The Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill up
for debate in the U.S. Senate this week omitted a proposal to transform the
nation's air traffic control system into a private, nonprofit entity.
The ATC provision had significant support from the airline
industry, including from the International Air Transport Association and U.S.
airline trade organization Airlines for America. A4A criticized the Senate bill
for "embracing a status quo that has not worked."
A proposal in the House version of the FAA bill would have
pulled ATC from government control into a nonprofit, self-funding organization
run by a board that includes airline representatives. Proponents of the
provision argued it would free the organization from the whims of government
funding cycles and enable sorely needed technology updates.
"ATC does not need to be a government function; it
needs to be run like a business and run by stakeholders, including the
airlines," JetBlue president and CEO Robin Hayes said at IATA's recent
Aviation Day in New York. "If we don't take the opportunity now, it could
be another decade before we get the chance, [by which time] we could be in
crisis mode." A4A president and CEO Nicholas Calio said privatization
would "stabilize funding through the use of user fees so [an ATC board] could
plan for long-term capital projects and compete for the best employees."
Critics similarly cited the need for technology investment,
arguing instead that the House proposal gives too much power to airlines and
disrupts implementation of the FAA's NextGen ATC technology blueprint. They
contended the better solution is for the government to step up and fund the
necessary improvements under the current structure.
Support was not universal among airlines, either.
“There is simply no compelling reason to change such a critical system that works
so very well," Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson wrote in testimony to
the House Transportation Committee last month. "Indeed, this bill feels
like an experiment. Our nation’s air traffic control system is too important—to
public safety, economic growth and national security—and working too well for
such an experiment to be prudent.”
The Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation
Committee is slated to debate the bill Wednesday.