Although the nearly six-week long shutdown ended last Friday, the Regional Airline Association is looking ahead to February 15th and the storm clouds it sees brewing for commercial aviation should the nation experience another government shutdown.
The 35-day shutdown seriously impacted the FAA and the Transportation Security Administration, forcing air traffic controllers to slow the flow of flights to maintain high safety standards and leading to long lines at security checkpoints at U.S. airports. In addition, airlines experienced difficulty placing new aircraft into service because of shuttered FAA offices. This leads to service disruptions and, in some cases, delayed starts of new routes.
RAA says another shutdown would again seriously impact airline operations, doing a disservice to the traveling public, eroding the public’s confidence in air travel. RAA strongly encourages President Trump and leaders in Congress to avoid another shutdown and reach a long-term solution that extends beyond February 15 to bring certainty to the commercial aviation industry and the federal workers who support it, as well as give passengers confidence that airline operations will continue.
