The FAA and DOT are making proposals that will add market based auction and pricing solutions to the New York airspace crowding problems linked with capacity controls. The airlines continue to squeal but offer no new suggestions for immediate relief.
According to Government Executive the three airports in the New York metropolitan area account for 45 percent of flight delays system-wide, according to the ATA, and Meenan was critical of FAA and Transportation’s plans to auction airlines’ flight slots and encouraged airports to implement congestion pricing against airlines.
FAA Air Traffic Organization COO Hank Krakowski pointed to other congestion reduction initiatives, such as increased routes over the Atlantic Ocean and new “playbook” routes for avoiding inclement weather, including the use of military airspace. He added that new and extended runways and airfield configurations will help expand flight capacity. All agreed that implementing the digital NextGen air traffic control system and implementing new satellite technology nationwide by 2013 is an important goal.
Though everyone agrees with the ATA that long range air traffic solutions and satellite technology are most important for future air traffic growth, something has to be done now. The DOT and FAA proposals, though unproven and unpopular with airlines, offer the best route to immediate reductions of delays.
With Congress sitting on the sidelines, still diddling over DOT and FAA funding, the DOT and FAA must do everything under their control to mitigate the NY regional delay problems that are plaguing the entire country.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Where are they gonna put the airplane? Ever flown over or into the airports themselves? With clear skies and west winds the LGA landing airplanes need to overfly the JFK departing airplanes, and those are both departing the landing traffic for EWR – for TEB – GA has it bad.
When the weather gets bad – then no one can evade each other visually and the whole party stacks up all the way to Cleveland.
Want to relieve stress on the airports? Turn McGuire AFB and Stewart Airport in Newburgh into the International Airports for NYC. CLOSE LGA.
Build a high speed train that gets from Penn and Grand Central, with 2 stops in NJ or CT on the way, to these airports in less than 45 minutes. Add a line to Hartford and Albany – ALL international flights either leave from one of those 2 airports. Those airports are off the NY, BOS and PHL flight paths and the delays would be minimal right now – you could also add runways and terminals.
There has to be a better way – the savings in fuel, delays and time would pay for the construction of the airports and new runways in less than a decade.
Keep JFK and EWR open and intermodal them – so you can make a connection internationally in less than 90 minutes – or what it is now. Gotta blow up the drawing board and think big to solve a big problem.
Actually – let me clairfiy – CLOSE LGA to airlines – keep it open for General Aviation and CLOSE Teterboro in NJ – that frees up the traffic pattern for Newark.