My Own Private Air Traffic Control
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Ladies and gentlemen, President Trump is ready to tackle infrastructure, and by “infrastructure,” we mean the air traffic control system.
Trump is proposing privatization of the air traffic control system, removing it from the Federal Aviation Administration and putting it in the hands of a private nonprofit corporation. It would be funded primarily by passenger fees, as it is today. The fees would just be collected by a different agency. [Reuters / David Shepardson]
This is not an obviously crazy idea. Canada handles air traffic control this way, and Al Gore proposed adopting this system as part of his "Reinventing Government" initiative in 1995. Proponents argue that it's important to separate air traffic control from regulators who ensure air travel safety; having them both housed within the FAA arguably creates a conflict of interest. [Brookings / Dorothy Robyn]
Opponents, by contrast, argue that the new corporation would be dominated by the airlines themselves, giving them new power to raise fees on consumers and an incentive to deny access to airports to new low-cost competitors. [The Hill / Donald Cohen, Sally Greenberg, Paul Hudson, Linda Sherry]
The changes come as the US is carrying out a large-scale modernization effort meant to shift the US from relying on ancient radar-based technology for tracking planes to satellite-based tools, an FAA initiative known as NextGen. [Gizmodo / Adam Clark Estes]
Much of the system has already been rolled out, but some improvements are still reaching additional airports. DataComm — a system that lets pilots communicate with control towers via text — is now up and running in at least six airports, with more set to follow. [FCW / Mark Rockwell]
There's no guarantee the plan will go forward. While most airlines support it, Delta has been a vocal source of opposition. [ABC News / Jeffrey Cook]
The change will require action from Congress, but that didn't stop Trump from "creating the impression of a bill signing" at his event announcing the plan. He signed a "decision memo" explaining the plan, and a letter to Congress outlining it, while flanked by lawmakers. [AP / Ken Thomas]
The air traffic control proposal is supposed to be part of a broader push for more spending and investment on national infrastructure, from highways to waterways to electrical systems. [AP / Ken Thomas and Josh Boak]
What's weird is that this initiative is blatantly at odds with Trump's budget. While the budget adds money to infrastructure upfront, it cuts it in later years, with $95 billion in cuts to the Highway Trust Fund alone. [David Kamin]
www.fotavgeia.blogspot.com
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Ladies and gentlemen, President Trump is ready to tackle infrastructure, and by “infrastructure,” we mean the air traffic control system.
Trump is proposing privatization of the air traffic control system, removing it from the Federal Aviation Administration and putting it in the hands of a private nonprofit corporation. It would be funded primarily by passenger fees, as it is today. The fees would just be collected by a different agency. [Reuters / David Shepardson]
This is not an obviously crazy idea. Canada handles air traffic control this way, and Al Gore proposed adopting this system as part of his "Reinventing Government" initiative in 1995. Proponents argue that it's important to separate air traffic control from regulators who ensure air travel safety; having them both housed within the FAA arguably creates a conflict of interest. [Brookings / Dorothy Robyn]
Opponents, by contrast, argue that the new corporation would be dominated by the airlines themselves, giving them new power to raise fees on consumers and an incentive to deny access to airports to new low-cost competitors. [The Hill / Donald Cohen, Sally Greenberg, Paul Hudson, Linda Sherry]
The changes come as the US is carrying out a large-scale modernization effort meant to shift the US from relying on ancient radar-based technology for tracking planes to satellite-based tools, an FAA initiative known as NextGen. [Gizmodo / Adam Clark Estes]
Much of the system has already been rolled out, but some improvements are still reaching additional airports. DataComm — a system that lets pilots communicate with control towers via text — is now up and running in at least six airports, with more set to follow. [FCW / Mark Rockwell]
There's no guarantee the plan will go forward. While most airlines support it, Delta has been a vocal source of opposition. [ABC News / Jeffrey Cook]
The change will require action from Congress, but that didn't stop Trump from "creating the impression of a bill signing" at his event announcing the plan. He signed a "decision memo" explaining the plan, and a letter to Congress outlining it, while flanked by lawmakers. [AP / Ken Thomas]
The air traffic control proposal is supposed to be part of a broader push for more spending and investment on national infrastructure, from highways to waterways to electrical systems. [AP / Ken Thomas and Josh Boak]
What's weird is that this initiative is blatantly at odds with Trump's budget. While the budget adds money to infrastructure upfront, it cuts it in later years, with $95 billion in cuts to the Highway Trust Fund alone. [David Kamin]
www.fotavgeia.blogspot.com
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