    [Senate Hearing 119-318]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                                           S. Hrg. 119-318

                     FLYING ON EMPTY: HOW SHUTDOWNS THREATEN
                       AIR SAFETY, TRAVEL, AND THE ECONOMY

    =======================================================================

                                    HEARING

                                   before the

                SUBCOMMITTEE ON AVIATION, SPACE, AND INNOVATION

                                     of the

                             COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
                          SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
                              UNITED STATES SENATE

                        ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS

                                 FIRST SESSION

                                   __________

                               NOVEMBER 19, 2025

                                   __________

        Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
                                 Transportation

                     [GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                    Available online: http://www.govinfo.gov

                                   ______

                     U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

    62-988 PDF                WASHINGTON : 2026

           SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION

                        ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS

                                 FIRST SESSION

                           TED CRUZ, Texas, Chairman

    JOHN THUNE, South Dakota             MARIA CANTWELL, Washington,
    ROGER WICKER, Mississippi                Ranking
    DEB FISCHER, Nebraska                AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota
    JERRY MORAN, Kansas                  BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii
    DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska                 EDWARD MARKEY, Massachusetts
    MARSHA BLACKBURN, Tennessee          GARY PETERS, Michigan
    TODD YOUNG, Indiana                  TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin
    TED BUDD, North Carolina             TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois
    ERIC SCHMITT, Missouri               JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
    JOHN CURTIS, Utah                    BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico
    BERNIE MORENO, Ohio                  JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado
    TIM SHEEHY, Montana                  JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania
    SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia  ANDY KIM, New Jersey
    CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming              LISA BLUNT ROCHESTER, Delaware

                     Brad Grantz, Republican Staff Director
               Nicole Christus, Republican Deputy Staff Director
                       Lila Harper Helms, Staff Director
                     Melissa Porter, Deputy Staff Director

                                     ------

                SUBCOMMITTEE ON AVIATION, SPACE, AND INNOVATION

    JERRY MORAN, Kansas, Chairman        TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois, Ranking
    JOHN THUNE, South Dakota             JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
    TED BUDD, North Carolina             JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado
    ERIC SCHMITT, Missouri               JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania
    TIM SHEEHY, Montana                  ANDY KIM, New Jersey
    SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia

                                C O N T E N T S

                                  ----------
                                                                       Page
    Hearing held on November 19, 2025................................     1
    Statement of Senator Moran.......................................     1
        Statement from the Modern Skies Coalition....................    67
        Prepared statement from Ed Bolen, President and CEO, National
          Business Aviation Association..............................    69
        Letter dated November 19, 2025 to Hon. Ted Cruz, Hon. Maria
          Cantwell, Hon. Jerry Moran and Hon. Tammy Duckworth from
          Jeff Shockey, Executive Vice President, Government
          Operations, Global Public Policy & Corporate Strategy, The
          Boeing Company.............................................    71
        Letter dated November 18, 2025 to Hon. Jerry Moran and Hon.
          Tammy Duckworth from Zane Kerby, President and CEO,
          American Society of Travel Advisors........................    72
    Statement of Senator Duckworth...................................     2
        Statement from April Barrett, President, Service Employees
          International Union........................................    45
        Letter dated September 24, 2025 to Hon. Jerry Moran, Hon.
          Roger Marshall, Hon. Tracey Mann, Hon. Derek Schmidt, Hon.
          Sharice Davids, and Hon. Ron Estes from Kansas Healthcare
          Providers..................................................    46
        Urban Institute and Commonwealth Fund Health Policy Brief
          dated September 2025 entitled, ``4.8 Million People Will
          Lose Coverage in 2026 if Enhanced Premium Tax Credits
          Expire'' by Matthew Buettgens, Michael Simpson, Jason
          Levitis, Fernando Hernandez-Lepe, and Jessica Banthin......    49
    Statement of Senator Kim.........................................    28
    Statement of Senator Capito......................................    30
    Statement of Senator Sheehy......................................    33
    Statement of Senator Cantwell....................................    34

                                   Witnesses

    Nick Daniels, President, National Air Traffic Controllers
      Association, AFL-CIO...........................................     4
        Prepared statement...........................................     6
    Governor Christopher T. Sununu, President and Chief Executive
      Officer (CEO), Airlines for America............................    10
        Prepared statement...........................................    12
    James A. Viola, President and Chief Executive Officer, General
      Aviation Manufacturers Association.............................    17
        Prepared statement...........................................    18
    Eileen Spickler, Advocate........................................    23
        Prepared statement...........................................    24

                                    Appendix

    Response to written questions submitted by Hon. Jacky Rosen to:
        Nick Daniels.................................................    75
        Govenor Christopher T. Sununu................................    76
        James A. Viola...............................................    80

                     FLYING ON EMPTY: HOW SHUTDOWNS THREATEN
                       AIR SAFETY, TRAVEL, AND THE ECONOMY

                                  ----------

                          WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2025

                                   U.S. Senate,
       Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation,
            Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
                                                        Washington, DC.
        The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:36 p.m., in
    room SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Jerry Moran,
    Chairman of the Subcommittee, presiding.
        Present: Senators Moran [presiding], Sheehy, Capito,
    Duckworth, Cantwell, and Kim.

                OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JERRY MORAN,
                        U.S. SENATOR FROM KANSAS

        Senator Moran. I'll wait a few minutes to call the meeting
    to order, and we're waiting on, particularly, Senator
    Duckworth, and there's a vote going on in the House. I've cast
    my vote, and I assume that's what she's doing now, but we'll
    begin shortly.
        [Pause.]
        Senator Moran. The Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and
    Innovation will come to order. I'm pleased to be here, and I
    thank our witnesses for joining us this afternoon for what I
    hope is a valuable discussion and expect to be a valuable
    discussion.
        We convened this hearing because of the importance of the
    aviation and travel industry, a vital component of our Nation's
    economy, and trying to find ways to make certain that that
    industry is stable, including in difficult times like a
    government shutdown. That stability is severely inhibited by
    the critical functions that the Federal Aviation
    Administration, when they're suspended or when they're
    interrupted and when Congress fails to act, the FAA and the
    aviation industry suffer. I'm pleased that the cancellations
    and delays plaguing our flights, airlines, and airports are
    easing. One of the witnesses and I were on a flight that was
    delayed but only for mechanical reasons this week, which has
    been different than it was previously. Our air traffic
    controllers are reporting to work, and other essential
    activities at the FAA are back underway.
        Thanksgiving, however, is just a few days away, and while
    we anticipate the airlines will be fully or nearly fully
    recovered, come next week, lingering strain and fatigue on the
    system perhaps is to be expected. Roughly 31 million passengers
    are expected to fly next week for the holiday, but there may be
    lingering impacts on the system because of the shutdown. I look
    forward to the former Governor, Governor Sununu, speaking to us
    this afternoon, hopefully providing us with a roadmap as to
    what Americans flying next week will expect from the airlines.
    Last week, the U.S. Travel Association noted that more than $6
    billion were lost in travel spending because of the inability
    to fly, and we cannot afford them. Sure, the airlines and
    others, the people who work in the airports and in aviation,
    cannot further afford the instability and chaos. Our recent
    inaction in Washington has undoubtedly deterred young people
    from pursuing careers as air traffic controllers or other
    aviation professionals, a workforce we must prioritize.
        I hope that consideration of the Fiscal Year 2026 THUD, the
    transportation appropriation bill, will begin in the Senate
    this week. That is the plan, and we're working to try to
    accomplish that, and will lay a groundwork for Congress to
    fully fund the Department of Transportation and the FAA with
    the resources it needs. The Senate appropriators passed the
    THUD bill in July by a vote of 27 to 1, very bipartisan
    demonstration there. Within this bill, we provided the
    Department of Transportation nearly $26 billion and the FAA
    nearly $20 billion between their operations and facility and
    equipment accounts, which fund air traffic control and
    modernization activities. This funding is, in part, there to
    allow Secretary Duffy and Administrator Bedford to modernize
    our national airspace system after decades of insufficient
    budget requests that merely sustained an outdated system.
        This issue received particular attention by me on January
    29 when the tragic circumstances occurred involving a flight
    from Wichita, Kansas to DCA occurred. It was a moment that this
    Congress, this subcommittee, and the administration all
    gathered around the idea of improving the safety of our
    airways. We must do our part to enable the FAA and the
    Department of Transportation to make certain that Americans
    remain the--that America remains the standard for aviation and
    air safety.
        The sole integrator of the brand new air traffic control
    system is set to be announced soon and will fully fund the
    Department of Transportation for Fiscal Year 2026 as a
    necessary step to modernizing our airspace. We'll hear from
    industry about ways to potentially insulate the FAA from future
    government shutdowns. I introduced legislation in many
    Congresses that allow for the continuation of essential FAA
    activities in the event of future shutdowns. By examining the
    delays, the cancellations, the staffing triggers, and
    certification interruptions, we're laying the groundwork to
    better support an industry that is critical to our country.
        Again, I thank all of our witnesses for being here and I
    look forward to this discussion, and I recognize the Ranking
    Member of the Committee, Senator Duckworth.

                  STATEMENT OF HON. TAMMY DUCKWORTH,
                       U.S. SENATOR FROM ILLINOIS

        Senator Duckworth. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman,
    today's hearing injects cheap, partisan politics into a
    subcommittee that, up until this point, had rightly prided
    itself on working in a bipartisan manner, whether you or I
    wielded the gavel. Using this subcommittee to mount a partisan
    attack on Senate Democrats under the guise of exploring a
    question that everyone already knows the answer to--are
    shutdowns bad for aviation safety--is an unfortunate departure
    from our past practice. Yes, government shutdowns are bad.
    Shutdowns are painful for all members of the career civil
    service that Donald Trump has gleefully attacked and
    traumatized since the first day of his chaotic second term in
    office. Shutdowns harm Americans that rely on their government
    for critical support and services, like the hungry kids that
    Trump refused to feed, despite sitting on a $6 billion SNAP
    contingency fund. That's why Democrats voted to prevent a
    shutdown and voted repeatedly to reopen the government.
        Look, it's good that Senate Republicans finally agree with
    us that shutdowns are bad. I only wish there had been
    bipartisan agreement that millions of Americans losing
    healthcare coverage is also bad. Had Donald Trump and my
    Republican colleagues merely agreed with us on that principle,
    there would never have been a government shutdown in the first
    place, period. The sad irony is that failure to extend middle-
    class tax relief will hit red states the most, and the damage
    won't be merely disruptive and damaging. It will be
    catastrophic for Americans already struggling to get by. If
    Republicans fail to cleanly extend the ACA tax credits, the
    uninsured rate in Kansas will explode by 32 percent in 2026,
    and in Texas, the threat is even worse with the Texas uninsured
    rate projected to skyrocket by 39 percent. Thirty-nine percent.
        Now, when it comes to championing our chronically
    overworked at understaffed ATC workforce, I will take a
    backseat to nobody on this committee. I will not be lectured--I
    will not be lectured by a senator who professes to love our
    controllers only when it's politically convenient, but when
    behind closed doors away from cameras, that Cancun-loving
    Senator not only failed to advocate for a max hiring
    requirement during FAA reauthorization negotiations, he
    actually opposed it. Let's make it clear: the guy that you
    think loves air traffic controllers opposed max hiring
    requirements for air traffic controllers during FAA
    reauthorization.
        So, if Senate Republicans truly cared about controllers
    beyond using them as partisan political pawns, they would've
    done what they've done numerous times before when they truly
    care about something: change the rules. Yet, not only did
    Senate Republicans fail to change the rules or allow a simple
    majority to reopen the government, they blocked numerous
    Democratic bills from passing that would've paid civil servants
    during the shutdown. They even failed to force a vote on
    Chairman Cruz's bill to pay controllers during that shutdown.
    He had a bill to pay you.
        I also don't want to hear any BS about Donald Trump caring
    about air traffic controllers. If Trump cared about controllers
    being paid, he would've paid them. Does anyone seriously think
    that Donald Trump needs congressional permission to raid the
    Airport and Airway Trust Fund to keep the FAA operating during
    a shutdown? Please. He didn't ask for permission to raid the
    DOD R&D accounts to ensure that the military received paychecks
    during a shutdown. I'm glad they did, but he paid them because
    he wanted to. He didn't pay you because he didn't want to pay
    you. When Trump cares about something, like building a
    ballroom, building out Argentina, denying SNAP benefits for
    low-income Americans, he just does it. If he wanted to pay air
    traffic controllers, he would've paid you, consequences, laws,
    and norms be damned as far as he's concerned. Trump's failure
    to simply cut paychecks for air traffic controllers confirms
    what should have already been obvious: Donald Trump doesn't
    give a damn about the ATC workforce.
        Look, the shutdown is over, but for a half million
    Illinoisans, millions of Texans, and over 200,000 Kansans, the
    threat of a devastating healthcare crisis looms large. This
    includes Americans like our witness here today, Mrs. Eileen
    Spickler of Ottawa, Kansas. Eileen's husband, Barry, may be
    forced to forego health insurance because they simply can't
    afford to lose $1,100 in tax relief that enables them to afford
    their monthly premiums. Eileen and Barry are not unique.
    They're among the 24 million Americans who are desperate for
    Republicans to extend enhanced premium tax credits. This should
    be easy. We just need to strike a word or two or simply replace
    numbers in two places in the Tax Code. That's it. If Speaker
    Johnson had the courage to bring it to a vote, there are at
    least 229 votes in the House to pass the bipartisan Premium Tax
    Credit Extension Act, a Republican-authored bill that would
    cleanly extend the ACA's enhanced premium tax credits.
        I truly hope Senate Republicans will see the light and
    realize delivering tax relief that makes healthcare affordable
    for middle-class Americans can be and indeed should be a
    commonsense affordability policy that unites Republicans and
    Democrats alike, and let's stop turning this committee into
    partisan sham attacks on one another and get down to the real
    work of keeping America's flying public safe. I yield back.
        Senator Moran. I'd like to introduce our witnesses for
    today. Our first witness is Nick Daniels, the President of the
    National Air Traffic Control Association. In his role, Mr.
    Daniels advocates for the dedicated air traffic controllers who
    oversee the--and safeguard our national airspace. Prior to his
    role, he served as an air traffic controller and as a former
    U.S. Marine. Our second witness is Chris Sununu, the President
    and CEO of Airlines for America, which represents our country's
    major carriers and cargo companies. Mr. Sununu is the former
    Governor of New Hampshire and the longest-serving Republican
    Governor in nearly a century. I believe it's your first
    appearance before a committee, and we welcome you. Our third
    witness, James Viola, and I believe this is a maiden appearance
    for you, Mr. Viola, is President and CEO of the General
    Aviation Manufacturers Association. In his role, Mr. Viola
    represents the interests of over 140 airframe, avionic engine,
    and component manufacturers for the aviation industry. And our
    final witness is Mrs. Eileen Spickler, a resident of Ottawa,
    Kansas. Mrs. Spickler, a special welcome to you.
        I now recognize Mr. Daniels for his opening statement.

