Washington, DC, July 6, 2016 – National Air Transportation Association (NATA) President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks today praised House and Senate negotiators on their agreement extending the Federal Aviation Administration’s authorization until September 30, 2017. “Based on the summary released today by the House Transportation Committee, while not a perfect solution, this authorized extension provides stability to the agency and takes action on a number of high priority safety and security issues.”
“Most important,” stated Hendricks, “the legislation does not act on a proposal to corporatize our nation’s air traffic control system. While it was a debate worth having, radical change to the FAA’s management structure and funding poses risks to the safe and stable nature of the world’s best air traffic control system. We are pleased that lawmakers ultimately recognized that such a proposal will place general aviation in constant peril, starve rural America of access to cutting-edge technology, and saddle the traveling public with ever increasing fees.”
“More remains to be done,” concluded Hendricks, “both the House and Senate FAA bills contain other important provisions to help the FAA operate more efficiently, including streamlining the aircraft certification process and improving its regulatory consistency. We look forward to working with Congress to enact that legislation early in 2017.”
