Wright Amendment - Alterations and Bypass Efforts

Alterations and Bypass Efforts

In 1997, a law authored by Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama modified the Wright Amendment to allow flights to Alabama, Kansas, and Mississippi. However, due to lack of demand, Southwest only recently started operating service to Alabama. There is still yet to be service from Love Field to Kansas and Mississippi, although Southwest has flights to and from Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi's largest airport. Wichita Mid-Continent Airport is the only airport in Kansas serving large planes, and Southwest does not fly to Wichita, instead focusing on Kansas City, Missouri.

In 2000, a new low-fare carrier called Legend Airlines attempted to bypass the Wright restrictions by reconfiguring several McDonnell Douglas DC-9 jets to hold 56 passengers. These were flown from Love Field to Los Angeles, New York City, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. American Airlines tried several times to force Legend to abandon this concept (even offering the same service to LAX), and Legend eventually folded in 2001. Many people who supported repealing the Wright Amendment blamed Legend's demise on American Airlines, DFW International Airport, and the city of Fort Worth.

In 2005, Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri attached an amendment to a transportation spending bill to exempt his state from the Wright restrictions. After the bill's passage, Southwest began nonstop flights from Love Field to St. Louis and Kansas City. At the same time, American Airlines offered competing flights to the Missouri destinations from Love Field - though low passenger loads would force American to downgrade these routes to 50 seat regional jets, and eventually discontinue the service entirely.