Mica: NextGen Not A Silver Bullet

Lawmakers urged the Senate to pass the FAA reauthorization bill and touted NextGen as a way to combat delays during a House Transportation aviation subcommittee hearing on delays and customer service yesterday.

Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Ill.), subcommittee chair, noted that delays rose significantly last year, affecting 20% more passengers last summer than in summer of 2006. The FAA reauthorization bill contains consumer protections and provisions for schedule reductions “if aircraft operations exceed hourly rates and are adversely affecting national or regional airspace,” Costello said. 

Most flight delays are caused by two things: weather and the outdated air traffic control system, said James May, Air Transport Association president. “We cannot fix the weather, but we can fix the broken ATC system,” May said. ATA has long pushed for modernization of the ATC system through NextGen and other programs. Yet, Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), ranking member of Transportation, struck a note of dissonance, noting that “everone puts too much stock in NextGen.” The system is expected to yield a 6%-8% improvement in airspace capacity, Mica said. This is not enough of a gain to solve the problem of delays, he said. Market-based plans to reduce delays — congestion pricing, for example — can be effective in realigning airline schedules and reducing delays in the near term, said D.J. Gribbin, DOT general counsel. Allowing airports more flexibility to set landing fees could encourage airlines to use less congested facilities, said Greg Principato, Airports Council International-North America president.