The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced it will not allow aircraft using slots purchased as the result of the Department of Transportation’s market-based solutions to use its airports either to take off or land or to use other airport facilities. Related Story The Air Transport Association of America (ATA) is supporting PANYNJ efforts to deter DOT to auction rights to conduct additional flight operations at its airports.
“ATA agrees with the Port Authority’s assessment that the DOT’s proposed auction rules are unwise and unlawful,” said ATA President and CEO James C. May. “We share the Port Authority’s concerns with the DOT’s slot auction proposal and with its threat to add still more congestion to the region. We are carefully reviewing the Port Authority’s proposed notice. Instead of providing the infrastructure that we all need, the DOT is trying to hide its failure behind an economics experiment to ration air service. Sadly, this illegal scheme will do nothing to reduce air traffic congestion or to meet the region’s and the nation’s need for air transportation.”
May noted that virtually the entire membership of the secretary’s own appointed aviation rulemaking committee on New York delays, which offered dozens of ideas to improve capacity, soundly rejected the idea of auctions. “DOT has ignored the majority of those capacity enhancements and instead misdirected its efforts on this scheme to drive up the cost of air transportation. That is just wrong and legally indefensible,” said May. “Rather than distracting from [modernizing the system] with this economics experiment, it is time for action.”