      STATEMENT OF NICK DANIELS, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL AIR TRAFFIC
                    CONTROLLERS ASSOCIATION, AFL-CIO

        Mr. Daniels. Thank you very much. Chairman Moran, Ranking
    Member Duckworth, other members of the Subcommittee, thank you
    for the opportunity to testify before you today on the effects
    of the 43-day Federal Government shutdown, the longest in
    American history. Every day that the shutdown continued, the
    margins of safety that we and the flying public depend on were
    reduced in our Nation's airspace system.
        I am proud to have earned the title of air traffic
    controller with 22 years of experience at both an FAA tower and
    an en route facility, as well as 5 years as an air traffic
    controller in the United States Marine Corps. Unfortunately,
    before the shutdown ended, air traffic controllers and other
    aviation safety professionals that NACA represents received one
    partial paycheck and two zero-dollar paychecks, despite working
    full time and, in many cases, mandatory overtime: seven weeks
    of work with no certainty of when we would be paid again. That
    said, controllers showed up and stepped up for the American
    flying public and for each other. No American should ever be
    forced to work without a paycheck, and failing to pay the
    workforce that keeps our skies safe is not acceptable and not
    sustainable.
        Throughout the shutdown, air traffic controllers ensured
    that the safety of nearly 3 million passengers a day on more
    than 45,000 flights a day arrived at their destinations, and
    controllers did this while operating with an overall shortage
    of 3,800 fully certified controllers that the system requires.
    Now, the unfortunate reality is this is not new. NACA has been
    advocating for increased controller staffing for more than a
    decade. NACA thanks this committee for its work on--to address
    the shortage in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024. It not
    only updated the FAA's controller staffing targets, it also
    requires the FAA to hire the maximum number of controller
    trainees for five years and deploy tower simulator systems at
    every FAA tower to improve training and reduce training times.
    This committee must continue its oversight role to ensure that
    the requirements it established come to fruition, but the
    effects of the shutdown had real consequences for hardworking,
    patriotic American workers.
        Two weeks ago, we delivered over 1,600 handwritten letters
    from air traffic controllers to congressional offices
    expressing the hardships that they were experiencing. We heard
    from an air traffic controller that is training at our new
    facility. Her husband is a 20-year, five-time combat veteran
    who had 45 documented explosions and seven direct hits. He
    returned from Iraq and Afghanistan with a 100-percent permanent
    and total service-related disability. Consequently, she is the
    single source of income for her family. Their son just
    graduated an aviation school, but they couldn't afford to
    attend the graduation. In addition to training at her new
    facility, she sold plasma twice, started driving for DoorDash,
    and toward the end of the shutdown, she had to take a part-time
    job on her regularly scheduled days off. We heard from recent
    graduates of the Oklahoma City Air Traffic Controller Training
    in Oklahoma where they were resigning because they could not
    begin this challenging new career without a paycheck. We've
    heard from air traffic controllers who were struggling to find
    ways to pay for gas to get to and from work, while others
    struggled to pay for childcare so they could go to work.
        Air traffic control is one of the most mentally demanding
    and high-consequence professions in the world. Every moment we
    are at work, it requires everything we have--focus, judgment,
    decisiveness, perfect decisionmaking--thousands of times a
    shift, and what hangs in the balance is our responsibility to
    safety in order to prevent tragedy. Air traffic controllers
    must show up day in and day out, fully prepared to handle the
    stress, pressure, and the weight of our responsibility to the
    American flying public and their safety. And this is why NACA
    does support Chairman Moran's Aviation Funding Stability Act
    that would ensure the FAA would be able to pay employees and
    perform all of its functions in the event of a future shutdown.
    We also support the passage of any other legislation that would
    ensure this Nation's air traffic controllers and other aviation
    safety professionals are paid during any future shutdown,
    including Chairman Cruz's ``Keep America Flying Act of 2026''.
        Air traffic controllers and other aviation safety
    professionals are this country's patriots, dedicated to the
    safety of the flying public, and they should never be subjected
    to these challenges that distract them from their critical
    safety responsibilities. They are real people, they are real
    Americans, and they were facing very real problems. They
    deserve better, and I'll be happy to take your questions.
        [The prepared statement of Mr. Daniels follows:]

      Prepared Statement of Nick Daniels, President, National Air Traffic
                        Controllers Association, AFL-CIO
        Thank you for the opportunity to testify on behalf of the National
    Air Traffic Controllers Association, AFL-CIO (NATCA) at today's hearing
    titled ``Flying on Empty: How Shutdowns Threaten Air Safety, Travel,
    and the Economy.''
        NATCA is the exclusive representative for nearly 20,000 dedicated
    American workers, including the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA)
    air traffic controllers, traffic management coordinators and
    specialists, flight service station air traffic controllers, staff
    support specialists, engineers and architects, and other aviation
    safety professionals, as well as Department of Defense (DOD) and
    Federal Contract Tower (FCT) air traffic controllers.
        NATCA takes great pride in its role as an aviation safety
    organization that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with government and
    industry stakeholders to ensure that the National Airspace System (NAS)
    remains the safest and most efficient in the world. The air traffic
    controllers and other aviation safety professionals NATCA represents
    are vital to the U.S. economy, ensuring the safe and efficient movement
    of passengers and cargo within the National Airspace System (NAS).
        The NAS moves approximately 45,000 flights, 3 million passengers,
    and more than 59,000 tons of cargo every day across more than 29
    million square miles of airspace. Although it remains the safest, most
    efficient, and most complex aviation system in the world, NATCA always
    strives to bolster safety, mitigate risk, and improve efficiency.
        NATCA grieves for the families, friends, and communities that have
    been devastated by the aviation accident on January 29 at Washington
    National Airport (DCA), as well as the UPS cargo plane that crashed
    just after takeoff on November 4 from Louisville Muhammad Ali
    International Airport (SDF). Although NATCA does not comment on ongoing
    National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigations, these
    tragedies highlight the critical and high-consequence nature of air
    travel. NATCA remains steadfast in our commitment to work with all
    Federal agencies investigating these accidents to ensure we can
    identify the root causes.
        NATCA's testimony today will focus on (1) the negative effects of
    government shutdowns, (2) the persistent challenges with controller
    staffing and funding for modernization programs that predate the most
    recent shutdown, and (3) the legislative solutions that would help
    eliminate future shutdown risks for the NAS and its frontline
    workforce.
    I. Negative Effects of Government Shutdowns
        NATCA shares in this Committee's serious concerns about the risks
    inherent in a government shutdown and the compounding negative effects
    a shutdown has on aviation safety and the U.S. economy. Government
    shutdowns--of any length--are also incredibly stressful and distracting
    for the nearly 20,000 air traffic controllers and other aviation safety
    professionals NATCA represents, the vast majority of whom work without
    pay during a shutdown. This is not acceptable and not sustainable.
        Nevertheless, during the recent 43-day shutdown, controllers
    continued to show up and step up for the American flying public and
    each other, deftly performing their safety-critical functions at the
    highest level despite operating 3,800 fully certified controllers short
    of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) staffing target.
        Although NATCA is thankful that Congress reached an agreement last
    week to end the shutdown, the current continuing resolution (CR)
    funding the Department of Transportation and other departments and
    agencies expires on January 31, 2026. This means we could be facing
    another government shutdown less than three months since controllers
    and other excepted aviation safety professionals were required to work
    full time without pay, including mandatory overtime in many cases. It
    would be incredibly unfair to ask these hard-working, patriotic
    American air traffic controllers and their families to prepare for or
    endure another protracted shutdown. We cannot continue to ask air
    traffic controllers and their families to bear the burden of policy
    disagreements in Congress.
    A. Shutdowns Historically Harm Controller Staffing and Delay the
            Development, Testing, and Implementation of Critical
            Modernization and Safety Programs
        Although it is difficult to predict what new challenges may arise
    during a shutdown, NATCA is extremely grateful to Department of
    Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for keeping the FAA's controller
    hiring and training pipeline open, as well as his commitment to
    ensuring critical modernization and safety programs were not negatively
    affected during the shutdown.
        In fact, for the first time ever, Secretary Duffy directed the FAA
    to continue hiring and training controller candidates at the FAA's
    Academy in Oklahoma City during the shutdown, thereby ensuring
    controller staffing would not be as negatively affected unlike previous
    shutdowns. From the beginning, NATCA has also strongly supported
    Secretary Duffy's plan to supercharge the hiring of controller
    trainees, bringing in the best and brightest controller candidates.
        The controller workforce has been understaffed for more than a
    decade, resulting in mandatory overtime, including regular 10-hour days
    and six-day weeks. Last year, controllers at 40 percent of FAA
    facilities worked six days a week at least once per month. Several
    facilities require six-day workweeks every week. In addition, we may
    not know for months or years the negative effects of shutdowns on
    recruitment and retention. The FAA and NATCA are acutely aware of these
    thin staffing margins and the compounding effects they have on
    controller stress and fatigue.
        Similarly, Secretary Duffy directed the FAA to continue supporting
    modernization, safety, and infrastructure programs through the
    shutdown. Thanks to his leadership, NATCA subject matter experts
    continued to participate in testing, development, and deployment
    activities. This was critical because any disruption would have
    severely hindered Secretary Duffy's critical initiative to modernize
    the FAA's physical and technological infrastructure, so that the U.S.
    continues to be the gold standard for global aviation. NATCA strongly
    supports this initiative, and controllers play a critical role in the
    development, testing, training, and implementation of new modernization
    and safety programs. We also thank Congress for its downpayment to
    modernize the air traffic control system. We look forward to working
    with you to secure the remaining funding.
    B. This Shutdown Pushed the System and Its Workforce to the Brink
        During the 43-day government shutdown, controllers and other
    aviation safety professionals received one partial paycheck and then
    missed two consecutive full paychecks. Asking these dedicated,
    patriotic American workers to survive working full time for more than a
    month without pay is simply not sustainable. That situation creates
    substantial distractions for individuals who are already engaged in
    extremely stressful work. The financial and mental strain increase
    risks within the NAS, making the system less safe with each passing day
    of a shutdown.
        As a result, NATCA advocates were tireless in their pursuit and
    support of all possible solutions. NATCA consistently said that it
    would support any measure that would end the shutdown and pay air
    traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals, including
    a clean CR. NATCA also strongly supported other bills that would have
    paid air traffic controllers during the shutdown.
        Another alternative that NATCA continues to strongly support is
    Chairman Moran's bill, S. 1045, the Aviation Funding Stability Act of
    2025, which would provide continuing appropriations for the FAA out of
    the Airport and Airways Trust Fund in the event of a shutdown. Over the
    years, NATCA has supported previous versions of this bill and currently
    also supports substantially similar bills in the House of
    Representatives introduced by Rep. Aaron Bean (FL-04), H.R. 5455, and
    Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09) and Rep. Andre Carson (IN-07), H.R. 5451.
        With the recent shutdown in the past, but with another funding
    deadline looming in January, NATCA has turned its attention to
    supporting, advocating for, and passing Chairman Moran's bill, the
    Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2025. Shutdowns create real problems
    for real American workers, but the Chairman's bill solves many of those
    problems in a practical and sustainable way.
        If it were to pass, the Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2025
    would ensure that the FAA could operate despite a government-wide
    shutdown, meaning that controllers would not be forced to make
    difficult practical and financial choices as a result of not being paid
    such as how to pay for housing/rent, gas, food, and/or childcare
    services. Thus, these controllers and other aviation safety
    professionals would be able to remain completely focused on their
    safety-critical jobs, instead of worrying about paying the bills.
    II. Persistent Challenges Remain That Predated Shutdown
        As we mentioned earlier, controller staffing and modernization
    funding challenges were two critical issues that predated the 43-day
    government shutdown. That is why NATCA continues to strongly support
    Secretary Duffy's initiatives to supercharge controller hiring and
    training and modernize the FAA's physical and technological
    infrastructure to support the NAS of the future.
    A. Controller Staffing Remains Near a 30-Year Low and Had a
            Disproportionate
            Effect on System Capacity During the Shutdown
        The controller workforce has been understaffed for more than a
    decade, resulting in mandatory overtime, including regular 10-hour days
    and six-day weeks. Last year, controllers at 40 percent of FAA
    facilities worked six days a week at least once per month. Several
    facilities require six-day workweeks every week. The FAA and NATCA are
    acutely aware of these thin staffing margins and the compounding
    effects they have on controller stress and fatigue.
        NATCA remains focused on improving the system-wide controller
    staffing shortage. A properly-staffed controller workforce is necessary
    in order to safely and efficiently meet all of its operational,
    statutory, and contractual requirements, while also having the
    personnel resources to research, develop, deploy, and then train the
    existing workforce on new procedures, technology, and modernization
    initiatives. Without a sustainable hiring, training, and staffing model
    like the one
        outlined in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, which passed both
    chambers with overwhelming bipartisan support, the FAA will struggle to
    maintain the current capacity of the system, let alone modernize or
    expand it for new users. This Committee should continue to oversee the
    FAA's efforts to implement the staffing provisions contained in the
    Reauthorization Act, including maximum hiring and deployment of Tower
    Simulator Systems, which have proven to reduce training times by 27
    percent.
    B. FAA Safety and Technology Modernization Programs Need Additional
            Resources
        Controller staffing and infrastructure progress are inextricably
    linked. A properly-staffed workforce of fully certified controllers is
    needed for the FAA to successfully develop, test, deploy, and train the
    workforce on new technology and modernization programs on time and
    under budget. Without proper controller staffing, investments in
    infrastructure and modernization programs will not yield their full
    potential.
        It is critical that NATCA remain a productive and collaborative
    partner throughout development, testing, training, and implementation
    across a wide range of safety, technology, and modernization programs.
    NATCA's continued involvement will ensure that the FAA delivers these
    initiatives to industry stakeholders and the flying public on-time and
    at a cost-savings to the American taxpayers. When NATCA representatives
    are not involved throughout the entirety of a process, modernization
    programs are delayed and experience cost overruns, because of
    extensive, costly, and time-consuming revisions following development,
    testing, and after implementation.
        The FAA also must continue to be transparent with its need for
    increased Facilities and Equipment (F&E) funding so that it can meet
    its own equipment sustainment, replacement, and modernization needs. If
    not, it will continue to exacerbate the FAA's significant sustainment
    and replacement backlog. Failing to maintain and replace critical
    safety equipment that has exceeded its expected life introduces
    unnecessary risk into the system. These funding limitations also have
    prevented the FAA from designing and implementing new technologies that
    will improve safety. We are encouraged that FAA has increased its F&E
    request for Fiscal Year 2026 and the Senate Appropriations Committee
    has increased its allocation for F&E.
    C. FAA's Physical Infrastructure is Rapidly Aging and Many Facilities
            Have
            Exceeded Their Expected Lifecycles
        The FAA operates more than 300 air traffic control facilities of
    varying ages and conditions. The FAA's 21 Air Route Traffic Control
    Centers (ARTCCs) located in the continental United States were built in
    the 1960s and are more than 60 years old. The FAA's Terminal Radar
    Approach Control facilities (TRACONs) are, on average, more than 25
    years old. In addition, the FAA has 132 combined TRACON/towers, which
    are, on average, approximately 35 years old. Finally, the FAA has an
    additional 131 stand-alone Towers which average more than 30 years old.
        Many FAA facilities have exceeded their expected lifecycles. Others
    have major systems that have exceeded their expected functional
    lifecycle such as roofs, windows, HVAC systems, plumbing, and
    elevators, which no longer perform their necessary functions. Some of
    these issues have led to periodic airspace shutdowns and many others
    have led to safety concerns for the workforce. When these major systems
    fail, or facilities have integrity problems, it can lead to increasing
    delays, which negatively affect the flying public and the economy.
        The FAA is addressing its aging infrastructure through a
    combination of (1) realignments and consolidations, (2) repairing,
    sustaining, and maintaining some facilities, and (3) replacing a
    handful of others. However, that process has been slow and hampered by
    funding limitations. The FAA will need a substantially increased
    investment in its F&E budget or a supplemental funding source to
    adequately maintain, let alone, replace its aging physical
    infrastructure.
        Although NATCA recognizes that the FAA's future facility footprint
    is likely to be different than the current footprint, realigning and
    consolidating facilities for the sake of consolidation--or based on
    real estate considerations that are unrelated the agency's core
    mission--is not in the best interest of the NAS or the flying public.
    As the FAA considers options for ATC facility realignment and
    consolidation, several key factors should be considered such as safety,
    continuity, capacity and efficiency, cost savings, and the effects on
    the workforce. NATCA stands ready to partner with Congress, the
    Administration, and the FAA to address these critical issues.
    III. Legislative Solutions to Future Shutdown Risks
        During the shutdown, NATCA consistently said that it would support
    any measure that would end the shutdown and pay air traffic
    controllers, including a clean CR. But NATCA also strongly supported
    numerous other bills that would have paid controllers during the
    shutdown. However, now is the time to pass long-term, meaningful
    legislation so that controllers and other aviation safety professionals
    don't ever have to experience that level of stress and financial
    instability again.
    A. NATCA strongly supports S. 1045, Chairman Moran's Aviation Funding
            Stability Act of 2025, which would ensure the FAA has stable
            and predictable funding in the face of future shutdown threats.
        Chairman Moran's bill, S. 1045, the Aviation Funding Stability Act
    of 2025, would provide continuing appropriations for the FAA out of the
    Airport and Airways Trust Fund in the event of a shutdown. NATCA also
    supports substantially similar bills in the House of Representatives.
    With another funding deadline looming in January, Chairman Moran's bill
    has become one of NATCA's top priorities.
        During the shutdown, NATCA also supported several other Senate
    bills that would have appropriated funds to pay Federal employees,
    including NATCA air traffic controllers: S. 3012--The Shutdown Fairness
    Act introduced by Sen. Ron Johnson (WI); S. 3039--The True Shutdown
    Fairness Act introduced by Sen. Chris Van Hollen (MD); S. 3031--The
    Keep America Flying Act introduced by Sen. Ted Cruz (TX); and S. 3043--
    The Military and Federal Employee Protection Act introduced by Sen.
    Gary Peters (MI).
        NATCA strongly supported each of these bills because they would
    have alleviated the financial hardships created by the shutdown by
    paying certain groups of Federal employees, such as air traffic
    controllers and members of the military.
    B. Other Aviation Safety Legislation
        NATCA strongly supports other legislation that would improve
    aviation safety.
        One of those bills is the bipartisan agreement between Chairman
    Cruz and Ranking Member Cantwell on S. 2503--the Rotorcraft Operations
    Transparency and Oversight Reform (ROTOR Act), which would improve
    aircraft safety in and around airports.
        Additionally, NATCA supports S. 1985--the Safe Operations of Shared
    Airspace Act of 2025, which would improve aviation safety, enhance
    safety reporting systems, improve controller training, and extend FAA's
    max hiring requirements contained in the FAA Reauthorization Act of
    2024 for an additional five years, because it will take a long-term
    commitment to fully staff the air traffic controller workforce.
        Finally, NATCA supports both bills that Ranking Member Duckworth
    and Senator Hoeven are soon to introduce regarding controller and pilot
    mental health. Both the Mental Health in Aviation Act and the Aviation
    Medication Transparency Act will improve safety by bringing mental
    health to the forefront improving access to care and medication.
    IV. Conclusion
        NATCA will continue to leave shutdown politics unrelated to
    aviation safety to the elected representatives in Congress. Controllers
    did not start the shutdown and were not responsible for ending the
    shutdown.
        Congress now must engage in bipartisan negotiations on other
    pressing issues facing our Nation so that we are not back in the same
    position nine weeks from now. Congress also must prioritize passing
    Chairman Moran's bill so this never happens to controllers and aviation
    safety professionals again.
        NATCA looks forward to working with members of this Committee, the
    Administration, appropriators, all other Members of Congress, and
    aviation stakeholders to achieve these and many other shared goals.
        Thank you for holding this important hearing and providing the
    opportunity to testify.

