Posts tagged as:

faa reauthorization act of 2009

Forget about climate change, let’s get to work changing the air-traffic system

by Charlie Leocha on February 23, 2010

I just saw another article about a new “attempt at passing a climate change bill in the Senate.” With the underpinnings of climate change in doubt, resignations of UN environmental bigwigs, flat temperatures over the past 15 years and the discovery that glaciers covering the Hymalayas are not likely to disappear in a decade, I [...]

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FAA reauthorization bill stalls in Senate again (7th time now)

by Charlie Leocha on December 14, 2009

I know it’s about 90 days since a very similar headline, but it’s happening again — the Senate is delaying passage of FAA Reauthorization Act once again (this makes seven times in a row). They promise they will get it done in March, but don’t hold your breath. Consumers seem to be last in the [...]

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What we’re reading: Liquid ban remains ’til 2013, Senate delays FAA reauthorization again, IATA questions airport security

by Charlie Leocha on November 26, 2009

Liquid ban to remain till 2013, FAA Authorization bill to be delayed again, IATA questions excessive airport security

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New air-traffic computers fail tests

by Charlie Leocha on October 8, 2009

Reports are circulating that on one of the initial tests of the new computer system planned for the Next Gen air traffic control (ATC) system, the systems failed to identify aircraft properly. The decades-old system had to be re-activated and the state-of-the-art computer was shut down.

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FAA reauthorization bill stalls in Congress, again

by Charlie Leocha on September 24, 2009

In case anyone was getting excited about the possibilities of a new air traffic control system and new funding of of the nation’s air traffic infrastructure, don’t hold your breath. With a sense of deja vu the House passed a temporary Federal Aviation Administration authorization extension yesterday.

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Tarmac delay activists meeting in Washington face legislative complexities

by Charlie Leocha on September 23, 2009

Kate Hanni of Flyersrights.org and Kevin Mitchel of Business Travel Coalition led a stakeholders meeting at the Rayburn Building in Washington D.C. to focus attention on passage of the tarmac-delay provisions in the Senate version of the pending FAA Reauthorization bill. The meeting was packed and proponents learned about the complexity of their proposal and had more problems added.

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Take the poll: Airline tarmac delays

by Charlie Leocha on September 16, 2009

Other than debating health care proposals these days, Washington D.C. seems to be asleep at the switch. But the airline travel front and efforts to legislate a maximum three-hour delay rule as part of the FAA Reauthorization bill is moving forward.

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It’s time for U.S. airline passenger rights legislation

by Charlie Leocha on August 23, 2009

This story, by Tim Cummins, Chief Executive Officer of the International Association For Contract & Commercial Management (IACCM), was forwarded to me by the head of the Business Travel Coalition, one of the many organizations working actively now to encourage passage of specific time regulations to limit passenger tarmac delays. The airline industry has not been about to solve the problem, because there are no legal consequences to their inactivity and prevarication.

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FAA reauthorization act passes the House, sent to Senate

by Charlie Leocha on May 25, 2009

The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009 is packed with new legislative language that will impact airline passengers. It is one of the most far-reaching bills concerning passengers rights of the last decade.

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Too funny! Airline association claims passengers are not ATMs

by Charlie Leocha on May 22, 2009

I almost was escorted out of the House aviation subcommittee for laughing when John Meenan, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Air Transport Association, went off the prepared statement and said, “Airports must resist treating air travelers as the equivalent of an ATM.”

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