ASTA Urges Congress to Reform Air Transportation

ASTA called on Congress to “rise to the considerable challenge” and launch reforms that bring “some measure of good sense and accountability” to the air transportation system.

In testimony on Thursday before the House Committee on Small Business, Paul Ruden, ASTA’s senior vice president of legal and industry affairs, cited a recent TIA study that determined the U.S. economy is losing $26.5 billion annually due to skipped air trips. He also cited a congressional report that said flight delays cost the economy $41 billion per year.

He told the committee, which asked for testimony on how the air transportation crisis is hurting travelers, entrepreneurs and the economy, that ASTA has been calling for reforms to the passenger air system for years.

The matter becomes more pressing as time goes on, he said, pointing to Federal Aviation Administration projections that U.S. air passenger numbers will climb from the current 689 million a year to 1.1 billion by 2025.

“It is clear that the system as it stands is not able to accommodate current passenger levels to a satisfactory degree of service and is far from equipped to keep pace with these projected increases,” Ruden said.

Ruden said a “troubling direction of the industry” is further illustrated by checked-baggage fees with terms the carriers do not effectively disclose and “creeping ticket restrictions.”

“As these practices continue, so, too, will the already dire erosion in goodwill and trust between carriers and the traveling public,” he warned.