City of Dallas files lawsuit seeking guidance regarding Love Field gates

Today the City of Dallas filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking a declaratory judgment to determine which gate slots at Love Field various airlines are entitled to use.

In the lawsuit, Dallas contends that the Wright Amendment Reform Act (WARA), the five-party agreement (among Dallas, Fort Worth, DFW International Airport, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines) and the City’s leases with other airlines using the airport conflict with and take precedence over directives from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration and the demands from other airlines seeking to use the gates.

Since some of the Wright Amendment restrictions expired in October 2014, business at Love Field has boomed. This has caused other airlines to express interest in obtaining gate slots at Love Field to serve the flying public. However, WARA limits Love Field to 20 gates.

“This lawsuit will allow all of the interested parties to put forth their positions in a structured setting so that the federal court can properly weigh their rights and obligations and thereafter allocate the gates in accordance with the law,” said Dallas City Attorney Warren Ernst.