        Senator Moran. Mr. Daniels, thank you. Senator Sununu--
    Senator. Excuse me. I know a Senator Sununu. Governor Sununu.

              STATEMENT OF GOVERNOR CHRISTOPHER T. SUNUNU,

              PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (CEO),

                          AIRLINES FOR AMERICA

        Mr. Sununu. Sorry, no senator here, but I appreciate it.
    Well, let me just begin by obviously thanking Chairman Moran
    and Senator Duckworth for holding the hearing. Coming off the
    unprecedented 6-week shutdown, the airline industry definitely
    appreciates the promptness that this body showed in having this
    discussion on how government shutdowns not just affect the
    airlines, but the American people and the American economy.
        I also want to recognize and thank the efforts of the TSA
    employees, the CBP employees, and, of course, the air traffic
    controllers represented here by Nick Daniels, all those
    individuals who showed up week-in and week-out without
    paychecks, without certainty, and made those personal
    sacrifices because they understood that the national airspace
    isn't something that this country can put at risk. They
    understood that the airline industry and its people, they are a
    national strategic asset and, I hope we can all agree, should
    never be used as a political football. Now, the good news is we
    all know that this problem can and should be avoided, and there
    are opportunities before this body that would remedy the
    situation, not just temporarily, but permanently. That leads me
    to a special thanks to Chairman Moran for his Aviation Funding
    Stability Act. We need solutions like this to be implemented to
    shield the FAA and its workforce from the politics of a
    shutdown.
        So, let me put into perspective the trends that the
    industry saw and was forced to react to as that shutdown
    progressed, one of the bigger questions that we receive.
    Typically, on any given regular travel day, we can expect to
    see any controller staffing shortages cause about 5 percent of
    the overall delay. So, for every delay that's out there, 1 out
    of every 20 might be because of a staffing shortage on a
    typical day. And so, to ensure safety during the first 4 weeks
    of the shutdown, we saw that number triple to 16 percent,
    which, again, to put into perspective, the cancellations
    weren't there, right? The delays were there because it was all
    about safety, but for the cancellations in those first 4 weeks,
    it was well under one percent of actual cancellations, which
    means the system was slowed down with increased delays, but the
    airlines, the FAA, the air traffic controllers themselves, they
    were mitigating the situation around the clock to ensure that
    passengers were getting where they were going and they were
    doing it safely. It was a herculean effort, but with far better
    results than were seen in the last 2019 shutdown.
        Then came Halloween, which was America's true nightmare for
    our passengers. After four weeks of building pressures, the
    controller shortage spiked and remained elevated through the
    remainder of the shutdown. I'll leave it to Nick here to
    describe a lot of the strains felt by each of those individuals
    and their families, but understandably, it was clear that the
    system that was understaffed and antiquated before the shutdown
    was now overwhelmed. On November 6, the FAA released Order
    Number 1, outlining the required airspace reductions starting
    at four percent, with the idea that it would build to 10
    percent of forced cancellations in about a week. And these
    numbers may not sound like a lot, but for airline operations
    that require crew placement, management, asset placement, you
    know, moving the actual airplanes to get them into position and
    repositioned, and then dealing with all the customer service
    demands that inevitably will result from such cancellations, it
    really became a 24-hour, nonstop logistical nightmare for the
    airlines themselves.
        Just three days later, the number of delays had dropped,
    but the cancellations increased, had skyrocketed not to 4, but
    to well over 10 percent, and cancellations themselves increased
    from about 140 around November 5 to 2,800, 20 times that, in
    just 4 or 5 days. Luckily, the Senate passed the Continuing
    Resolution less than a week after the initial order, but
    believe me when I tell you that while safety was always
    maintained through the shutdown, there were discussions within
    the industry that in order to ensure that level of safety,
    which is absolutely required, much larger portions of the
    American commercial fleet may have to be grounded because,
    logistically, it just wouldn't have been possible to keep
    meeting those cancellation requirements.
        So, what did this cost us? And by ``us,'' I don't mean the
    airlines. I mean, what did this cost America? The airlines
    themselves were taking a hit of about $50 million a day just in
    the potential refunds to canceled passengers, but, more
    importantly, the American economy was feeling all of these
    dominoes fall. And when you add the impact to airlines and
    hotels and restaurants and rentals, the low estimate we found
    says that the flight cancellation impact was close to $500
    million per day by November 10, and for the entirety of the
    shutdown, some estimates are clocking it at a $20 billion hit
    to America's GDP.
        So, how do we make sure this doesn't happen again? First,
    it's--as it was outlined here, Congress has to pass the
    Transportation and Homeland Security appropriation bills, a
    minimum first step that's critical for all airspace functions.
    Second, Senator Moran's Aviation Funding Stability Act will pay
    for FAA during times of government shutdown. It's a public-
    private partnership, and we appreciation--we appreciate his
    leadership to ensure that the government is living up to its
    responsibility to the American public. And third, we're
    grateful for the first $12-and-a-half billion, but there's
    another $19 billion that absolutely has to come. Modernization
    is absolutely key, but you can't just put in one piece of the
    puzzle. The whole thing has to be there. And so, to ensure
    those funds are there are going to be critical to making sure
    that, again, we don't have a lasting problem in America's
    airspace. Thank you.
        [The prepared statement of Mr. Sununu follows:]

      Prepared Statement of Governor Christopher T. Sununu, President and
              Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Airlines for America
        Good afternoon, Chairman Moran, Ranking Member Duckworth and
    members of the Subcommittee. My name is Chris Sununu, and I am the
    President and CEO of Airlines for America (A4A). Thank you for inviting
    me here today, and on behalf of all our A4A members\1\, I appreciate
    the opportunity to participate in the Subcommittee's expeditious
    examination of legislative solutions to end the practice of using the
    traveling and shipping public as pawns during Federal government
    shutdowns.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        \1\ A4A is the trade association for the leading U.S. airlines,
    both passenger and cargo carriers. Members of the association are
    Alaska Airlines; American Airlines; Atlas Air; Delta Air Lines; FedEx;
    JetBlue Airways; Southwest Airlines; United Airlines; and UPS. Air
    Canada is an associate member.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        The old adage ``the definition of insanity is doing the same thing
    over and over again and expecting different results'' can surely be
    applied to the circumstances of the last couple months and the specter
    of yet another potential shutdown at the end of January 2026.
        Urgent Legislative Actions Needed: In the short term, I believe two
    actions are clearly necessary:

      1.  Congress must pass the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Transportation,
            Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) and
            Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bills to
            make sure the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),
            Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Customs and
            Border Protection (CBP) are not subject to shutdown impacts for
            the rest of FY 2026; and

      2.  Congress must identify and enact solutions that will ensure the
            FAA, TSA and CBP are insulated from the impacts of any future
            lapses in appropriations, ensuring their employees can continue
            their work uninterrupted and with pay.

        Chairman Moran, I would like to specifically thank you for your
    leadership in trying to find legislative solutions that would alleviate
    many of the impacts felt by the aviation community and the traveling
    and shipping public. The bill you introduced in March (S. 1045), which
    would address the lapse in appropriations for the FAA, is a tremendous
    starting point, and I am hopeful we can carry these types of provisions
    over to the TSA and CBP who also play a critical role in supporting the
    daily operations of the aviation sector.
        I am in no manner downplaying the criticality of other government
    agencies or employees impacted by the shutdown; however, the unique
    nature and funding structure of our aviation system should allow for
    efficient and effective budgetary contingency plans that would allow
    FAA, TSA and CBP to operate normally during shutdowns caused by a lack
    of funding.
        Shutdown Impacts are Disastrous: More than most, this Subcommittee
    knows that shutdowns are not new and they are becoming more frequent.
    In just the last 15 years alone, the FAA has been subjected to several
    partial or government-wide budget reductions and shutdowns.

       In July 2011, the lapse in FAA's authorization caused the
            FAA to stop work on numerous projects including air traffic
            control modernization projects;

       In April 2013, the government-wide sequester caused the FAA
            to furlough air traffic controllers resulting in massive delays
            throughout the air traffic control (ATC) system and the
            cancellation of hundreds of flights, impacting hundreds of
            thousands of passengers;

       In October 2013, the government shutdown resulted in many
            FAA employee furloughs; and

       In December 2019, the partial government shutdown resulted
            in many FAA employee furloughs.

