Mr. President, I rise to discuss a core factor in America's leadership and strength in the new century: aerospace. The aerospace industry dominates the telecommunication and transportation world, while military aerospace expertise has defended the nation and served as the eyes and ears of our forces overseas.
Congress established an Aerospace Commission last year to study the state of the American aerospace industry in the global economy and national security and to assess the importance of the domestic aerospace industry for the future security of the nation. It is appropriate that the Aerospace Commission released its report on the future of the aerospace industry this Monday during the final debate on homeland security, an area only beginning to appreciate what aerospace can offer.
The Aerospace Commission reviewed the range of military, civil, and commercial aspects of aviation and space and studied the key components of the aerospace community – government, industry, labor, and academia. The Commission benefited from the broad range of expertise and experience among its Commissioners, including former Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, former Defense Undersecretary John Hamre, and Director of the Hayden Planetarium Dr. Neil Tyson.
The Commission offered several recommendations to correct the weakening of the aerospace sector. Each recommendation addressed a different critical factor that is showing signs of fatigue. I would like to discuss the Commission's recommendations relating to the aerospace workforce and education.
The aerospace industry, like many of our high-tech sectors, has a workforce crisis. According to the Commission report, our nation has lost over 600,000 scientific and technical aerospace jobs in the past 13 years. These job losses, first due to reduced spending in defense, then due to acquisitions and mergers of aerospace companies, and later to foreign competition in the commercial aerospace market, represent a significant loss of skill and expertise. Many of the talented people who remain are approaching retirement. How will industry and the government restore the aerospace workforce and make aerospace a field that attracts new and qualified talent? Unfortunately, even the Aerospace Commission could not arrive at any short-term solutions to this problem. The solution will only come from the government's and the private sector's long-term attention and commitment. The Commission stressed that a long-term solution must begin with improved math and science education across the entire education range, from kindergarten to graduate school. Many of the Commission's recommendations in this regard mirror my own work on science and math education and the federal workforce. The Commission found that scholarship and internship programs to encourage more students to study and work in math, science, and engineering are vital if the aerospace community is to have a pool of scientifically and technologically trained applicants.
The Commission stressed that Congress needs to renew its focus on national aerospace needs and priorities. Indeed, some of the Commission's recommendations are unconventional and will require the Senate's attention and deliberation to determine if they are the best solution. The Commission's nine recommendations were:
1. Given the real and evolving challenges that confront our nation, government must commit to increased and sustained investment and must facilitate private investment in the national aerospace sector. The Commission recommends that the U.S. pioneer new frontiers in aerospace technology, commerce and exploration.
2. The Commission concludes that superior mobility afforded by air transportation is a huge national asset and competitive advantage for the U.S. The Commission recommends transforming the U.S. air transportation system as a national priority. Specifically, the Commission recommends rapid deployment of a new, highly automated air traffic management system that is robust enough to efficiently, safely, and securely accommodate an evolving variety and growing number of aerospace vehicles and civil and miliary operations.
3. The Commission concludes that the nation will have to be a space-faring nation in order to be the global leader in the 21st century and that America must exploit and explore space to assure national security, economic benefit, and scientific discovery. The Commission recommends that the U.S. create a space imperative and a partnership between NASA, DOD, and industry to develop aerospace technologies, especially in the areas of propulsion and power.
4. The Commission concludes that aerospace capabilities and the supporting defense industrial base are fundamental to U.S. economic and national security. The Commission recommends that the nation adopt a policy that invigorates and sustains the aerospace industrial base. Specifically, the Commission recommends new procurement policies to include prototyping and spiral development to allow the continuous exercise of design and production skills; removing barriers to defense procurement of commercial products and services; and stable funding for core capabilities.
5. The Commission concludes that the government needs to create an environment that fosters innovation in the U.S. aerospace industry. The Commission recommends that the federal government establish a national aerospace policy and promote aerospace by creating a government-wide management structure. This would include a White House policy coordinating council, and aerospace management office in OMB, and a joint committee in Congress.
6. The Commission concludes that U.S. aerospace companies must have access to global consumers, suppliers, and partners in order to achieve economies of scale in production needed to integrate that technology into their products and services. The Commission recommends that U.S. and multilateral regulations and policies be reformed to enable the movement of products and capital across international borders on a fully-competitive basis, and establish a level playing field for U.S. industry in the global market place. This would include substantial overhaul of U.S. export control regulation and efforts by the U.S. government to neutralize foreign government market intervention in areas such as subsidies, tax policy, export financing and standards.
7. The Commission recommends a new business model for the aerospace sector, designed to promote a healthy and growing U.S. aerospace industry. This model is driven by increased and sustained government investment and the adoption of innovative government and industry policies that stimulate the flow of capital into new and established public and private companies.
8. The Commission recommends the nation immediately reverse the decline in, and promote the growth of, a scientifically and technologically trained U.S. aerospace workforce. This would include efforts by the administration and Congress to create an interagency task force that develops a national strategy on the aerospace workforce to attract public attention to the importance and opportunities within the aerospace industry; establish lifelong learning as key elements of education reform; and make long-term investment in education and training with major emphasis in math and science.
9. The Commission concludes that government policies must be proactive and sustain public investments in long-term research and RDT&E infrastructure to get new breakthroughs in aerospace capabilities. The Commission recommends that the federal government significantly increase its investment in basic aerospace research, which enhances U.S. national security, enables breakthrough capabilities, and fosters an efficient, secure, and safe aerospace transportation system.
I was one of the first members of the House Space Caucus and understand the importance aerospace plays in our economy, security, and education. The Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on International Security, Proliferation, and Federal Services, which I chair, released a report last year detailing how federal civilian agencies use data collected by satellites and planes to carry out their missions. My own state of Hawaii is at the forefront of using aerospace technology and research to help Hawaii's fragile ecosystem and agriculture.
I hope that my colleagues will take note of the information and recommendations in the Aerospace Commission report so that we can work together to sustain and strengthen our aerospace community. To quote the report, "It is imperative that the U.S. aerospace industry remains healthy to preserve the balance of our leadership today and ensure our continued leadership tomorrow."
