Aviation Groups Want to Protect FAA’s NextGen from Budget Impasses Written 27 September 2019
27 September 2019
Aerospace America reports that “when lawmakers on the Senate Commerce Committee’s aviation subcommittee asked industry groups how U.S. air traffic control could be improved, they got a resounding answer: consistent funding.” In remarks during a hearing Tuesday, National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) Executive Vice President Patricia “Trish” Gilbert said, “The more-than-a-decade of stop-and-go funding has negatively undermined all aspects of the air traffic control system.” During a shutdown, “work by the FAA and its contractors halts on Next Generation Air Transportation System” (NextGen) project. Gilbert and other aviation group representatives “want Congress to pass the Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2019,” which “would let the FAA use funds from the $6 billion Airport and Airway Trust Fund to keep NextGen and other programs going during a government shutdown.” Gilbert added, “Without funding certainty, the FAA will be hard-pressed to maintain current capacity [in the national air space], let alone modernize the system and expand it for new users.” (Image: Vancouver, Wash. | Dale Chumbley)
Full Story (Aerospace America)
Aerospace America reports that “when lawmakers on the Senate Commerce Committee’s aviation subcommittee asked industry groups how U.S. air traffic control could be improved, they got a resounding answer: consistent funding.” In remarks during a hearing Tuesday, National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) Executive Vice President Patricia “Trish” Gilbert said, “The more-than-a-decade of stop-and-go funding has negatively undermined all aspects of the air traffic control system.” During a shutdown, “work by the FAA and its contractors halts on Next Generation Air Transportation System” (NextGen) project. Gilbert and other aviation group representatives “want Congress to pass the Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2019,” which “would let the FAA use funds from the $6 billion Airport and Airway Trust Fund to keep NextGen and other programs going during a government shutdown.” Gilbert added, “Without funding certainty, the FAA will be hard-pressed to maintain current capacity [in the national air space], let alone modernize the system and expand it for new users.” (Image: Vancouver, Wash. | Dale Chumbley)
Full Story (Aerospace America)