        Today, we find ourselves recovering from another government
    shutdown--this one 43 days long, the longest in history, with the
    looming threat of another in January.
        Too much is at stake to continue with the status quo. Commercial
    aviation drives 5 percent of U.S. GDP and helps to support more than 10
    million U.S. jobs. We operate the safest mode of transportation, with
    U.S. airlines alone operating 27,000 flights carrying 2.7 million
    passengers and 61,000 tons of cargo every day across the globe.
        Shutdowns drive both human and economic consequences and can impact
    safety throughout the national airspace. Airlines effectively mitigated
    the brunt of the impacts of the shutdown through October and early
    November. After 5 weeks of managing an already strained system, fatigue
    and economic pressures on controllers drove increased staffing triggers
    resulting in the FAA implementing a flight reduction program for 40
    airports around the country. The FAA cited an increase in pilot reports
    that highlighted the growing weariness among air traffic controllers as
    well as a couple of near-miss ground events that raised concerns among
    the regulators. Administration officials linked this safety risk to the
    financial strain of working without pay for such an extended period. We
    cannot ignore the long-standing underlying issue, which is that our
    system has been experiencing an air traffic controller shortage for
    many years. A4A's top priority during the most recent FAA
    Reauthorization cycle was to address the controller shortage as well as
    our country's antiquated air traffic control technology. Unfortunately,
    this shutdown moved ATC staffing and modernization efforts two steps
    backwards.
        The data from this most recent shutdown shows the material impact
    and real-world consequences of extended shutdowns and will hopefully
    convince policymakers that we should never subject our air traffic
    control system to this chaos again.
        Controller Staffing Triggers and Operational Limitations. According
    to FAA data, controller staffing issues contributed to 5 percent of
    National Airspace System (NAS) delay minutes from January through
    September, jumping to 16 percent in October and 62 percent in November.
    Over 6 million A4A member airline passengers were affected during the
    shutdown.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Many of the disruptions faced by passengers between October 1 and
    early November were a function of controller staffing-driven flight
    delays. During that period, A4A airlines incurred over 30,000 staffing-
    related delays but were able to minimize cancellations to about 400
    (<0.1 percent). This shutdown disrupted 3.7 million passengers in that
    time period and pushed the airlines to scramble to minimize customer
    impacts. The air traffic controller staffing issues then led to an
    unprecedented shutdown consequence where the FAA issued an Emergency
    Order (Order #1) directing air carriers to reduce domestic schedule
    operations across the NAS at 40 airports. Specifically, Order #1
    directed a 4 percent reduction in operations on Friday, November 7,
    ramping up to 6 percent by November 11, 8 percent by November 13 and 10
    percent by November 14. On November 12, citing substantial and rapid
    improvement in facility staffing conditions, the FAA issued a new
    Emergency Order (Order #2), which superseded Order #1. Order #2
    modified the operational limitation escalation to 6 percent. From
    November 7--the first day of the FAA-mandated flight-schedule
    reductions--through November 12, A4A airlines incurred more than 15,600
    staffing-related delays and more than 7,100 staffing-related flight
    cancellations, disrupting 2.3 million passengers.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        The operational reduction percentages may seem trivial to the
    average observer, but when put into context they are extreme. On
    November 12, for example, 99.8 percent of the 861 staffing-related
    cancellations were attributable to FAA-mandated flight reductions at 40
    airports. For perspective, in November 2024, data from the Bureau of
    Transportation Statistics show that U.S. airlines canceled just 0.46
    percent of scheduled flights--and that's across all categories of
    causation, including NAS issues. Promulgating a cancellation rate of 6
    percent for several consecutive days, if not longer, for ATC staffing
    reasons alone, without a chance for operations to recover, is highly
    disruptive to our customers and takes a toll on our frontline
    employees--at the airport, on the plane, on our help desks, etc. At the
    40 target airports, applying the 6 percent directive translates to
    approximately 875 cancellations and 60,000 disrupted passengers per day
    which is more than 13 times the normal rate.
        A4A estimates that if Order #1 would have reached the original 10
    percent threshold, by November 14, the daily average toll on the U.S.
    economy would have reached as much as $580 million depending on the
    degree to which airlines could reaccommodate cancellation-disrupted
    passengers on the remaining flights.
        Of note, that economic impact estimate is tied solely to compliance
    with the flight-reduction directive, and it does not include the costs
    associated with the value of passenger time, reduced bookings,
    passenger refunds, etc. It does include indirect and induced impacts
    tied to reduced visitor spending, state and local tax revenue and
    spending across the broader economy as individuals within and outside
    the aviation supply chain curtailed expenditures.
        The air traffic controller staffing crisis also triggered broad
    secondary impacts. In many instances, even those passengers who
    successfully reach their destination encountered long departure delays,
    extended tarmac times and highly unpredictable arrival times. For the
    airlines, many flight crews were timing out (per regulated limits) or
    missing connections because of late aircraft arrivals and equipment
    mis-positioning.
        For the controller staffing issues in particular, unlike weather-
    driven disruptions, each controller shift change or facility staffing
    trigger could result in added hours of delay with no advance notice,
    undermining the airlines' ability to plan, staff or accommodate
    impacted customers. Despite airline mitigations, it created mass
    disruptions and should serve as an example of the real-world economic
    and human impact of a government shutdown. This simply should never
    happen again, and it is most certainly preventable.
        Transportation Security Impacts. Adequately staffing and supporting
    the DHS and its component agencies, TSA and CBP, is also extremely
    important to the smooth operation of the aviation sector and is vital
    to our industry. In 2025 to date, U.S. airlines have experienced travel
    volumes comparable to last year's all-time high. Several of the busiest
    days in TSA history have occurred in 2025, including a record-setting
    3.1 million passengers and crewmembers screened on June 22.
        Fortunately, from a TSA perspective, most hot spot locations during
    the shutdown were appropriately mitigated by TSA deploying personnel
    from its National Deployment Force to help support airports with higher
    travel volumes. However, as the shutdown progressed, some airports were
    starting to experience negative operational impacts of higher
    Transportation Security Officer (TSO) call-out rates.
        The shutdown also had larger security impacts via the temporary
    expiration of several critical security authorities that the Committee
    and Congress should consider granting permanent authority in order to
    avoid future lapses. Specifically:

       TSA's Reimbursable Screening Services Program (RSSP): The
            RSSP program is a vital component to distributed passenger
            screening for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup events and TSA
            should be granted permanent authority.

       Authority for the Unified National-Level Response to
            Persistent Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Disruption of
            Operations at Core 30 Airports expired on Sept. 30, 2025. TSA
            is the Lead Federal Agency responsible for overseeing any
            Counter-UAS (C-UAS) response to persistent and disruptive UAS
            activities at our Nation's airports. Disruptive UAS in
            restricted airspace around our Nation's airports remains a
            persistent and evolving threat with thousands of sightings
            reported annually. Congress should extend and expand C-UAS
            authorities immediately to ensure the NAS is protected from
            errant, disruptive and nefarious UAS.

       The expiration of the 2015 Cybersecurity Information Sharing
            Act (CISA'15) led many industries to reevaluate the risk of
            voluntarily sharing cybersecurity information with the Federal
            government. CISA'15 established a legal framework that is
            intended to facilitate the voluntary sharing of cyber threat
            indicators and defensive measures between and within the
            Federal government and non-federal entities, including private
            sector organizations and state, local, tribal and territorial,
            including airlines.

        From a passenger travel experience perspective, the Administration
    was fortunately able to utilize reconciliation funds included in the
    One Big Beautiful Bill Act to fund and pay CBP officers and TSA air
    marshals during the shutdown.
        However, that only covered law enforcement officers and is likely a
    one-time solution, not a long-term remedy to address future shutdowns.
        Finally, we are also concerned that the shutdown negatively
    impacted operational readiness for upcoming global events like the 2026
    FIFA World Cup and America 250. Much work will need to be done to
    prepare for the safe and secure execution of these events and
    unnecessary government shutdowns are detrimental to the public-private
    collaboration necessary to ensure transit to and from these events is
    safe and secure.
    Solutions--ATC Staffing, Brand New Air Traffic Control System, Never
            Subject Aviation to Shutdown Again
        Address the Air Traffic Controller Shortage. One of the biggest
    detriments to growth in the airline industry has been the ongoing air
    traffic controller staffing shortage, which was an acute issue prior to
    the shutdown and will only be exacerbated by the long-term impacts of
    the most recent shutdown. Beginning in October 2023, airlines reduced
    their flying from the New York metropolitan area by 10 percent to
    accommodate the lack of controller staffing at critical facilities.
        In November 2024, the Department of Transportation Inspector
    General (DOT IG) put out its DOT Top Management Challenges report. That
    report states:

       ``. . . FAA has not ensured adequate controller staffing at
            its most critical facilities. For example, we (IG) found that
            20 of 26 critical facilities were staffed below the Agency's
            threshold of 85 percent.''

       ``FAA's implementation of pauses in air traffic controller
            training during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to controller
            staffing challenges by resulting in an increase in
            certification times for controllers. FAA needs improved
            resiliency in staffing and contingency planning for
            disruptions, and our audit work shows that FAA's lack of a plan
            to address these staffing challenges limits the capacity of the
            NAS.''

        Build the Brand New Air Traffic Control System. The U.S. ATC system
    is very safe, but the lack of government action has made it
    inefficient, antiquated and far from the ``gold standard'' Americans
    deserve. Unnecessary travel delays cost the U.S. economy and passengers
    more than $30 billion annually. These delays are the direct result of
    systemwide ATC inefficiencies resulting from the use of outdated, World
    War II-era radar technology. Controllers are still using paper strips
    to control traffic instead of electronic strips. Some computer system
    updates are done with floppy disks. It should not be a surprise that
    flights between Washington, D.C., and New York used to take 55 minutes,
    but to account for air traffic delays and inefficiencies, these flights
    are now scheduled to take 80 minutes or longer. Despite being a vital
    part of U.S. economic infrastructure, our airspace and the technology
    that supports it is the modern equivalent of driving a horse and buggy
    on a gravel road. This lack of efficiency and the resulting reduced
    capacity directly and negatively impacts carriers' ability to grow and
    compete and robs consumers and the economy of growth, jobs and related
    benefits.
        A4A is not alone with these recommendations, as we are part of an
    unprecedented, industry-wide broad aviation community coalition
    established earlier this year, the ``Modern Skies Coalition''. The
    coalition wholeheartedly endorses Secretary of Transportation Duffy's
    plans to ``supercharge'' air traffic controller hiring at the Federal
    Aviation Administration (FAA) and modernize the air traffic control
    system. The Coalition strongly supported Congress's $12.5 billion
    downpayment toward air traffic control modernization and we continue to
    advocate in support of Secretary Duffy's acknowledgment that additional
    funding of at least $19 billion will be needed to completely build a
    new air traffic control system.
        The most recent shutdown distinctly showed the lengths at which the
    FAA and the aviation community will go to maintain safety in the
    system, but it also plainly displayed the system's growing
    inefficiencies fragility. Congress has a responsibility to establish a
    governance and funding system that will provide stable and predictable
    funding to not only avoid future shutdown scenarios but also
    holistically address the controller shortage and the efficiency of the
    ATC system.
    Ensure the FAA Is Not Harmed by Another Government Shutdown
        This shutdown has demonstrated the serious safety, human and
    economic consequences of subjecting the aviation sector to this kind of
    stress and chaos. It must never happen again.
        To that end, we strongly support Senator Moran's bill, S. 1045,
    that ensures that FAA continues to operate during a government shutdown
    by drawing on monies from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF). We
    know that aviation is an ecosystem and would additionally support the
    ability to pay TSA and CBP from existing user fees. We look forward to
    continuing to work with authorizers and appropriators on any
    legislation that meets our goals of ensuring safety and the operating
    integrity of the FAA, TSA and CBP. Any bill achieving these goals will
    have our support. This shutdown has demonstrated that our system can no
    longer withstand being collateral damage of Washington policy debates.
    The Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) January 2025 baseline
    projections for the AATF show end-of-year uncommitted balances of $4.8
    billion in FY 2025 and $12.4 billion in FY 2035.
        Our view is that the Administration and Congress should make
    changes to its administration of the AATF in such a way that continues
    the appropriators and authorizers important oversight role while giving
    the FAA the ability to more effectively utilize the AATF balance. This
    would bring the FAA's Operating and Facilities & Equipment (F&E)
    capital programs more in line with the approach taken for other
    transportation programs like the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, surface
    transportation contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund and the
    Airport Improvement Program.
        We stand by to engage and discuss optimal pathways for creating
    sustainable and predictable funding mechanisms with Congress. Along
    with a general fund contribution, the FAA is mainly funded from the
    AATF, which is supported by aviation fuel taxes, ticket taxes and other
    fees. The FAA must be allowed to fully utilize the existing funds
    within the AATF to meet current obligations under the recently passed
    FAA reauthorization law and execute long-term focused investment to
    modernize the national air space. Developing a predictable source of
    funding via a multi-year account is necessary to begin recapitalizing
    major infrastructure assets and ensure the continued safety and
    efficiency of U.S. airspace.
    Conclusion
        On behalf of our member airlines, I would be remiss not to
    acknowledge and sincerely thank the dedicated employees at the DOT,
    FAA, DHS, TSA, and CBP who dutifully went to work during the shutdown.
    Despite significant and prolonged hardships, they kept our aviation
    system operational and safe. We are extremely grateful for their
    efforts and hopeful that their professionalism does not come into play
    again on January 30, 2026.
        Thank you again for the opportunity to testify. As we approach
    Thanksgiving--which is expected to see a record 31 million passengers
    over the holiday--I strongly urge Congress to pass the annual
    appropriations bills and find long-term solutions to expeditiously
    enact practical solutions that will eliminate any future air
    transportation disruptions caused by government shutdowns.

        Senator Moran. Thank you. Mr. Viola.

               STATEMENT OF JAMES A. VIOLA, PRESIDENT AND

               CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, GENERAL AVIATION

                       MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION

        Mr. Viola. Senator Moran, Senator Duckworth, and members of
    the Subcommittee on Aviation Space and Innovation, thank you
    for inviting me to testify regarding the impact of the recent
    government shutdown on the aviation sector. GAMA is privileged
    to represent companies that continuously modernize and improve
    existing aircraft fleet and are working on new aircraft and new
    technologies that will transform aviation. I want to
    acknowledge the dedication and sacrifice of the FAA employees
    and others who are responsible for the safety and the security
    of the aviation sector. They have conducted themselves
    commendably, despite multiple missed paychecks and job
    uncertainty.
        As a former FAA employee, I saw firsthand how difficult
    shutdowns are for the Agency and the workforce, and I know
    they're not easily recovered from. The shutdown limited the FAA
    to conducting essential activities only, which are those
    necessary to protect life and property or required by law. As
    the shutdown continued, the FAA recognized that the delays in
    oversight and design approval certification activities were
    increasing and delaying U.S. development of product
    improvements and safety-enhancing technologies, and the
    leadership began to call back more of the workforce inside the
    FAA to conduct additional safety oversight and limited
    certification activities. Nevertheless, the shutdown
    significantly disrupted important activities of the FAA,
    including areas that this Congress prioritized during the FAA
    Reauthorization Act of 2024, such as FAA workforce growth and
    development, FAA certification activities, and the support of
    U.S. technologies and innovation.
        The most important impact of the 2025 government shutdown
    on manufacturers is that they saw no new certification projects
    or other applications were allowed to start. Even with the
    shutdown's end now, the FAA will be unable to act upon all
    those new applications immediately, which will likely take
    months before they can get at them. The FAA certification and
    safety workforce, recruiting and skills enhancement, and
    training initiatives were also severely impacted by the
    shutdown. We are very concerned about approximately 600
    engineers, pilots, inspectors, and technical specialists that
    AVS was actively hiring when the shutdown began on October 1.
    These candidates were left in limbo and may now decide not to
    pursue Federal employment. The shutdown also resulted in missed
    opportunities to advance U.S. leadership in global
    international aviation forums that support U.S. aviation
    standards and technology. It also delayed critical safety
    oversight functions, like flight testing, and those will
    require months to reschedule.
        Another area of continued impact is rulemaking, again,
    including many directed by the 2024 Reauthorization Act, in
    areas like aviation safety, cybersecurity, certification
    modernization, and drone detect-and-avoid technology. These
    issues underscore the importance of Congress acting quickly now
    to pass the Fiscal Year 2026 Transportation, Housing, and Urban
    Development appropriations bill. Passage will provide the
    needed stability to the Agency and allow for key investments in
    the workforce modernization and aviation safety. We strongly
    support Senator Moran's Aviation Funding Stability Act to avoid
    effects of future shutdowns, as well as legislation introduced
    by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Graves,
    and Ranking Member Larsen, and others to address these issues.
    We appreciate these initiatives and will stand ready to work
    with everyone to find the best path forward.
        In the wake of the accident at DCA, the aviation industry
    came together to form the Modern Skies Coalition to focus on
    air traffic modernization and staffing issues. The shutdown was
    counterproductive to these modernization and staffing efforts.
    Like the aviation safety and regulatory issues I discussed
    earlier, we must all work to regain that momentum on these
    modernization priorities. It is a national imperative.
        GAMA appreciates the opportunity to share the manufacturer
    industry's perspectives today, and I look forward to working
    with members of this subcommittee on efforts to improve the
    strength and operation of the FAA. Thank you, and I look
    forward to your questions.
        [The prepared statement of Mr. Viola follows:]

