Bush Announces Changes to Ease Air Traffic Congestion

Filed in archive Aviation Travel on November 15, 2007

You know the air traffic congestion and long delays are a major issue when the President gets involved. In a press conference held today, President Bush announced steps to help ease the expected delays for the upcoming travel holidays. He acknowledged that "delayed flights are clear to anybody who's been traveling."

Changes include an express lane from Florida to Maine, previously used by the military. Also, the Department of Transportation is looking into increasing the bump fee from $200-$400 to $400-$800, depending on the inconvenience of the passenger.

"These failures carry some real costs for the country, not just in the inconvenience they cause but in the business they obstruct and the family gatherings they cause people to miss,' the president said. "We can do better."

The new plan also will be in effect for the Christmas travel season, and White House press secretary Dana Perino said the Federal Aviation Administration was imposing a holiday moratorium on nonessential maintenance projects, allowing all FAA personnel and equipment to be focused on keeping flights on time.

Further, officials said the FAA would take other steps to increase efficiency such as rerouting airspace, using technology to fill unused space in the air and on the ground, and using more precise routes for takeoffs and landings.

Another proposed rule would deem the operation of a chronically delayed flight - defined as a flight that operates more than 15 minutes late more than 70 percent of the time - to be an "unfair and deceptive practice." That designation carries with it substantial monetary penalties.

The president said other steps were under consideration to reduce crowded skies, such as charging airlines higher landing and takeoff fees at peak hours, and auctioning off landing and takeoff rights to the highest bidder.

Domestic carriers are expected to fly roughly 27 million passengers worldwide over 12 days beginning Nov. 16, with planes about 90 percent full, according to the Air Transport Association.