ATA Responds to House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on HR 4016

Commercial aviation helps drive more than 10M American jobs and 5 cents of every dollar of U.S. GDP
Commercial aviation drives more than $1 trillion per year in economic activity
In 2012, U.S. airlines moved more than 48,000 tons of cargo per day
In 2012, the value of a kilogram of U.S. merchandise exported by air averaged 121 times the value exported by sea
For every 100 airline jobs, some 360 are supported outside of the airline industry
Federal taxes constitute $61 – or 20% – of the price of a typical $300 domestic round-trip ticket
In 2011, U.S. airlines carried 16 percent more passengers and cargo using 10 percent less fuel than in 2000
Domestically, airlines drive 5% of economic activity but account for 2% of man-made GHG emissions
From 2000-2011, airlines reduced GHG emissions by 11% while transporting 16% more passengers and cargo
From 1975-2011, U.S. airlines and their partners reduced significant noise exposure by 99%
Commercial air travel is the safest form of intercity transportation in the United States
In the most recent decade, scheduled air service on U.S. airlines was seven times safer than in the 1970s
From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines improved the on-time arrival rate from 72.6% to 81.9%
From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines reduced the flight cancellation rate sharply from 3.30% to 1.29%
Airfares are a bargain: From 2000-2012, U.S. CPI rose 33% while average domestic fare rose just 13%
Adjusted for inflation, the average round-trip domestic airfare fell 15% from 2000
2007 domestic flight delays cost the United States approximately $31 billion
In 2012, the value of U.S. merchandise exported by air reached an all-time high of $427B
In 2012, U.S. exports of air-travel services reached an all-time high of $39.5B, driving a $5.1B trade surplus
In 2012, U.S. passenger and cargo airlines spent more than $50B on fuel, averaging 36% of operating expenses
In 2012, U.S. airlines posted the lowest annual rate of mishandled baggage ever recorded
FAA projects U.S. air travel demand to top 1 billion passengers in 2027
In 2012, US airlines flew 83.4 million passengers in scheduled international service - a record high
In 2012, the total value of merchandise exported from or imported to the United States by air exceeded $927 billion
In 2012, 7.15 teragrams of merchandise was exported from or imported to the United States by air

	ATA Responds to House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on HR 4016
	PubZone1 November 4, 2009 The Honorable James Oberstar Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure U.S. House of Representatives 2165 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable John Mica Ranking Member, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure U.S. House of Representatives 2165 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Chairman Oberstar and Ranking Member Mica: In advance of tomorrow’s markup of the Hazmat Bill, I wanted to convey to you our deep concerns with the language in your bill that would prohibit the transport of lithium batteries in areas of the aircraft that are not crew accessible. Several critical points warrant your careful consideration. First, it is our strong belief that a notice and comment rulemaking approach to this issue would be far more appropriate to getting at all of the facts. This would also facilitate ongoing policy adjustments to changing circumstances and technology, which would be precluded by a legislated mandate. As you know, the Department of Transportation has a draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) at the Office of Management and Budget that will propose regulations concerning the transport of lithium batteries. While we understand the desire to finalize additional lithium battery regulations in an expeditious manner, we believe that can be accomplished through appropriate rulemaking without unnecessary legislation. Further, we believe that the rulemaking process should be allowed to continue under the auspices of the Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), where the staff has unquestioned expertise in the transport of lithium batteries. We also would urge that you establish a firm deadline for the promulgation of the rule. Finally, we think it is extremely problematic that the proposed legislation leaves no room for harmonization with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards. We believe it is important that the United States maintain its leading role in ICAO by advancing harmonized international standards. That leadership is clearly not advanced by a legislatively mandated, unique U.S. rule, which clearly signals to other ICAO members that they should feel free to take the same approach. Obviously, it is extremely difficult for carriers to operate under two sets of standards in this or any area, and we believe that a better safety environment results from careful and thoughtful harmonization. An appropriate but expedited rulemaking would allow PHMSA to harmonize with ICAO and maintain U.S. ICAO leadership. Thank you for your consideration of our concerns. In summary, it is our hope that you will act to place rulemaking deadlines regarding promulgation of a final rule rather than enacting proscriptive and rigid legislative language, when there is still much to be learned about lithium battery carriage. Sincerely, James C. May President and CEO PubZone2	A4A advocates measures to support aviation safety, security and well-being.