      Prepared Statement of James A. Viola, President and Chief Executive
              Officer, General Aviation Manufacturers Association
        Senator Moran, Senator Duckworth, and members of the Subcommittee
    on Aviation, Space, and Innovation, on behalf of the General Aviation
    Manufacturers Association (GAMA), thank you for inviting me to testify
    on the impact of the recent government shutdown on the aviation sector.
    We appreciate the opportunity to highlight how the Federal Aviation
    Administration (FAA) and partner agencies have fulfilled essential
    services and worked with manufacturers, maintenance, and training
    providers since October 1st to keep the FAA certification process and
    other aspects of aviation safety functioning during difficult times as
    well as outlining some impacts on product development, innovation, and
    U.S. aviation global leadership. Finally, I want to highlight some
    steps where industry and government can work together to advance
    aviation safety, its economic contributions, and competitiveness.
        By way of background, GAMA is an international trade association
    representing more than 140 companies which comprise most of the world's
    leading manufacturers of general aviation airplanes, rotorcraft,
    engines, avionics, advanced air mobility powered lift aircraft,
    components, and related technologies. GAMA members are also providers
    of maintenance and repair services, fixed-based operations, pilot and
    maintenance training, and aircraft management companies. In the U.S.,
    general aviation supports $339 billion in total economic output
    annually and 1.3 million total jobs\1\, with GAMA companies having
    facilities in 49 states. General aviation contributes to the economies
    of all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        \1\ Contribution of General Aviation to the U.S. Economy, PwC,
    February 2025
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        First and foremost, I want to acknowledge the dedication and
    sacrifice of Federal employees, including those at the FAA, partner
    agencies, and contractors, who are responsible for the safety,
    security, and economic health of the aviation sector. They have missed
    multiple paychecks, creating economic and emotional distress for
    employees and their families, including job status concerns in some
    cases. As a former FAA employee, I have seen how difficult shutdowns
    are for the agency and its workforce and know firsthand they are not
    easily recovered from. While the controller workforce has rightly been
    the focus of attention, these pay and job issues have challenged
    thousands of FAA employees, including those dealing with aviation
    safety issues for certification, manufacturing, operations,
    maintenance, and training.
        On a personal and professional level, myself, my colleagues, and
    the companies that we are privileged to represent deeply value these
    public sector servants. Retaining them and providing support is
    critical to ensure our industry and nation can recover from this
    setback. The U.S. aerospace sector is an extremely complex and
    interdependent system that relies on fully functioning government and
    industry partners to thrive.
    Managing the 2025 Shutdown for Aviation Manufacturing, Maintenance, and
            Training Organizations
        The shutdown limited FAA to conducting essential activities which
    are those ``necessary to protect life and property'' or required by
    law. For GAMA member companies, this was confined to safety inspections
    and oversight, continued operational safety and addressing unsafe
    conditions through Airworthiness Directives. A significant number of
    the FAA workforce in the Aviation Safety Aircraft Certification and
    Flight Standards offices were put on furlough. FAA leadership exercised
    discretion, within the limits of the law, to identify available options
    to enable safety and productivity. Consistently, the agency, its
    leadership, and workforce engaged with our member companies to ensure
    we were kept informed and addressed issues as they arose. This includes
    working with manufacturers and maintenance providers proactively to
    conduct safety oversight and authorizations to enable ongoing aircraft
    certification, production, and airworthiness activities. The ability
    for manufacturers to continue product development certification and
    manufacturing is largely attributed to the abilities of companies to
    utilize existing FAA-approved delegation and related authorities.
    However, the ability to maintain support for programs was hampered
    because FAA was unable to fully engage in continued designee
    appointment and oversight activities. Since the ability to travel was
    severely restricted, the FAA was able to leverage alternate methods for
    conducting oversight and witnessing key activities, including the use
    of locally available resources and digital capabilities like video.
        The FAA recognized that delays in oversight and design approval
    certification activities increase systemic risk. In addition, this
    delays U.S. development of product improvements and safety-enhancing
    technologies from entering the National Airspace System (NAS). As the
    shutdown continued to extend into weeks, FAA started to recall portions
    of the workforce to conduct additional safety oversight,
    authorizations, and certification activities which enabled
    manufacturers, repair stations, and training organizations to safely
    continue ongoing operations.
        Partner agencies are also to be commended for their management
    during the six-week shutdown. The U.S. National Transportation Safety
    Board (NTSB), supported by FAA engineers, pilots, and inspectors as
    needed, continued to launch and conduct investigations of accidents
    that occurred during the past month-and-a-half. This is a different
    approach from the 2018-2019 shutdown where NTSB only conducted limited
    work during the funding lapse which caused a significant backlog that
    the agency spent years recovering from with implications on volume and
    timeliness to complete reports.
        Along with its critical role in security screening, the U.S.
    Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has also supported the
    general aviation sector. The agency's Enrollment Services and Vetting
    Programs (ESVP) team conducted vetting of our pilots and training
    centers to support the industry during the shutdown. We want to say
    thank you to the TSA staff for their commitment to securing the
    transportation sector during these difficult times.
    Near and Long-Term Impacts of the 2025 Government Shutdown
        Despite this tremendous work and sacrifice by the FAA workforce,
    the shutdown significantly impacted important activities of the agency
    and U.S. manufacturers and aviation businesses. Many of the areas
    facing disruption were areas this Committee, and Congress as a whole,
    prioritized during the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 (P.L. 116-83)
    including international leadership; FAA workforce growth and
    development; supporting U.S. technology and aviation; important
    aviation safety, security, and technology rulemakings; and
    modernization of the certification processes. The FAA is now in a
    deeper hole for addressing these and meeting congressional direction
    and intent.
        The most significant impact of the 2025 government shutdown on
    manufacturers is that no new certification projects were allowed to
    start which impacted the pace of U.S. aerospace innovation and
    completely halted new business activities. During the shutdown, the FAA
    could not accept or facilitate work on any new applications for design
    and production approvals. GAMA is privileged to represent companies
    that continuously modernize and improve the existing aircraft fleet
    through safety retrofits, avionics upgrades, improved systems
    reliability fixes, and deployment of NTSB recommended safety
    enhancements. In addition, these companies are investing in the
    development of new future aircraft and technologies that could
    transform aviation. But the government shutdown results in delays to
    these projects. This significant backlog includes supplemental type
    certificates and modifications to existing aircraft. For example, there
    are many repair stations located in nearly every state which install
    supplemental type certificates (STCs) for new safety enhancing and
    other modern capabilities in aircraft. It is very common for customers
    to have specific requests for modification to their aircraft such as a
    different model of equipment, type of seat, or interior configuration
    which requires a change to the previously approved STC. The FAA will be
    unable to act upon all these new applications immediately and these
    will likely impact certification activities for months to come.
        FAA Aviation Safety workforce in aircraft certification and flight
    standards recruiting and skills enhancement and training initiatives
    were also severely impacted by the shutdown. As an organization that
    has endured leadership changes and retirements, the opportunity to grow
    and maintain technical expertise is critical and something that the
    2024 FAA Reauthorization strongly encouraged. A significant concern
    involves the approximately 600 engineers, pilots, inspectors, and
    technical specialists that AVS was actively hiring when the shutdown
    began. These candidates were left in limbo and may now decide not to
    pursue Federal employment. It takes 6-12 months to train a new
    certification engineer before they can just start to be productive. It
    is a multi-year process to qualify a new flight test pilot. This
    highlights the compounding effect of lost time and lost applicants. It
    isn't a six-week disruption, it's a multi-year set back, particularly
    for highly technical and unique skills such as structural loads,
    software, hybrid propulsion, system safety, and flight test pilots.
        For these highly technical safety positions, direct-hire authority
    is one of the FAA's most effective tools for attracting, rebuilding and
    sustaining the specialized technical talent pipeline and ensuring the
    agency can meet its safety mission, support U.S. innovation, and uphold
    global aviation leadership. The FAA competes directly with
    manufacturers, technical firms, and global aerospace companies for the
    same highly skilled professionals, and industry hires in days while the
    traditional Federal hiring process can take months. Direct-hire
    authority allows the FAA to recruit in weeks instead of losing top
    candidates to faster-moving employers. Several of these direct-hire
    authorities for engineers, pilots, and inspectors expire at the end of
    this year so we recommend that this be extended or permanently
    implemented for these highly specialized safety positions particularly
    given the shutdown.
        Additionally, the FAA was prevented from engaging in key aviation
    safety and cooperation leadership discussions both domestically and
    internationally. During the months of October and November, the FAA had
    to cancel InfoShare, the premier annual aviation safety data exchange
    conference, and was unable to fully participate in events at the
    International Civil Aviation Organization, Annual Certification
    Management Meetings with leading states of design, to advance aviation
    safety bilateral cooperation.
        This inactivity reduces U.S. global leadership in aviation and
    misses opportunities to advance standards and implementation procedures
    which facilitate efficient global acceptance of new aviation products
    and technologies such as commercial aircraft, Advanced Air Mobility
    powered-lift aircraft, and electric and hybrid propulsion systems.
    Typically, strong engagement in these meetings provides opportunities
    to engage and establish global standards, promote safety, and
    facilitate industry growth. Because of the government shutdown, FAA
    participation was cancelled or limited in nature, diminishing the
    agency's leadership and standing with their peers. Competing
    authorities continue moving forward while FAA is frozen, making the
    U.S. appear unreliable as a certifying authority and, because of U.S.
    absence at international aviation standards meetings, provide
    opportunity for foreign States of Design to shape global rules.
        Limitations on agency travel during the government shutdown have
    also had strong impacts. There are certain certification testing
    activities which require FAA involvement with technical experts that
    are not available at local offices. For example, FAA flight testing is
    a critical activity that requires specific pilot expertise which is
    very limited and tightly scheduled but needed across all aircraft
    manufacturers. The inability to conduct all needed safety functions
    such as flight testing directly impacts critical FAA resources and has
    created a backlog of activities that will continue to delay
    manufacturer certification activities for several months. This adds
    uncertainty and a lack of predictability in government and industry
    planning and coordination and undermines the agency's ability to meet
    commitments that slow down critical agency oversight and the work of
    U.S. manufacturers.
        FAA workforce availability is essential to effectively and
    efficiently work through the backlog of activities that build up during
    the shutdown and restoring U.S. aviation business activities and
    competitiveness in product development, innovation, manufacturing, and
    global exports. Given the amount of change and uncertainty for the
    Federal workforce this year, further exacerbated by the six weeks of
    shutdown, one of the greatest challenges and significant risk to
    recovery is the backlog of the individual personal time off (PTO)
    ``use-or-lose'' annual leave benefit which must be used by January 10,
    2026, or be forfeited. Consistent with what was implemented following
    the 2018-2019 shutdown, we recommend that the Administration extend the
    ability for Federal employees to use their earned PTO annual leave
    benefit at least to the end of CY2026 so that the FAA does not face a
    significant workforce shortage in November and December when they are
    needed most for starting to make up for lost ground.
        Another area where there are impacts is the FAA's regulatory and
    rulemaking efforts. A contributing factor in delaying U.S. manufacturer
    product development activities, preventing safety and innovation from
    moving forward and benefitting the aviation system, has been
    significant delays in the FAA's promulgation of rulemaking, policies,
    and guidance. This has caused a large backlog of regulations, technical
    standards, policy memos, orders, and advisory circulars which enable
    new products and technologies and efficient certification processes.
        Delays in promulgating modernization updates to airworthiness
    standards impede industry's ability to implement safety improvements
    and enhancements. This also causes significant regulatory and cost
    burdens on both industry and FAA by requiring individual redundant and
    inefficient processes for issue papers, special condition and exemption
    rulemakings, increasing risk and unpredictability when these regulatory
    materials are not adopted in a final format. Unfortunately, FAA
    regulatory and rulemaking processes for new standards and technology
    during the shutdown ceased, further compounding a situation that was
    already challenging. The result is that efforts to improve
    coordination, and yield support for safety, innovation, and
    international leadership for the entire aviation sector were
    effectively put on hold. This includes key congressionally directed
    rulemaking efforts in the 2024 FAA Reauthorization Act. For example,
    work halted on current priority rulemakings such as disclosure of
    safety-critical information, cyber security, 5G radar altimeter safety,
    and transport airplane and propulsion certification modernization, as
    well as regulatory standards and materials to enable new technologies
    such as unmanned aircraft system detect and avoid.
        Along with their other significant oversight activities, the FAA
    Flight Standards team has continued to provide oversight of our member
    company pilot and maintenance training centers, recognizing these
    industry operational capabilities as ``essential'' to support aviation
    safety. However, all new activities such as the qualification of new
    simulator equipment, course approvals, and new examiner designees were
    put on hold. The FAA resources to perform this work are already scarce
    and, based on the experience of the 2018-2019 shutdown, it may take six
    to nine months to recover in this area, constraining the capacity to
    maintain and train the pilot workforce.
    Preventing Future Shutdowns
        The extension of Federal funding until January 30, 2026, means that
    it is imperative for Congress to act swiftly in passing a Fiscal Year
    26 (FY26) Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD)
    Appropriations bill. While these proposed funding levels need to be
    reconciled and a final bill needs to be considered and passed, this
    legislation will make key investments in agency workforce staffing and
    training, modernization efforts, and aviation safety. We strongly urge
    policymakers to work to prioritize and complete a FY26 THUD Bill.
    Missing the opportunity to do so will only compound the challenges that
    the agency was already facing and have now mounted because of the
    government shutdown.
        In the past, Congress has acted to address problems that have
    occurred at the FAA due to government shutdowns. For example, during a
    government shutdown in 2013 the FAA Registry Office was subject to
    closure, halting the registration and delivery of aircraft impacting
    almost $2 billion in transactions\2\. The U.S. Congress addressed this
    in the 2018 FAA Reauthorization (P.L 115-254) and deemed the office
    essential. Even with this legislation, the FAA realized that additional
    action needed to be taken to realize the full purpose of this
    legislation and has acted during this shutdown to enable the issuance
    of airworthiness certifications.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        \2\ GAMA Press Release--October 7, 2013
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        For GAMA, and other industry leaders, it is critical that Congress
    take action to prevent future shutdowns from hampering the critical
    work of the FAA. Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) has introduced S. 1045, the
    Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2025, and similar legislation has
    been introduced by Congressmen Steve Cohen (D-TN), Andre Carson (D-IN)
    and Aaron Bean (R-FL) in the House. This legislation would enable the
    FAA to draw from the Airport and Airways Trust Fund, funded by users of
    the aviation system, to preserve the air traffic and safety operations
    of the agency. GAMA strongly supports this legislation and is open to
    working with all interested members on the best way to enact
    legislation that would protect the FAA as an entity from future
    shutdowns.
    The 2025 Government Shutdown and Air Traffic Modernization Efforts
        As we have seen, the 2025 government shutdown has led to air
    traffic challenges across the U.S. We owe a great deal of gratitude to
    FAA management and the controller and technician workforce in managing
    these challenges. Despite those efforts, commercial, cargo, business,
    and general aviation operations have all been reduced during the
    shutdown to work to maintain aviation safety and address increased
    risk.
        In the wake of the accident at DCA, the aviation industry came
    together to form the Modern Skies Coalition, and GAMA is a proud
    Steering Committee member along with A4A and NATCA and many others.
    This broad group of industry stakeholders, including airlines,
    operators, manufacturers, labor unions, and airports have identified
    the following priorities:

       Robust funding for FAA to make critical ATC technology and
            infrastructure investment and to strengthen controller and
            technician staffing and training.

