|
Capt. Lee Moak,
president of the Air
Line Pilots Association,
Int’l (ALPA), issued the
following statement
after announcement of
the passage by the U.S.
Senate of the FAA
Modernization and Reform
Act of 2012 (H.R. 658),
a long-term, multi-year
Federal Aviation
Administration
reauthorization
conference report.
“The U.S. Senate’s vote
today to pass full,
long-term Federal
Aviation Administration
(FAA) reauthorization
marks a significant
accomplishment for the
U.S. airline industry
and its employees. It
allows this country to
pursue vital aviation
safety research, develop
new technology, and
modernize the air
transportation system
while helping to ensure
our ability to compete
globally and foster
economic growth and
jobs.
“After 23 short-term
extensions, the funding
and policy direction
provided by this
legislation will finally
allow the FAA to act
decisively to move the
United States toward a
state-of-the-art air
transportation system
and position us to meet
the challenge of
competing with European
and Asian countries that
are already modernizing
their systems. In
addition, enhancing this
nation’s already high
standards of aviation
safety and building
efficiency will help
ensure that millions of
airline industry
employees around the
globe can count on good
jobs, now and in the
future.
“There’s no doubt that
this bill could have
been improved by
omitting provisions
unrelated to aviation
safety, but that
compromise was necessary
to set the stage for
today’s passage and to
garner the very real
benefits that this
multi-year
reauthorization holds
for the traveling and
shipping public as well
as for airline employees
and the U.S. economy.
This bill contains
important progress on
aviation issues ranging
from stopping laser
attacks on aircraft to
protecting safety data
and ensuring flight deck
doors are installed on
all-cargo aircraft.
“For these reasons and
others, we respectfully
urge President Obama to
sign this bill into law
with all possible
speed.” |
