Op-Ed: Government's Plans To Ease Air Congestion Are Not Enough

With airport delays at record highs, the U.S. travel industry has a responsibility to participate in the improvement of our air transportation network. The current status of operations is unacceptable. According to the Air Transport Association and Department of Transportation, delays cost airlines and their customers $17 billion annually.

Last month, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters announced the results of work done by the aviation rulemaking committee aimed at alleviating the air traffic congestion in the New York region. The committee set forth the following recommendations: prioritize operational and capacity improvements at all three major New York-area airports; limiting the number of operations per hour, namely during peak periods at JFK and Newark airports; and establishing a New York czar to drive the changes.

As capacity improvements are realized, Peters plans to expand the number of hourly flights allowed to operate at JFK and Newark through an auction lease program.

While the results are a step in the right direction, they are not enough. The demand for air travel continues to increase and our system cannot support it. More needs to be done.

First and foremost, plans to modernize our nation's radar-based air traffic control system must be expedited by the Federal Aviation Administration and Congress. While small steps have been made in this direction, a satellite-guided system is not expected to be fully implemented in the United States until the year 2020, while other nations like Australia, Canada and China are more quickly adopting this next-generation technology.

For the immediate future, a situation still exists in which JFK and Newark cannot operate at the 100-plus flights per hour capacity currently established. As delays and cancellations that originate from this region ripple through the nation's air traffic system, many airlines have reduced flights or adjusted schedules, and they are to be commended.

Meanwhile, the aviation rulemaking committee outlined 77 initiatives to address congestion issues without decreasing capacity, yet only a handful have been adopted. ATA said more than half could be implemented in the next five months, resulting in a 20 percent reduction in delays. Some of the overlooked initiatives include allowing the number of takeoffs and landings to increase by using multiple departure headings at JFK instead of the single one currently in use, opening military airspace when weather threatens traffic patterns and on-time arrivals or departures and upgrading New York-area airports to more precisely controlled RNAV and RNP satellite technology, as has already been done in Atlanta and Dallas, allowing for shorter taxi times, more efficient landings, fewer emissions and less noise.

As these improvements allow capacity to be recovered and an auction model is put into place, it should be done with caution, recognizing those carriers that have voluntarily adjusted their schedules to assist in the short-term fix. They have invested millions in route development, facility upgrades and infrastructure improvements to support operations at these airports over many years. After they have had the opportunity to reinstate previously established schedules, any remaining capacity, and any future capacity gains, would benefit from the auction model—fostering further competition and allowing new entrants to establish themselves in a given market.

Another critical consideration is the money raised by an auction and how it is allocated. Funds should be used to enhance the system in the form of capital improvements at affected airports, air traffic control improvements, and/or in monies allocated back to the airlines for additional investments in airport operations. These funds should not simply go into the general treasury, or this will once again be a case of an additional tax or fee charged to the travel industry without benefiting from it.

Finally, there must be a way to prevent individuals or organizations from buying on speculation and reselling their landing/takeoff time slots for a profit. Buyers must be a legitimate airline able to operate flights during their allocated slots.

A comprehensive solution must also include examination of New Jersey's Teterboro Airport and the strain private and corporate aircraft are putting on the system.

The bottom line is this: A reduction in air capacity is not a viable solution during a time when demand is outpacing supply and is expected to double or triple by the year 2025. In fact, it threatens our industry and our economy.

Carlson Wagonlit Travel is advocating for increased reliability and transparency in the system. The time for change is now. We all must play a role in determining what this change will be and how the industry will improve for the future. Contact your legislators and the Department of Transportation to effect change. Our customers—millions of travelers and the corporations for which they travel—need it.