       Direction to FAA to achieve prudent divestment from legacy
            NAS elements and utilize existing procurement authority to
            facilitate the effective deployment of state-of-the-art
            technology.

       Realignment and modernization of ATC facilities to improve
            operational efficiencies and leverage technological
            developments.

       Exempting the FAA from government shutdowns to ensure more
            predictable funding and support for continued safety and air
            traffic control personnel hiring and training, and other
            critical FAA personnel.

       Continuation of general fund support for FAA operations and
            consideration of additional flexibility within the Airport and
            Airways Trust Fund to manage long-term facility and technology
            upgrades.

        Thanks to this Committee, Congress took a big step forward in the
    One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21), in terms of progress on air
    traffic control investment. The law provided $12.5 billion as a
    downpayment for ATC modernization efforts focused on the replacement of
    FAA radar and information display systems, construction of a new air
    traffic control center and realignment of existing facilities,
    recapitalization of terminal radar approach control facilities, and
    other safety and infrastructure investments.
        While this is an important step, we know much work remains to
    modernize the U.S. ATC system. Notably, Transportation Secretary Duffy
    has repeatedly stated the cost of this effort is likely to be at least
    $31.5 billion. Subsequent investment is likely to be focused on areas
    like a common automation platform and investment in air traffic towers
    and facilities. The shutdown was counterproductive to these
    modernization efforts and the addressing of controller staffing issues.
    Like the aviation safety and regulatory issues, we must all work to
    regain momentum on these Modern Skies priorities. It is a national
    imperative.
    Conclusion
        GAMA appreciates the opportunity to share these perspectives with
    the members of the Senate Aviation, Space, and Innovation Subcommittee.
    The aviation sector needs policymakers to work in a bicameral and
    bipartisan fashion to provide stability to the agency and make critical
    investments to advance safety and efficiency improvements for the
    industry. We now have more to overcome but the U.S. is on the cusp of a
    new dawn in aviation technology and innovation that will be considered
    one day in line with other achievements like the Wright Brothers at
    Kitty Hawk in 1903, and the moon landing in 1969.
        It is our hope that these policy suggestions inform you and your
    colleagues on ways to improve the strength and operation of the FAA
    given its criticality in supporting aviation safety, air service to all
    U.S. communities, and economic growth and competitiveness. Thank you
    and we look forward to working with this Subcommittee on these critical
    initiatives.

        Senator Moran. Thank you, Mr. Viola. Mrs. Spickler, you're
    now recognized for five minutes.

                 STATEMENT OF EILEEN SPICKLER, ADVOCATE

        Mrs. Spickler. Thank you. Aviation Subcommittee Chair Moran
    and Aviation Subcommittee Ranking Member Duckworth, thank you
    for holding this hearing and for inviting me to be here today.
    Senator Moran, it was really nice to meet you in the airport
    yesterday. My name is Eileen Spickler, and I live in Ottawa,
    Kansas with my husband, Barry, who is here with me today. We
    moved to Kansas seven years ago from Gaithersburg, Maryland, to
    be closer to Barry's kids and grandkids. Being here has been a
    blessing and has allowed us to watch the grandchildren grow up.
        I would like to sit here and tell you that we were affected
    by the many airport delays and canceled flights that were
    happening around the country. I have nothing but the utmost
    respect for the hardworking TSA agents, air traffic
    controllers, and others who worked overtime during the
    shutdown. The truth is that Barry and I cannot afford to travel
    right now. We would love to be able to visit friends and
    family, but the cost of a flight is just completely
    unfathomable to us right now. We are barely scraping by and
    struggling to afford our basic needs, and our healthcare costs
    keep going up each year. The only way we could be here today is
    due to the support of Families USA, and I want to thank Senator
    Duckworth's office for inviting us to share our story.
        My husband, Barry, retired in--retired in June 2024 after
    15 years of working as a government contractor for the Food and
    Drug Administration and after nearly 50 years in the workforce.
    Barry's retirement came earlier than we intended at age 63.
    Because the budget for his FDA contract was cut as a remote
    worker, Barry was marked for layoff because he could not report
    in person to Maryland. That's when our financial troubles
    really started, and it has been nearly impossible to keep our
    head above water ever since.
        Barry runs a guitar booth at a local antique store and
    hosts weekly jam sessions for fellow musicians. He no longer
    has employer-sponsored health insurance, so in June 2024, we
    enrolled Barry in health insurance, joining the 200,000 Kansans
    on the ACA marketplace. Since enrolling in ACA coverage, Barry
    has undergone treatment for two kidney stones, one of them life
    threatening, and received numerous MRIs, CT scans, and X-rays
    that have all been covered by insurance. His plan is not
    perfect, and the cost of co-pays, premiums, and prescriptions
    have gone up each year, but the monthly payments have been
    affordable enough with the tax credits, and it has allowed
    Barry to get the care he needs. In 2025, we paid $109 a month,
    and we received almost $1,200 per month in subsidies. If it
    weren't for the premium tax credits, we would not have been
    able to afford insurance for Barry at all, and, honestly, I
    don't know where we'd be--or if we'd even be sitting here
    before you. Access to affordable health insurance is life and
    death for us.
        In 2026, our plan is going up 125 percent, from $109 to
    $246 a month. Because of this increase and with the tax credits
    set to expire, we have decided not to enroll Barry in coverage
    for next year, and he will go uninsured until March when he is
    eligible for Medicare. At our age and with Barry's health
    issues, I'm terrified that in these two months, we could be
    faced with a health emergency we can't afford, and we'll end up
    buried in a mountain of medical debt. For the first time in our
    lives, we wait in line every other week at food pantries
    because that's the only way to afford our groceries. Earlier
    this week, the line in Ottawa was twice as long as it ever had
    been with an almost 3-hour wait.
        We are so grateful for the Affordable Care Act because it
    has made it possible for us to survive on as little as we have
    right now. We're about $100 a month over the poverty limit for
    Medicaid because Kansas is 1 of 10 states that has not expanded
    Medicaid. I am a cancer survivor, an aggressive cancer with a
    high likelihood of a recurrence, and I'm still in treatment 9
    years later. I receive disability benefits and Medicare. The
    peace of mind of knowing that we both have affordable health
    insurance is everything to me, but these last few weeks,
    knowing we're facing a gap in Barry's insurance for next year
    is terrifying for us both.
        Our story is unique, but we are not alone. There are 22
    million Americans that use the premium tax credits to help them
    stay on health coverage. I am here fighting for my family and
    for the millions more who know the struggle of fighting to
    afford basic needs like healthcare. Healthcare is a human
    right. Nobody should go without it, and what is the point of
    having a healthcare plan if you can't afford to use it? I hope
    you will remember my story and take immediate action because we
    cannot afford to wait.
        Thank you for your time and for the chance to tell my
    story.
        [The prepared statement of Mrs. Spickler follows:]

                     Prepared Statement of Eileen Spickler
        Chair Cruz, Aviation Subcommittee Chair Moran, Ranking Member
    Cantwell, and Aviation Subcommittee Ranking Member Duckworth, thank you
    for holding this hearing and for inviting me to be here today.
        My name is Eileen Spickler and I live in Ottawa, Kansas with my
    husband, Barry, who is here with me today. We moved to Kansas seven
    years ago from Gaithersburg, MD, to be closer to Barry's kids and
    grandkids. Being there has been a blessing and has allowed us to watch
    the grandchildren grow up. We also have three adorable, fluffy and
    snuggly cats--Angie, Kimmie, and Lilly--whom we adore.
        I would like to sit here and tell you that we were affected by the
    many airport delays and cancelled flights that were happening around
    the country. I have nothing but the utmost respect for the hardworking
    TSA agents, air traffic controllers, and others who worked overtime
    during the shutdown.
        But the truth is that Barry and I cannot afford to travel right
    now. We would love to be able to visit friends and family, but the cost
    of a flight is just completely unfathomable to us right now.
        We are barely scraping by and struggling to afford our basic needs,
    and our health care costs keep going up each year. The only way we
    could be here today is due to the support of Families USA, and I want
    to thank Senator Duckworth's office for inviting us to share our story.
        My husband Barry retired in June 2024 after 15 years working as a
    government contractor for the Food and Drug Administration, and after
    nearly 50 years in the workforce. Barry's retirement came earlier than
    we intended, at age 63, because the budget for his FDA contract was
    cut. As a remote worker, Barry was marked for layoff because he could
    not report in person to Maryland.
        That's when our financial troubles really started and it's been
    nearly impossible to keep our head above water ever since. Barry now
    runs a guitar booth at a local antique store and hosts weekly jam
    sessions for fellow musicians. He no longer has employer-sponsored
    health insurance, so in June 2024 we enrolled Barry in health
    insurance, joining the 200,000 Kansans on the ACA marketplace.
        Since enrolling in ACA coverage, Barry has undergone treatment for
    two kidney stones, one of them life-threatening, and received numerous
    MRIs, CT scans, and X-rays that have all been covered by insurance. His
    plan isn't perfect, and the cost of co-pays, premiums and prescriptions
    have gone up each year, but the monthly payments have been affordable
    enough with the tax credits and it has allowed Barry to get the care he
    needs.
        In 2025, we paid $109 a month and we received almost $1,200 per
    month in subsidies. If it weren't for the premium tax credits, we would
    not have been able to afford insurance for Barry at all, and honestly,
    I don't know where we'd be, or if we'd even be sitting here before you.
    Access to affordable health insurance is life and death for us.
        In 2026, our plan is going up 125 percent, from $109 to $246 per
    month. Because of this increase, and with the tax credits set to
    expire, we have decided not to enroll Barry in coverage for next year
    and he will go uninsured until March when he is eligible for Medicare.
    At our age and with Barry's health issues, I'm terrified that in those
    two months, we could be faced with a health emergency we can't afford
    and will end up buried under a mountain of medical debt.
        For the first time in our lives, we wait in line every other week
    at food pantries because that's the only way to afford our groceries.
    Earlier this week, the line in Ottawa was twice as long as it had ever
    been, with an almost 3 hour wait.
        We are so grateful for the Affordable Care Act because it has made
    it possible for us to survive on as little as we have right now. We are
    about $100 over the poverty line limit for Medicaid because Kansas is
    one of 10 states that has not expanded Medicaid. I am a cancer survivor
    and receive disability benefits and Medicare. The peace of mind of
    knowing we both have affordable health insurance is everything to me,
    but these last few weeks, knowing we're facing a gap in Barry's
    insurance for next year, is terrifying for us both.
        Our story is unique, but we are not alone. There are 22 million
    Americans, and nearly 200,000 Kansans, that use the premium tax credits
    to help them stay on health coverage. I am here fighting for my family
    and for the millions more who know the struggle of fighting to afford
    basic needs like health care. Health care is a human right. Nobody
    should go without it, and what's the point of having a health care plan
    if you can't afford to use it? I hope you will remember my story and
    take immediate action, because we cannot afford to wait.
        Thank you for your time.

