NBAA ‘Call to Action’ Urges Support For Senate FAA Bill

Contact: Dan Hubbard, (202) 783-9360, dhubbard@nbaa.org

Washington, DC, March 22, 2016 –   The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) today issued a Call to Action urging its members to support a recently introduced U.S. Senate bill that takes a smart, targeted approach to reauthorization for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and aviation system modernization.

In his Call to Action, NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen noted that the Senate legislation, “includes many important, targeted solutions designed to ensure the United States remains the world leader in aviation five, 10 and 25 years from now. Equally important, the bill recognizes that the nation’s airports and airspace operate in the public interest, and should serve the public, including all aviation stakeholders and the citizens and communities they serve.”

View Bolen’s Call to Action in support of S. 2658.

The Senate bill (S.2658), Bolen said, reflects many priorities identified by NBAA, including measures to streamline the certification process for aviation technologies, raise the bar on aviation safety, integrate unmanned aircraft systems into the National Airspace System, accelerate implementation of a Next Generation (“NextGen”) air traffic management system and provide a plan for the U.S. Department of Transportation to modernize third-class medical requirements for small-aircraft pilots. Read more about NBAA’s support for the Senate bill.

The bill also rejects privatizing the air traffic control (ATC) system, a risky scheme proposed in FAA reauthorization legislation pending in the House of Representatives. The House FAA reauthorization bill, H.R.4441, which is being promoted by most of the big airlines, calls for a privatized ATC system to be funded through new user fees and overseen by an airline-centric board of directors.

“By contacting your members of Congress today on this issue, we can call upon lawmakers to say ‘yes’ to smart FAA reauthorization and modernization, and ‘no’ to a distracting and unneeded debate over ATC privatization,” Bolen continued. “I urge you to notify your legislators today of your support for S.2658.”

NBAA will continue to call upon people in the industry to make their voices heard with legislators in regard to developments taking place in the FAA reauthorization debate. To do so, visit NBAA’s online Contact Congress resource.

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Founded in 1947 and based in Washington, DC, the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) is the leading organization for companies that rely on general aviation aircraft to help make their businesses more efficient, productive and successful. The association represents more than 10,000 companies and provides more than 100 products and services to the business aviation community, including the NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition, the world’s largest civil aviation trade show. Learn more about NBAA at www.nbaa.org.

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