Chris Edwards
Chris Edwards
America’s air traffic control (ATC) needs restructuring. ATC has become a high-tech business, but we run our system as an old-fashioned bureaucracy inside of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The system is antiquated, mismanaged, and is headed for a crisis as aviation demands continue to rise.
The solution is privatization, which President Trump supported during his first term. In 2017, a bill modeled on Canada’s privatized ATC system passed the House Transportation Committee but then stalled. At the time, Trump said our ATC system was “stuck, painfully, in the past … ancient, broken, antiquated.” He was right, and now he has another chance to fix it.
The CEO of JetBlue said the other day, “I wish the [next] administration would focus on air traffic control … I would love to see more hiring. I would love to see better technology,” which she noted would reduce flight delays. A news report last week said that “dangerously low staffing in the towers and decaying equipment” is a bipartisan concern on Capitol Hill.
A recent GAO report found that dozens of the FAA’s ATC systems are outdated. Aviation expert Bob Poole is urging an overhaul, noting, “Countless studies have shown that other countries’ ATC systems are better-managed, better-funded, and better-supplied with advanced technology.”
A great example is Canada. Our northern neighbor privatized its ATC in 1996 as a self-funded nonprofit corporation called Nav Canada. ATC funding was changed from a ticket tax to direct charges on system users. Nav Canada charges for terminal services, flying through Canadian airspace, and oceanic services.
This structure removes ATC from politicized government budgets and paves the way for ongoing efficiency improvements and innovation, which are the keys to shorter flight times, fewer delays, greater safety, and lower aviation fuel costs.
The privatized Canadian system has won numerous international awards and is a leader in many technologies. » Read More
https://www.cato.org/blog/trump-should-privatize-air-traffic-control