ITEM TITLE:
Proclamation - General Aviation Appreciation Month
SUBMITTED BY: Sheri Pierce, MMC
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SUMMARY STATEMENT:
The City has been contacted by Mr. Josh Grossman with the “Alliance for Aviation Across America” organization who has requested a proclamation designating November as “General Aviation Appreciation Month”. Mr. Grossman has also asked the Mayor to sign on to the following letter:
Dear Member of Congress:
As you debate reauthorization of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), I write to ask you to reject any risky plans to privatize our air traffic control system and take away Congressional oversight over this important public system.
Over the last year, proposals have recently been put forward to put this vital infrastructure under the control of a private entity dominated by the commercial airlines. On behalf of the tens of thousands of communities around the country that depend on air service, we are concerned about the very real and dire ramifications of eliminating Congressional oversight over this public air transportation infrastructure.
For tens of thousands of communities such as ours around the country, we depend on our local airport and all sectors of transportation to reach far-off markets and access critical services such as law enforcement, disaster relief, and medical care. Small aircraft and airports, for example, are utilized on a daily basis to help transport blood and organs to residents in rural communities, reunite veterans back from overseas with their families, maintain power lines, and help our companies to reach customers in far-off markets, among many other priorities.
Privatization would hand over decisions about infrastructure funding, taxes and fees, consumer complaints, noise, and many other priorities, to a board of private interests dominated by the commercial airlines. These are the same airlines that have cut back flights to smaller communities by more than 20 percent in recent years, and have stated their intent to divert investment from small to mid-sized communities to large where the airlines are most profitable.
We are also concerned about costs and access. For example, the Canadian, privatized system, which is often held up as the system the U.S. should emulate, is more expensive than the system we have in the US by mile flown. In the U.K., that system has seen "more delays, higher fares and reduced connectivity" at London's airports since privatization. So while we all agree that modernizing our air traffic control system and investing in American infrastructure should be among our highest priorities, privatization is not the answer.
We look forward to working with you throughout this process to ensure that our air transportation system protects communities of all sizes and keeps passengers flying safely and efficiently.
Sincerely,
(included are a list of signatures from over 50 Mayors from across the United States who have signed in support)