        Senator Moran. Thank you for telling your story, and it
    is--it is planted in your Senator's mind. Thank you.
        Mrs. Spickler. Thank you.
        Senator Moran. Let me see where to start with my
    questioning. Let's start with you, Mr. Sununu. Many Kansans
    will travel for the holiday. What do the airlines expect to be
    the circumstances those Kansans and Americans will face?
        Mr. Sununu. As we go into the holiday, it's going to be
    full. It's going to be packed. The airlines are ready, the air
    traffic controllers are back, the skies are safe, so that's the
    great news. We want everyone to feel confident, first and
    foremost, about booking travel, but it'll be near record
    numbers, which is great. Looking into the Christmas season,
    we're hoping that those bookings pick up a little bit. I think
    some of the stories in October and some of the--just the
    politics around what was happening at the airlines scared a few
    people off, so we want them to know more than anything that,
    while it is going to be busy, the airlines and the system is
    ready, and it's more affordable than ever before, right? It's a
    better customer experience than ever before, more affordable
    domestically than ever before, more reliable now that we're out
    of the shutdown, and as an industry, we're looking to that end-
    of-January mark. That's the thing that scares us the most, but
    right now, we feel very confident about where things are and
    where they should be through the holidays.
        Senator Moran. Mr. Daniels, what can we expect in the air
    traffic control world?
        Mr. Daniels. Well, one of the things that I think this
    shutdown showed time and time again is the unfortunate reality
    of where the air traffic controllers--the air traffic control
    system is, which is we operate with less--or 25 percent less
    than the required essential employees. We operate with 10,800
    certified professional controllers where there should be
    14,633. Any profession that had a 25-percent reduction in their
    essential workers would be screaming for help, but yet these
    men and women every day shoulder the responsibility and burden
    of moving the most planes in the history of the world,
    especially through this shutdown and seven weeks of
    uncertainty. So, we'll do what we do every day: we'll show up,
    we'll keep America safe, we'll keep the skies moving, and we're
    looking forward to getting back on track to the long-term
    commitment to hiring and training of the next-generation
    controllers, and fixing the equipment that is antiquated and
    needs to be done.
        Senator Moran. Mr. Daniels, you highlighted this
    subcommittee's and the full committee, and actually the
    Congress' efforts to engage and further employ air traffic
    controllers. Part of that involves training, as you mentioned,
    in Oklahoma City. What's the circumstances in the Academy in
    Oklahoma City with students who still--who want to be air
    traffic controllers? The Academy did not close during the
    shutdown, as I understand it, but were the number--were
    students there, and is there a line still waiting to become air
    traffic controllers?
        Mr. Daniels. There is still a line waiting. NACA absolutely
    commends Secretary Duffy, Administrator Bedford for finding a
    way to keep the Oklahoma City Academy open for our first time
    in history. It's also important to note that air traffic
    controllers not only took on the added stress and pressure, the
    fatigue that comes with the shutdown, the uncertainty, but they
    were also training the entire shutdown. But for our first time
    in history, we saw people start resigning out of the Academy
    saying, you know what? I can't afford to pass the Oklahoma City
    academy, move hundreds, if not thousands, of miles to one of
    the most high cost-of-living areas in America, which are near
    our major airports, to pick up a career in a profession that's
    not going to pay me and I have no idea when, and they started
    to resign. And not only their resignations, but also
    controllers in mid-career started resigning, saying, enough's
    enough. I have to go find a job that has more stability than
    this.
        Senator Moran. Mr. Viola, you probably represent the
    opportunity to talk about an area that's not necessarily
    thought about during the circumstances we've been through, and
    that's the certification process by which we advance aviation's
    technology and capabilities and we build and produce more
    airplanes to fill the fleet. Tell us in your words what it is
    that was not occurring during the shutdown that matters to the
    safety and well-being of the flying public, as well as what it
    means to our ability to compete in the global economy?
        Mr. Viola. So, as you know, new technologies are certified
    to get onto aircraft, the ability to get those new projects
    into the FAA to start that process to get them on board the
    aircraft, so the modernization of aircraft would be one thing.
    And then the fact that everything just kind of shifts and the
    rescheduling of the activities with the FAA to do those new
    projects, the new technology basis to be a leader in the
    aviation community.
        Senator Moran. Thank you. Senator Duckworth.
        Senator Duckworth. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Daniels,
    you noted that for the first time in history, and you just said
    you commend Secretary Duffy and FAA Administrator for finding a
    way to keep the Air Traffic Controller Academy open and keep
    training. In your conversations with them during the shutdown,
    did you ask them to find a way to also pay air traffic
    controllers since they found a way to keep the Academy going?
        Mr. Viola. I did not specifically have that request of them
    during it, but it was loud and clear that paying air traffic
    controllers is essential.
        Senator Duckworth. So, it was--you commend them for keeping
    the academies going, but you don't--you didn't actually ask
    them to pay the air traffic controllers. I mean, if DOD and if
    FAA can continue hiring and training air traffic controllers
    because of failing to do so with risk to imminent loss of life
    or loss of personal property, surely there's a case to be made
    for paying air traffic controllers from reprogrammed funds or
    even donations from industry. I mean, if DOD can use funds that
    Congress authorizes and appropriate for R&D and not salaries
    and expenses, along with accepting a billionaire's donation of
    over $100 million to pay military men and women, what stops FAA
    from following suit and reprogramming funds from accounts like
    the Airport and Airways Trust Fund to pay air traffic
    controller salaries and--or solicit donations from industry?
    Did you have a conversation about using those funds to pay the
    air traffic controllers, which I would've supported?
        Mr. Viola. I did not have a specific conversation as what
    you're referencing, but I'll put my request on record, from now
    on, in the future. I welcome any chance to pay air traffic
    controllers for the work that they're doing, and they should
    never go uncompensated for the work that's being done or used
    as a political pawn in this--in a political dispute.
        Senator Duckworth. Right. I think that's what's happening
    today, is that you're being used as a political pawn. When this
    hearing was advised, it was called the ``Damage of the
    Democratic Shutdown.'' I have been the strongest supporter of
    air traffic controllers. I think you should have been paid. I
    think that we should have called up Senator Moran's bill with
    Senator Cruz's bill. We could have passed it, and you should
    have been paid. It is unconscionable that we had at least one
    death by suicide that I heard of an air traffic controller in
    the shutdown. This is not acceptable in our Nation, but what is
    happening today is political theater to use you guys as pawns
    to score points post-shutdown.
        I would rather we be talking about what we need to do to
    get, for example, Mr. Sununu, the data that Secretary Duffy
    talked about that was forthcoming for why he wanted to--why we
    needed to do the slowdowns. I think we all would like to see
    that data. None of us have seen it. I think we should be
    talking about passing these pieces of legislation in a
    bipartisan way. We should not be scoring political points, but
    we are here now. So, since we are here, I'm going to talk about
    why we had a shutdown in the first place, which is healthcare.
        Let me just ask my--our witness, Mrs. Spickler, as a cancer
    survivor yourself, how do you feel about Republican proposals
    that would revive high-risk pools and largely seek to promote
    schemes that lower health insurance premiums by giving young
    and healthy Americans junk plans in exchange for permission to
    screw over Americans with preexisting conditions, disabilities,
    and other serious medical conditions?
        Mrs. Spickler. Thank you, Senator Duckworth. I remember
    what it was like before the ACA was passed, and it was
    horrible. When I was in my 30s, I went twice without health
    insurance. I could not afford it. I was getting medication from
    Canada until the whole donut hole thing started, which--
    anyways, yes, and I don't agree with it because I lived it.
    This is my lived experience, and I don't want to be a political
    pawn either. What I am dealing with is just as important as air
    safety, and so I don't understand why it has to be so bipolar.
    Why can't it be both/and instead of either/or? They are equally
    important. They both need to be addressed, and stealing money
    from one to pay billionaires is not fair. That is--none of this
    is fair, and I don't even know if I'm going off topic or not,
    but I would----
        Senator Duckworth. No, you're very much on topic.
        Mrs. Spickler. I did not--I could not--I had preexisting
    conditions, and I could not qualify for any kind of affordable
    plan. It was like $1,200, and that was 30 years ago, a month.
        Senator Duckworth. You're right. We should not be pitting
    air traffic controllers against healthcare affordability for
    Americans, and that's not the purpose of this committee. The
    purpose of this committee is air--and the Subcommittee is air
    traffic safety, and that's what we should be focused on, so
    let's stop with the games. We can focus on what we need to do
    to move forward, but let's remember how we got here, but also
    remember who championed you----
        Mrs. Spickler. Yes.
        Senator Duckworth.--during the FAA reauthorization. I did.
    I was the biggest supporter of air traffic controllers, and to
    come in here and act like you don't remember any of that is
    offensive to me. I yield back.
        Senator Moran. Senator Kim.

                      STATEMENT OF HON. ANDY KIM,
                      U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW JERSEY

        Senator Kim. Thank you, Chairman. Mr. Daniels, thank you
    for your testimony and what you shared in terms of the
    struggles and the challenges that air traffic controllers and
    others faced. I had the chance to talk on the phone with some
    air traffic controllers from New Jersey and--during the
    shutdown, and I'll tell you, you know, they were--they were
    telling me just, you know, that they felt like they were pawns,
    is the words that they said. They felt like they were taken for
    granted. It was really hard hearing just the emotion in their
    voice, and I'll be honest with you, they were livid at what
    they were seeing in terms of Capitol Hill. I mean, they were
    straight up telling me that why do they have to show up to work
    and not get paid when, frankly, the House of Representatives
    wasn't even in session for the entirety of the shutdown and
    Members of Congress are getting paid. And one thing that I kept
    hearing was this idea of feeling that, you know, Members of
    Congress, the President are getting paid, that we're playing
    with other people's chips, that we don't feel it ourselves, and
    this is something I felt very personally, too.
        I was a career civil servant in the Federal Government. I
    worked through shutdowns before without getting paid, and I
    know what it's like to just feel like those that are on Capitol
    Hill don't care about what's happening to us. This is just a
    low political game for them, and that's why, you know, I always
    refuse to take my salary during shutdowns while I've been up
    here on the Hill, a small token of symbolism here, but one that
    I think is important. You said something that stuck out to me,
    and I appreciated it. You said, ``No American should work
    without a paycheck,'' right, in your testimony?
        Mr. Daniels. Yes, sir, I did.
        Senator Kim. Yes. So, look, I certainly agree with the
    others in this room that we should make sure that our air
    traffic controllers are continuing to get paid no matter what
    the circumstances are. But can I take from that comment of
    yours that you would support legislation that would ensure that
    all government employees can continue to get their paycheck
    regardless of the circumstances?
        Mr. Daniels. Thank you, Senator, for your question.
    Absolutely. Air traffic controllers and all Federal employees
    deserve to be paid.
        Senator Kim. I think that's really important as we're
    talking this through, and, certainly, I understand the strains
    that air traffic controllers are facing. When I was an officer
    at the State Department, I know I had colleagues working in
    harm's way in Afghanistan and elsewhere that were not getting
    their paychecks, and it's just about duty. I mean, like, no one
    would tolerate a private company forcing workers to show up for
    work and saying you'll get your paycheck maybe some other time,
    and I think that that's something that I just hope we can keep
    in mind here.
        Mr. Daniels, you also talked about how there has been a
    call for a long time for increased controller staffing. This is
    something I just hear year after year, I mean, and the
    challenges that we continue to face, and the shutdown certainly
    exposes that fragility. But we always--we saw in New Jersey as
    well that--some of the problems that we had with the radar
    scopes and other things earlier this year were causing
    challenges when it came to staffing because of just the
    difficulty and the strain that people were in, whether at the
    Philly TRACON or elsewhere.
        So, I guess I just wanted to just hear from you, how do we
    try to build up and close that delta that you were talking
    about in terms of the staffing shortages? I know there are a
    number of ideas that have been out there, but can you really
    try to help us kind of articulate for the American people what
    are the things that we need to do to stop kicking the can down
    the road and actually be able to take steps to be able to build
    up the kind of resilience that we need when it comes to our air
    traffic controllers?
        Mr. Daniels. I appreciate the question, Senator Kim, and
    for the support of air traffic controllers and the
    modernization of air traffic. But when it specifically comes to
    the training of air traffic controllers, we often look for some
    quick fix when the real solution and the real answer is a long-
    term commitment to the hiring and training of the next
    generation air traffic controllers. And we're absolutely not
    taking a side, and we absolutely thank Senator Duckworth, the
    leadership of this committee for ensuring that that language
    prevails, and that that's what the standard is held today is
    that long-term commitment, and not trying to find another way
    around it. But it's also going to come from ensuring that we
    have the training, tools, and resources, which is also, again,
    in the FAA reauthorization bill, of the different simulators
    that reduces training time by up to 27 percent for our
    facilities. So, it's having that investment. The money's there.
    Now we actually have to be able to use it, and the government
    shutdown absolutely stopped and stalled that, but now we can
    get back on track.
        Senator Kim. Yes, though, I mean, look, I--one thing I keep
    hearing over and over again in terms of the challenges of
    recruitment is about instability, and like I said, you know,
    I've experienced this firsthand when I was a civil servant. I
    was working there at the State Department in the Pentagon
    during the 2013 sequestration fight, you know, watching how the
    Republicans at that time were pushing these budget cuts and how
    that had years' worth of ramifications, so I'd just share that.
        Mrs. Spickler, I don't have time to be--to ask a question,
    but I just wanted to say thank you for coming and sharing your
    story. It is a story, unfortunately, that I heard echoes of,
    exactly the same, across New Jersey. I will promise you, I will
    keep fighting for you, your family, for all of these families.
    Even though, you know, the shutdown's over, we know that the
    struggles that you and others are facing continue, so we're
    going to continue to get to work there. Thank you, and with
    that, I'll yield back.
        Senator Moran. Thank you. Senator Capito.

                STATEMENT OF HON. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO,
                    U.S. SENATOR FROM WEST VIRGINIA

