WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Air Transport Association
(ATA), the primary trade group representing U.S. airlines, the Air Line Pilots
Association, Int'l (ALPA), the world's largest pilot union representing U.S.
airline pilots, the Cargo Airline Association (CAA), the organization
representing U.S. all-cargo air carriers, and the Regional Airline Association
(RAA), the organization representing U.S. regional airlines, today issued the
following statement in response to the decision by the Senate Committee on
Environment and Public Works (EPW) to approve and forward to the full Senate
S.2191, the "Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2007":
"While the airlines and pilots continue to take their environmental
responsibilities very seriously, we have real concerns about the costs and
effects of this proposed legislation," said ATA President and CEO James C.
May. "By including jet fuel in a cap-and-trade greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
trading scheme, the legislation essentially would serve as an unnecessary and
additional tax on fuel. It would greatly increase airline costs and would
compromise our ability to invest in new aircraft and other fleet upgrades -
the very things we need to continue to improve our emissions profile."
The groups noted that U.S. airlines have made tremendous improvements in fuel
efficiency, which directly relates to GHG efficiency.
"We improved our fuel efficiency - and hence our GHG efficiency - by 103
percent between 1978 and 2006," said May. "This achievement was a direct
result of the airlines' continual reinvestment in technology and
fuel-efficient operations."
"This legislation piles an even heavier tax burden on an industry that already
compares to the burden on alcohol, tobacco, gambling and firearms," said ALPA
President Capt. John Prater. "It would compromise the proactive measures that
our industry has made in fuel efficiencies and further threaten our airlines'
financial recovery while rewarding 'dirtier' industries by giving them free
allowances and special investment advantages. That sends the wrong signal to
our nation's pilots, the airlines and the traveling public."
Another key concern is that Congress failed to enact legislation reauthorizing
the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, which would have paved the way for a much
needed Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) and which contained
a number of valuable environmental initiatives.
"Modernization of our outdated air traffic control (ATC) system would enable
airlines to fly more direct routes, thus reducing congestion and system-caused
delays," noted CAA President Steve Alterman. "Studies show that this could
further reduce our GHG emissions by 10 to 15 percent," said Alterman.
"Congress has thus far failed to reauthorize FAA operations, which regrettably
keeps delaying a decision on NextGen and its related environmental programs.
This much needed program would bring tangible GHG savings while getting at the
heart of the congestion and delay problem."
RAA President Roger Cohen shared the concerns of the coalition. "The bill, if
enacted, would result in unprecedented increases in jet fuel related costs.
When coupled with record fuel prices that today are near reaching the century
mark, airlines likely will be faced with more difficult and painful choices
that will result in service reductions, especially to small- and medium-sized
communities, and the loss of more aviation-related jobs."
The coalition's concerns have been further heightened by the speed in which
this legislation has moved through the Senate subcommittee and committee
processes.
"This 303-page bill, which would establish carbon as a commodity and
redistribute billions and billions of dollars across the U.S. economy, was
introduced less than two months ago," explained May. "It has been fast tracked
through the committee process, without undergoing basic economic analysis,
perhaps on the hope that no one will have time to raise the types of concerns
we are raising today," said May. "Collectively, we urge the full Senate to
give this legislation a more deliberative review and to recognize that it is
the wrong approach for commercial aviation."
ATA airline members and their affiliates transport more than 90 percent of all
U.S. airline passenger and cargo traffic. For additional information about the
aviation industry, visit http://www.airlines.org.
ALPA represents more than 60,000 airline pilots at 42 carriers in the U.S. and
Canada. Its website is http://www.alpa.org.
CAA represents the nation's all-cargo airlines. Its website is
http://www.cargoair.org.
RAA's 43 member airlines transport 97 percent of total regional airline
industry passengers. For more information, please visit http://www.raa.org.
SOURCE Air Transport Association
Elizabeth Machalek Merida of ATA, +1-202-626-4205; or Pete Janhunen, Linda
Shotwell, Molly Martin, all of ALPA, +1-703-481-4440, media@alpa.org
