Coalition Letter in Opposition to Changes in ARFF Standards

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 14%
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

	Coalition Letter in Opposition to Changes in ARFF Standards
	PubZone1 May 5, 2010 The Honorable John D. Rockefeller Chairman Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 254 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison Ranking Member Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 560 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable James L. Oberstar Chairman House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 2165 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable John L. Mica Ranking Member House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 2163 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Dear Chairman Rockefeller, Ranking Member Hutchison, Chairman Oberstar and Ranking Member Mica: We are writing to urge you to oppose any and all attempts to include language in the final version of H.R. 1586, the Aviation Safety and Investment Act of 2010 that would either legislate changes in the current aircraft rescue and fire fighting (ARFF) standards or legislate that an unfair rulemaking process be undertaken to make changes in the standards. If enacted into law, these proposals could unnecessarily increase costs for airports and airlines as well as jeopardize commercial air service to small communities. H.R. 1586, as adopted by the House, contains a provision that could force airports of all sizes to comply with controversial National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) requirements. Although each of us supports various provisions in the House bill, we are unified in our opposition to Sec. 311, in part, because it would impose huge costs onto airports and the airlines without any benefit to aviation safety. To meet NFPA standards, airports of all sizes would be required to dramatically increase the number of fire fighters and add additional facilities without any evidence that these changes would improve the safety of airports. Increased capital and annual operating costs resulting from the NFPA standards would force airports to divert their already limited funding resources from other necessary safety and airport improvement projects. For communities that rely on Essential Air Service, adopting NFPA requirements could further damage a program that is already under stress. These increased costs would be passed on to the traveling public at a time when many can least afford it. A June 2009 study by the Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) run by the National Academies of Sciences found that the capital costs to comply with the NFPA requirements is estimated to be an additional $2.9 billion industry wide. The ACRP study also concluded that annual operating and maintenance costs would increase by $1 billion to $1.5 billion for airports throughout our system. Updates to the FAA ARFF standards have been evaluated by the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC), which allowed all interested stakeholders, including airlines, pilot organizations, airports, the FAA and fire fighters to participate. Last year, the ARAC agreed to formally submit its report to the FAA. The FAA has the information put forth by both the ARAC and the ACRP study so it can determine what, if any, changes are needed to the ARFF standards. There is, therefore, no need for Congress to take action on this issue. Please reject any efforts to include any language in the final version of the FAA Reauthorization bill that would either legislate changes to the current ARFF standards or legislate that an unfair rulemaking process be undertaken to make changes in the standards. Instead, we urge you to let the FAA to continue to work with aviation stakeholders through the ARAC process and allow them to complete their review of the findings of the ACRP report data. Thank you for your leadership on aviation issues. We look forward to continuing our working relationship to ensure that our nation’s aviation system remains safe and secure. Sincerely, Greg Principato President Airports Council International-North America James C. May President and CEO Air Transport Association Charles Barclay President American Association of Airport Executives Steve Alterman President Cargo Airlines Association A. Oakley Brooks President National Air Carrier Association James K. Coyne President and CEO National Air Transport Association Larry E. Naake Executive Director National Association of Counties Henry M. Ogrodinski President and CEO National Association of State Aviation Officials Donald J. Borut Executive Director National League of Cities Roger Cohen President Regional Airline Association R. Bruce Josten Executive Vice President, Government Affairs U.S. Chamber of Commerce PubZone2	A4A advocates measures to support aviation safety, security and well-being.