NEWS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, May 23, 2006 – The Air Transport Association (ATA), the industry organization representing leading U.S. airlines, reaffirmed its endorsement of the accelerated deployment of Automatic Dependent Services Broadcast (ADS-B) technology in the Gulf of Mexico. ADS-B is a new cost-effective surveillance technology that provides very accurate aircraft position information.
In a letter to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Marion Blakey, ATA President and CEO James C. May said, “ADS-B will enable the FAA to modernize the National Airspace System (NAS) to safely and efficiently meet tomorrow’s demand for air transportation services while allowing for the decommissioning of expensive ground-based radar systems, some dating back to the 1960s.”
Additionally, ATA noted that it fully supports FAA utilization of commercially-supplied services, which expands the value of ADS-B technology. ADS-B is also a critical component for achieving the Smart Skies vision of modernization of the NAS and the system's 35-year-old funding mechanism. ADS-B, slated for deployment over the next 25 years, must allow for a positive return on investment to both government and industry.
ATA airline members transport more than 90 percent of all U.S. airline passenger and cargo traffic.
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