ATA Airlines Concur With Findings

Washington, March 12, 2002-Today, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released its aerospace forecasts for fiscal years 2002 to 2013. Working in an unprecedented environment of uncertainty, FAA has reasonably projected a return to “normal” rates of growth in demand beginning in fiscal year 2004, a conclusion shared by the Air Transport Association (ATA), the leading trade association representing America`s major airlines. From that year forward, FAA is projecting traffic to grow at an average annual rate of 4.0 percent.

Reacting to the FAA forecast, ATA President Carol Hallett remarked, “U.S. airlines look forward to a return to the normal growth rates projected by FAA. There will be many challenges to overcome in the process, but working together with our employees, FAA and the Transportation Security Administration, it can be done.”

The airlines` ability to meet projected demand will be challenged by four major factors: The return of significant delays related to insufficient airport and airway infrastructure, specifically a shortage of capacity, including runways, and less-than-optimal air traffic control technology / Rising labor costs that will impose upward pressure on ticket prices / The “hassle factor” associated with more stringent security measures that will likely have a disproportionate impact on short-haul travel / A continued increase in the scope and magnitude of federal and foreign ticket taxes and fees.

Hallett added, “ATA and its airline members will continue to work with all stakeholders to meet FAA projections. We will redouble our efforts to mitigate the constraints to accommodating passenger and cargo demand as efficiently as possible. As FAA recognizes, air transport has been and will remain a high-growth industry. We must do everything possible now to be ready for a resurgence in demand.”

The Air Transport Association of America, Inc. is the trade association for leading U.S. airlines. ATA members transport over 95 percent of all the passenger and cargo traffic in the United States.

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