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Speech

AAAE Transatlantic Aviation Issues

Thanks very much, everyone. I appreciate that. I think Jim Elwood’s done a terrific job this afternoon framing the scope of the conference and setting us all on the right heading for the next two days.

Airport capacity, air traffic, safety, the environment. That’s quite an agenda. Forget two days. We can fill the next two weeks talking about these issues. We probably won’t see eye to eye on everything, but that’s not the point of being here. It’s to meet each other halfway, to air our differences, and at the end of the day, continue to feel as confident about where aviation’s going as where it’s been.

Where it’s been in the context of this conference goes back to about 90 years ago, almost to the day.

In 1919 two aviation pioneers broke tremendous ground. Two Brits — John Alcock and Arthur Brown — did what no one else had ever done. They were the first to fly non-stop across the Atlantic. Today, dozens and dozens of flight make that trip.

They do so because we have learned to work across time zones, cultures, and accents. Ours is a business that demands it. Safety’s at the top of the list.

We have to raise the bar higher every chance we get. And we are doing just that. We’ve been working with the EC together for several years on exchanging ramp inspection data. And we recently completed a successful demonstration of exchanging data.

The next step will be a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize the data-sharing.

I’m also pleased to announce that in a few hours, Commissioner Tajani and I are going to sign a sweeping safety agreement — sweeping because it’s a new way of doing business.

It will enhance cooperation in aircraft certification, the sharing of safety data, and oversight of maintenance repair. What’s more, the pact will eliminate duplication — the multiple bilateral agreements that are between us now into a single agreement — which translates into lower costs and greater efficiencies.

There are still some things to be worked out with this agreement before diplomatic notes are exchanged, but I am confident of our ability to do so. Together, we can solve the problems that we face.

Take delays. Even at a time when we are facing a crisis in our industry that is akin to 9/11, delays remain a big problem.

And we’re not alone. We see what’s happening in Heathrow. You and I are dealing with the same issue, which means we have to move NextGen and SESAR forward as quickly as possible.

Transforming air traffic management takes on even greater significance when you hear the numbers for total scheduled flights between here and the United States. They’re up 5.4 percent between January and November compared to the same time frame last year. They’re expected to grow in the years ahead, so we’ve got to pull in the same direction.

While the good news is that there are still healthy traffic flows between our shores, the bad news is that it is a lot more expensive to make that trip.

Airlines are reeling from the cost of fuel, and passengers are reacting in disbelief to the cost of checking luggage and increased ticket prices.

This was brought home to me just a few weeks ago when I was invited to participate in IATA’s annual general meeting. The topic of conversation in every speech, every panel, every casual conversation was around one thing — the rising cost of fuel and what it may do to our industry.

Think about that. What the cost of fuel will do to peoples’ jobs, to the global transportation systems — let alone to a simple flight between Washington and Brussels. And perhaps the most frightening part of these questions to me is that no one really knows the answers.

I came back from that meeting knowing one thing — all of us will have a part to play in helping to address the unknown. Now I don’t have all the answers. And I know that we’ll have some efforts that the FAA is undertaking in this regard in the near future, but let’s talk about what we can do today.

The environment. It’s “Topic A” everywhere you go, and that’s good. Because we welcome the opportunity to remind everyone that aviation is not the enemy here.

Worldwide, aviation represents less than three percent of total greenhouse gas emissions.

The U.S. commercial sector, between 2000 and 2006, moved 12 percent more passengers and 22 percent more freight while burning less fuel. That’s reduced our carbon output by a million tons. The industry continues to produce more fuel-efficient technologies, with the 787 and A380 being the most recent example.

All of this efficiency comes without a single government-imposed emission standard. That’s because there is no better motivator for efficiency in our industry than the price of fuel.

The Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions, AIRE, was launched last year. As most of you know, this effort is intended to provide operational efficiencies using new technologies and procedures — efficiencies that help to reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions.

Through AIRE, we have demonstrated how CDA approaches reduce emissions, enable less fuel burn, and help make airports better neighbors.

Last month, we completed initial flight demos with U.S. carriers in Miami and Atlanta. They were using enhanced navigation technology, RNAV and RNP, two of our CDA tools.

In the demos, the estimated benefits in fuel savings per arrival were in the range of 155 to 415 kilograms, or just under one percent of the fuel consumption for the entire flight.

That may not sound like a lot. But with the price of jet fuel these days, any savings are significant.

So, we plan to continue with the next phase of the demonstrations in September, with the aim of proving that the benefits are repeatable.

Also coming this September, a tailored arrival demo in Miami, and we’re looking forward to having our European partners participating in the trials as well. This NextGen capability integrates automation tools to provide data that presents a cleared trajectory path for landing.

The estimated benefits add up to anywhere from 300 to 400 dollars per arrival. That translates into CO2 savings of up to one ton for every flight. Going down the list there is WATRS Plus, announced just a few weeks ago. WATRS provides almost 40 percent more routes in U.S. controlled airspace across the Atlantic. Forty percent. These new routes are expected to get aircraft to their destinations quicker, reduce carbon emissions by some 3.9 million tons, and save between $300 million and $700 million over a 15-year period.

And we can’t leave out the airport community. To them, NextGen means better use of airport capacity. It means greater design flexibility, reduced physical footprint, and reduced separation between runways.

We’re opening three new runways in November — at Sea-Tac, Dulles, and O’Hare, because no matter how smart the technology is, concrete still matters. Later this year, we’re also putting in an end-around taxiway at Dallas/Ft. Worth in December.

Once all the construction is done, we’re looking at hundreds of thousands more operations a year, better surface management, and cleaner air.

We need to continue to focus on airport development, even while the carriers draw down capacity. Because one thing we do know is aviation is resilient, and growth will come back.

So, with all of these examples that maximize fuel efficiency and reduce emissions, let me challenge us all to roll up our sleeves and try to find solutions that don’t involve unilaterally-imposed trading schemes.

If our partnership between NextGen and SESAR and our agreement on AIRE are indication, we will set a new benchmark for the global industry by working together. It’s not a nice thing to do, it’s a critical thing to do.

And I am challenging the folks back in Washington as well. We’re at a point where the word “crisis” is the best way to characterize the unknown in our industry.

Rather than focus energies on issues where we don’t see eye-to-eye, let’s sit down and talk about some of these procedures I’ve highlighted today.

Let’s talk about how we can implement them safely and quickly. Let’s talk about new ideas that may never have been given a chance, or old ideas that were discarded “just because.” That’s the conversation we should be having, and will.

You know, a lot can happen in the span of a year. We’ve all seen that. But here what doesn’t change is our unwavering commitment to constantly improve safety, increase capacity, and manage aviation’s impact on the environment. Let’s keep it going.

Thank you.