ATA Testimony by CEO Jim May before the House T&I Aviation Subcommittee on NextGen

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 Testimony by CEO Jim May before the House T&I Aviation Subcommittee on NextGen
	PubZone1 October 28, 2009 The NextGen Task Force, admirably led by Captain Dickson, did an outstanding job of setting a course to transition to NextGen. As important as that accomplishment is, there is a larger lesson to be learned from the Task Force’s success in laying out what can be achieved. It is the urgency of benefiting from NextGen as soon as possible. Saying this doesn’t mean that we don’t deeply appreciate the Task Force’s efforts. On the contrary: The case for modernization is so compelling and so widely accepted, and the need is so great, that the introduction of what all agree is readily available technology and the procedures to fully leverage it must be a national priority. To make that priority a reality, the federal government – at the highest levels – must provide decisive leadership and a substantial financial commitment. Summing things up: We know what NextGen can do; the technology is proven. We know that we need NextGen; stakeholders uniformly want its benefits. We know what has to be done operationally and financially. What we now need is the federal government to make NextGen an early reality. The federal role is indispensable if we are to have an airport and airway system that can responsibly meet the air transportation needs of our nation. The system does not do that today, as we all too often realize. The burden of this failure on our economy is staggering. Congress’ Joint Economic Committee estimated that flight delays in 2007 cost the economy $41 billion. Airlines, their customers and the communities that they serve cannot afford to continue to pay the price of an obsolete air traffic control (ATC) system. Modernization of the ATC system, however, must be based on a positive business case. Without that justification, we will not see the level and pace of investment that will produce the operational and environmental benefits that are so achievable from NextGen. Such forgone opportunities are intolerable. We have already witnessed that, for instance, in the failure to have an RNP/RNAV procedure available when SeaTac’s $1 billion third runway opened last November. The federal government holds the keys to making NextGen a reality sooner rather than later. This must be a national priority, to which all necessary resources must be devoted. Government leadership and full funding can make it happen in several years, not in the third decade of this century as is assumed today. Accepting anything less ambitious will needlessly shortchange our country. Leadership, I want to point out, includes exhibiting the wherewithal to overcome the political differences that an undertaking of this magnitude will inevitably create. We need to be candid and acknowledge this state of affairs. For example, this means that we cannot dither over implementing the FAA’s New York airspace redesign plan. NextGen won’t work in New York or anywhere else if individual interests frustrate the airspace improvements that will indisputably benefit us all. Leadership also includes accountability. Clear metrics must be established to measure the progress of the government as it quickly introduces NextGen. Without such measurable responsibility, we put at grave risk the necessary speed and effectiveness in bringing NextGen on line within the next few years. Finally, leadership means a very serious commitment to infrastructure investment. That is something we’re all familiar with on the ground; now it needs to be applied to equipping aircraft to take advantage of NextGen technology. Given the cost of equipage and the length of time it could take for an individual user to see a payback in such an investment, such funding is crucial. This is infrastructure investment that can pay off in the next few years; that payoff is within our reach. To place this in perspective, were Congress to provide a level of funding comparable to its funding for high-speed rail projects in this year’s stimulus legislation, NextGen would be an early reality. Without this leadership and funding, implementation of NextGen will drag on, and our nation will suffer even more from airport and airway congestion. The Task Force has ably prepared our flight plan. We need to speed up our arrival at our final destination. PubZone2	A4A advocates measures to support aviation safety, security and well-being.