Regional airlines now represent 53 percent of commercial flights, RAA President Roger Cohen indicated during a presentation at the 35th Annual FAA Forecast in Washington, DC, today, underlining regionals provide the only scheduled air service to 492 US airports, nearly 75 percent of the nation's airports. During the past decade, the number of regional airline passengers has more than doubled to about 160 million. During the panel titled: "New Decade...Dawn or Dusk for Regional Carriers", Cohen offered "while today's regional airlines do not look like the ones operating when RAA was founded back in 1975, they are similar in three key ways: a total commitment to safety; a responsibility to provide air service to the vast majority of American communities; and a demonstrated ability to adapt successfully to whatever economic challenges come their way."
Also participating in today's breakout session were George Hamlin, President of Hamlin Transportation Group, on "What Does the Future Hold for Regional Aviation?" and Bill Swelbar, Research Engineer, International Center for Air Transportation, MIT, on "Mainline Pilot Scope: Will Regional Carriers be Permitted to Fly 90+ Seat Aircraft?"
