The US Air Transport Association advised regulatory bodies within the aviation industry on the 25^th October that the imposition of “congestion pricing” will not act to decongest the busy flight paths above New York. Instead, said the group’s President, James May, the government needs to divert its attention to achieving greater "efficiency and capacity in the New York-area airspace, rather than suppressing demand.”

The most significant airlines represented by the ATA concur that the crowded skies are better addressed through creating positions for additional air traffic control workers, and implementing airport development plans, as opposed to increasing airport landing fees.

The ATA’s comments were included within a presentation it gave to the President Bush-created Aviation Rulemaking Committee, in which it highlighted how additional airport charges would result in “enormous costs” filtering down to travellers.

The ARC includes members of bodies including the Federal Aviation Administration, the Transportation Department and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, as well as a number of carriers using airports in New York and its environs.

JFK Flight Limits Proposal Attacked

Within the past few days, the ATA raised the possibility of launching legal action in respect of a proposal under which terms flights at delay-ridden John F Kennedy International Airport would be limited to 80 per hour. This would have significant implications for the airlines with a high concentration of flights operating to/from JFK, such as Delta Air Lines and JetBlue, which operate 30 per cent and 29 per cent of flights respectively. American Airlines also has a large flight-share, at 13 per cent.

During the opening speech at a meeting on the subject, Mary Peters – the US Transportation Secretary – described how she had a "strong preference for using market mechanisms like congestion pricing to preserve passenger choice while reducing delays." Effectively, Ms Peters considers that fewer flights would be scheduled by airlines if, during peak during, higher charges prevailed.

Airport International will continue to provide unrivalled coverage of the latest developments to emerge regarding the attempts to decongest New York’s skies as we get the facts.

Source – Airport International’s US Correspondent

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