December 2024
And just where does the Aviation and Airport Trust Fund get its money? Taxpayers. These “groups” are nothing more than K-street Lobbies, Swamp Dwellers, who aren’t the least bit interested in less spending on aviation but more gravy train. Privatization is also not the answer unless one starts from a clean sheet and government stays out of the way. Why not charge user fees, provided all other forms of taxation on aviation ends. Including the very high fees that double the cost of an airline ticket. As long as most airports are owned by government, I see no chance for lowering costs to GA or airline travellers. No wonder that there is a strong migration of Sport Aviation away from government airports and onto private airfields. And renewed interest in ultralights that are nearly 100% free of government meddling. That is where I predict we will see real innovation in the coming years.
“Liberty is always freedom from the government.” Ludwig von Mises
2 replies
December 2024
It’s actually a “user fee”. From the FAA’s website, “The Trust Fund provides the primary source of funding for FAA and receives revenues principally from a variety of excise taxes paid by users of the National Airspace System. The excise taxes are imposed on domestic passenger tickets, domestic flight segments, and international passenger arrivals and departures, and on purchases of air travel miles for frequent flyer and similar programs. In addition, taxes are imposed on air cargo waybills and aviation fuel purchases”.
So this money should go to only aviation and not get cominigled with the general funds.
I’m not sure how you expect user fees to not add a lot to airline ticket prices. The airlines are the biggest user of ATC and airport services, so they’re going to pay the most into the system. But you can bet they aren’t going to eat those costs themselves; they’re going to pass those costs directly onto their passengers (who are really the true “users” of the system).
December 2024
Fertile ground for a review of possible improvements. If attention is also paid to the woefully understaffed & sclerotic AeroMedical Division we’ll all be better served.
December 2024
December 2024
▶ RtrdCtrl
They’re listed in the link in the article
December 2024
▶ RtrdCtrl
A consortium of 33, not 30.
“The undersigned organizations, representing our nation’s aviation and aerospace sector, are writing to express our continued support for ensuring America has a safe, resilient, and modernized air traffic control (ATC) system.”
- Aeronautical Repair Station Association
- Aerospace Industries Association
- Air Line Pilots Association, International
- Air Traffic Control Association
- Aircraft Electronics Association
- Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association
- Airlines for America
- Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
- Allied Pilots Association
- American Association of Airport Executives
- Association of Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International
- Aviation Technical Education Council
- Cargo Airline Association
- Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations
- Experimental Aircraft Association Inc.
- General Aviation Manufacturers Association
- Global Business Travel Association
- International Air Transport Association
- International Council of Air Shows
- National Air Carrier Association
- National Air Traffic Controllers Association
- National Air Transportation Association
- National Agricultural Aviation Association
- National Association of State Aviation Officials
- National Business Aviation Association
- NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots
- Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, AFLCIO
- Regional Airline Association
- Southwest Airlines Pilot Association
- Travelers United
- U.S. Travel Association
- Vertical Aviation International
- Vertical Flight Society
December 2024
All well and good if they work together with DOGE and not against it.
December 2024
▶ kent.misegades
User pay should be considered.
But what are the fees you say double cost of airline ticket? I thought they were for operating the airports.
(BTW, you’d have to explain ‘double’ to me if I wanted to spend the time, I’ll just assume math failure.)
In general, transition needs to be planned in steps, education of public part of that. Years ago I encountered a person running a small training operation for flying what I think were called ultralights in Canada. Nice person it seemed but in a short conversation i discovered she knew nothing about maintenance despite her type of machine falling out of the air because of structural problems such as wear of single lug holding wing load cables to fuselage.