southwest from Love Field, force fares to decline at DFW, and increase travel to and from North Texas - generating enormous economic benefits for the region and its citizens.

Link to webcast of Press Conference