        Senator Capito. Senator Breathless Capito over here. Thank
    you for being here, and I think really the last, I know
    they've--the last 6 or 7 weeks have been extremely miserable
    for you and the American public, and it's been miserable up
    here at the U.S. Senate, too. So, I don't know if that's any
    consolation, but it certainly is.
        Let me ask you something that I think happens when things
    like this happen, which are obviously rare, but certainly air
    service in rural areas is so challenged. Service has been cut.
    I'll just say your flights are going out at 5 in the morning or
    coming in at 11 at night. And so, the fear, I think, is, as we
    head toward--when we look at shortages of air traffic
    controllers and other stresses and strains, I mean, how do you
    view this--I guess, Mr. Daniels, this would be for you. How do
    you view this from the air traffic control perspective in
    something like a shutdown or something where there's a slowdown
    in the economy? Where do you see the differences, the impacts
    between urban and rural America in terms of air service and
    availabilities, and how do you all--how do your people look at
    that, your air traffic controllers?
        Mr. Daniels. Well, first, thank you for the question,
    Senator. The impact of the shutdown does one of many things.
    The disruption, the stress, the fatigue, the absolute
    uncertainty that it brings air traffic controllers to not be
    100 percent focused on the job where they have to be perfect--
    they have to be 100 percent 100 percent of the time--that
    increases risk in our system and something that we continuously
    advocate for, and why we support Senator Moran's bill, Senator
    Cruz's bill to ensure that we're not part of these shutdowns in
    the future. But also, as far as the difference in markets, what
    you're getting to see is what we deal with every single day,
    and that's operate a system with less than 25 percent of its
    essential workforce, 3,800 certified controllers short, and on
    any given day, one absence, one person not being able to make
    it, additional stress and additional fatigue, absolutely
    impacts America in the flying public.
        Senator Capito. Well, that kind of leads me to--thank you
    for that--my second question, and, Governor, it's nice to see
    you. Essential air service is what we rely on, not in all of
    our airports, but certainly several of them. Where do you see
    the--because we do rely so much on it, how important is that to
    your membership, Governor----
        Mr. Sununu. That's huge, yes.
        Senator Capito.--for essential air service?
        Mr. Sununu. Sorry. No, it----
        Senator Capito. Can you talk about that during the shutdown
    and how that had been impacted?
        Mr. Sununu. Sure. So, the regional hub service, the system
    that we have with major carriers having hubs and then the
    regionals kind of pouring into there, as Mr. Daniels
    identified, some of the issues are around workforce, right? You
    want--you got to have the workforce, whether it's in the towers
    or the pilots or the training programs in those rural areas to
    support that. The aircraft themselves, they tend to be a little
    bit smaller. You got to make sure that there's investment in
    the technologies there. You know, as was identified, one of the
    biggest impacts of the shutdown were things weren't getting
    certified. Equipment and technologies weren't getting
    certified, and so that's critical. You don't want to leave
    those regional and those rural areas behind.
        I can say that when it did come to the area of
    cancellations, you know, that was a tough conversation. You
    know, we're always talking to the FAA. We have a great
    collaboration and a great working relationship with them. When
    it came to some of those preliminary--looking preliminarily at
    what these cancellations would mean, to their credit, the FAA
    said, look, you can't just--we're not just shutting down rural
    areas because they're a little less, you know, not----
        Senator Capito. Profitable.
        Mr. Sununu.--highlights, if you will. So, they really took
    care to make sure and understanding that while these impacts
    were going to be big across the country, they had to be evenly
    distributed. It couldn't just be the main--you know, the main
    lines get to be maintained and the regionals get hit.
        Senator Capito. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
        Mr. Sununu. So, the shutdown was tough, but I think
    everyone tried to make every effort to make sure that where
    pullback had to happen, it happened at--happened evenly with an
    understanding that rural areas always kind of are the--are the
    first ones to get hit, and they wanted to be cognizant of that.
        Senator Capito. OK. Let me just throw this up to whoever
    wants to answer, one thing I was sort of wondering about. You
    know, we put--we put a lot of money into modernizing the air
    traffic control, the technologies behind it. I mean, we're way
    behind on this, but we did put a lot of money in the One Big
    Beautiful Bill to get a good head start on that. Do you think
    this testimony or the impacts on our air service and our
    aviation systems, if we had that system fully operational, the
    new system that we want, would there be any difference in the
    conversation we're having today? And I guess Mr.--I can't see
    him.
        Mr. Daniels. I'll take the first stab at it, Senator, yes.
        Senator Capito. Mr. Daniels, why don't you take that? Yes.
        Mr. Daniels. Thank you very much. I think the number one
    impact you see is the backbone of that system is the
    hardworking men and women, the true American patriots that do
    that.
        Senator Capito. I get that. I get that.
        Mr. Daniels. And yes, we would absolutely see a difference
    because if we had a full workforce with modernized equipment,
    we would not see near as many disruptions and delays.
        Senator Capito. OK. So, question being is--does that system
    work without a full--a full amount of people working on it?
        Mr. Daniels. No.
        Senator Capito. No.
        Mr. Daniels. No system will overcome the hardworking men
    and women.
        Senator Capito. OK. Good. Thank you. Thank you very much.
    Oh, did you want to say something?
        Mr. Sununu. No, I would--no, I would just add that it's all
    about efficiency, allowing those technologies, the speed at
    which controllers could potentially get trained, the ubiquitous
    nature where one tower doesn't have one set--one system----
        Senator Capito. Yes.
        Mr. Sununu.--and another tower has another system. It would
    allow, you know, folks to move around in an emergency
    situation, so that first $12 billion is great. The next $19
    billion is critical, and the technologies you're going to see
    in this country are absolutely amazing and going to make the
    whole system work, not for the air--just the airlines, work for
    350 million Americans that rely on it and all the air traffic
    controllers that are completely strained by it.
        Senator Capito. Yes, and I would add, really, the world
    because people are flying here and around here all the time.
    Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
        Senator Moran. Senator Capito, thank you. I'd highlight for
    our committee members and maybe the audience that we are
    working to have a hearing in November that involves the
    Secretary of Transportation and/or the FAA Administrator to
    talk about the amount of money that's been made available, the
    amount of--lack of money that's been available, and to see
    where we are in the modernization effort. And we hope--we
    were--we were unsuccessful during the shutdown to get the
    Federal employee witnesses to be here and were postponing--had
    postponed that hearing and hoping it occurs in November.
    Senator Sheehy.

                     STATEMENT OF HON. TIM SHEEHY,
                       U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA

        Senator Sheehy. Thanks for being here, everyone. You know,
    we all are focused on the airlines, generally, ATC slowdowns
    and airline delays, and how that derives, you know,
    economically from that. But I think another piece of these--of
    the manning shortage that came from the shutdown but also were
    impacted writ large is our FAA oversight, PMOs, DPEs, folks who
    work within the FAA structure that allow small operators, like
    135 operators, 137, 133, the folks who are doing organ
    transportation, who are doing air ambulance, medical
    evacuation, who are crop dusting, who are doing aviation
    maintenance in a Part 145 repair station. They require access
    to their FAA oversight bodies and their local FISDOs and ACOs
    to continue operating for pilot checks, for maintenance
    inspections. And when that oversight is not available, either
    those companies are operating under an extended period of a
    waiver, or they're just not getting the oversight and safety
    inspection that is required by law. So, I'd be curious as to
    your thoughts on that and what you're hearing from operators,
    either as manufacturers, Mr. Viola, or smaller 135/137
    operators in the field?
        Mr. Viola. Well, thank you for that question, and I'll take
    the first run at it. Well, certainly the oversight of the
    designated pilot examiners as well as the DARs out there that
    are trying to get new certification or STCs that's out there
    delayed some of that, getting to the field. And then, you know,
    with the FISDOs having to, you know, try to figure out what it
    was they can do, what it was that was important to get back
    from the leadership, and getting that out to an employee has
    been difficult. The challenges of the workforce, it fits back
    into the workforce of the FAA and not having that stable
    funding and not having to know--you know, what is going on with
    the training in other areas. So, that's why we certainly
    support any action that will pay the FAA during any of these
    government shutdowns so that we can keep that oversight going,
    so we can keep the momentum going. And as was mentioned, you
    know, the modernization that we're trying to do with $12-and-a-
    half-million--billion dollars now, we still look forward to
    trying to get that whole system in place with the additional
    $30 billion so that everything that we do here in the United
    States can operate more effectively and efficiently for the
    taxpayers.
        Senator Sheehy. Anything to add?
        Mr. Sununu. The only thing I would add is, you know, when
    we were talking about the aspects of what happened during the
    shutdown, when we talk about whether it's the cancellations or
    the delays, to your point, I think very importantly, the new
    way of healthcare in this country is everything from using
    broadband and telehealth, to getting your pharmaceuticals
    shipped to you, to getting your home healthcare, your home
    dialysis, whatever it might be. So, when we see pullback, that
    happens to our cargo carriers that we represent, the FedExs,
    the UPSes, the Atlas, that means that those delays happen. And
    as a lot of folks know, just a day or two delay on things that
    have to be overnighted for healthcare in the home, it's not
    just out of the hospital anymore. When you--these things have
    huge effects on how healthcare is delivered nowadays, and just
    an important aspect that it wasn't just the passengers that
    were affected. The carriers that are, you know, delivering
    organs, delivering people to vital healthcare, you know,
    hospital to hospital, but also that every day use, UPS, they
    all had to pull back to those same levels, and it hurt. It
    caused a lot of delays everywhere.
        Senator Sheehy. Well, and there has already been a
    challenged infrastructure with regard to the aviation
    employment sphere. I mean, we can't get enough pilots,
    mechanics, controllers. This is pre-shutdown. This has nothing
    to do with shutdown. We've already had a challenge in making
    sure we have appropriate manning, both in the FAA as an Agency,
    but also across the board and in the private industry. And then
    when something like this happens and kind of throwing fuel on
    the fire, especially in rural areas with Central Air Service
    access, and where we have towers that are at half manning
    across a lot of the mountain West as those towns are growing so
    fast and air travel's growing there. So, thank you for your
    comments. I appreciate your time today. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
        Senator Moran. Senator Sheehy, thank you. We're pleased to
    have the Ranking Member of the Full Committee, Senator----

                   STATEMENT OF HON. MARIA CANTWELL,
                      U.S. SENATOR FROM WASHINGTON

        Senator Cantwell. Thank you.
        Senator Moran. I started to say ``Capito.'' Senator
    Cantwell.
        [Laughter.]
        Senator Cantwell. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you
    and to the Ranking Member for holding this important hearing,
    and for our witnesses being here. We have obviously made air
    traffic control staffing a major priority in the last Aviation
    bill, and we are continuing to make it a major priority. I want
    an FAA who does slow down traffic when they think it's
    necessary, as exhibited by the very unfortunate tragedy that we
    had at DCA, so I hope that we'll continue to close safety gaps,
    and I hope we will continue to invigorate air traffic
    controllers.
        I think the question that we have, maybe for you, Mr.
    Sununu or Mr. Daniels, last year when we required the FAA to
    set a maximum hiring target through Fiscal Year 2028 to
    maximize training capacity for controllers, it would require
    the FAA to do this for 5 years through 2033. Do you support and
    agree that we must ensure that FAA continues its maximum
    control or hiring for at least the next 10 consecutive years,
    and that the FAA is then in a better position to offset
    retirements? So, either Mr. Daniels first and then Mr. Sununu?
        Mr. Daniels. First, great to see you, Senator, and thank
    you for the support, especially when it comes to FAA
    reauthorization and the SAFE Act in the shared airspace. We
    would truly appreciate that. As far as it goes, yes, it
    absolutely needs to be the long-term commitment to the hiring
    and training of the next generation of air traffic controllers.
    And that 10 years is critical for us to not only modernize the
    system, but ensure that air traffic controllers have a full
    staffing complement to take on the next generation of aviation,
    which is going to be through autonomous vehicles, drones, and
    otherwise. And that's going to be a new challenge that presents
    itself, but this workforce will be ready enough for it as long
    as the commitment stays there to ensure that they have all the
    bodies that are needed.
        Senator Cantwell. Thank you. Mr. Sununu?
        Mr. Sununu. And I would just 100 percent, I mean, and
    making sure that they're funded and paid, that should be the
    low bar. I think making sure that you don't disincentivize
    people from coming into the industry, as Mr. Daniel was
    highlighting earlier, not just when seeing folks walk away from
    the academy during the shutdown. How do you go into a high
    school and encourage a--someone who's about to graduate to get
    excited about aviation, get excited about the industry, when
    the headline every single day is you don't get paid. So, I
    think the concern is not just did we see negative effects over
    the last 6 weeks, but that is going to have, unfortunately,
    negative reverberations unless we jump on top of the messaging,
    we ensure the American public that not just, you know, the
    appropriation bill that we're looking at moves forward, but
    Senator Moran's bill is real, everyone gets behind it, we make
    sure that this just cannot happen again because otherwise, the
    uncertainty added to the system could be really detrimental for
    years to come.
        Senator Cantwell. I have two more questions for you. So,
    one, did you--did the airlines comply with what the Secretary
    requested?
        Mr. Sununu. Oh, yes. Look, the airlines made every good-
    faith effort. In the--in the early--in those first days--
    Friday, Saturday, Sunday--I think they had to meet a 4-percent
    cancellation. I think on Sunday we were over 10----
        Senator Cantwell. Well, do you think----
        Mr. Sununu.--because it was such a logistics nightmare.
        Senator Cantwell. Well, do you think there's data that
    shows that--there's data that shows that?
        Mr. Sununu. Yes, there were over 10 percent. I think--I
    mean, I can pick individual--OK. I think Delta at one point hit
    16 percent the following Monday, something like that, and what
    they realized is, you know what? If the--if they had to hit,
    let's say, 4 or 6 percent--I think Monday it hit 6 percent--
    they realized, OK, we're going to plan for a few percent below
    that. Why? Because it could be a maintenance issue or a weather
    issue, just the natural other cancellations. They had to----
        Senator Cantwell. Yes.
        Mr. Sununu.--they realized they had to kind of build into
    the calculus so they didn't over cancel. And then as the--if I
    may, as the week went on, it wasn't just we'll take that one
    flight down. Well, when you take the flight from Boston to
    Washington down, that means that Washington to Kansas City,
    Kansas City to LA, and LA back to Chicago flights can't happen
    either. So, moving the assets around, consolidating those
    customers and the crews because there are laws and regulations
    and protections around those crews. A crew from a 737 can't
    jump on a 787. The flight crew from that flight can't just jump
    on that one because they need a break. They need----
        Senator Cantwell. Yes.
        Mr. Sununu. So, it got very complex.
        Senator Cantwell. Yes, it's very complex, but I am--I am
    interested in some analysis of this and some information
    because I'm--I think we might've also found some optimization
    of the system, and I do think that we push sometimes to get
    maximum, like the DCA. I'm sure we'll hear from NTSB in January
    about the flow of traffic into DCA the night of the crash, and
    was there too much flow in and should it have been slower, and
    then the warning bells that, basically, air traffic controllers
    had said went off for months and months and months unheeded
    because there was too much going on. So, I'm--I am curious if
    we ended up actually having, like, optimization. Like, if we
    had more on-time flight arrivals because we weren't pushing it.
    We were actually--the system can be optimized at a certain
    level of service delivery. Now, that isn't--that isn't a
    moneymaker for--that isn't, like, maximizing profits to the nth
    degree, but there probably is a system that is calibrated in
    the right way to make sure that you have more on-time
    performance and certainly on the safety side.
        I want to ask you about--you guys, A4A, and I know you're
    new at this and we welcome you in that capacity. We are
    encouraged by the Department of Transportation reviewing
    unnecessary burden regulations exceeding their authority. I'm
    talking about this issue of our authority directed to DOT to
    take care of secondary rules--secondary costs on hotels and
    meals.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes.
        Senator Cantwell. What happened is the Southwest meltdown
    left my constituents--the Rainier Beach basketball team, Coach
    Bethea, and his wife had to pay thousands of dollars of out-of-
    pocket expenses. You remember the meltdown that winter, and
    they were stuck in Las Vegas, had to pay all these out-of-
    pocket expenses, so we said let's not have this happen again,
    and let's come up with rules for secondary cost in these
    situations. And so, I think the administration is trying to
    scrap that consumer product rule. I'm saying that's a bad idea.
    You need to do it, and--but it seems like A4A is cheerleading
    them.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes. So, if we're talking about the--two
    things. Number one, I do want to address your--is there a
    system that where everything can be optimized. There absolutely
    is, and it costs $31.5 billion, and we appreciate the first
    $12-and-a-half billion. The technologies with that next $19
    billion are going to be absolutely phenomenal. You're talking
    about efficiency, more Americans traveling safer. It'll be
    amazing, and so I think everyone appreciates that.
        On the deregulation aspects, yes, there's no doubt some
    regulations have come into play in the last 4 years or so, kind
    of prior to 2025, that, frankly, didn't make any sense, not for
    the industry, but even for the consumer. They were punitive.
    They would've raised costs on the consumer. There were
    instances where the industry was going to have to pay tens of
    thousands dollars for act-of-God type situations. And we simply
    said, look, every law and every rule that's on the books, we
    always comply to on the consumer protection side. We never
    overlooked that.
        Senator Cantwell. But do you--do you want--did you want
    this rolled back is what I'm asking. Are you asking--this rule
    that came into effect. We wrote it. We all wrote it here and
    said, put this in the bill that--have the administration think
    of these secondary costs----
        Mr. Sununu. Mm-hmm.
        Senator Cantwell.--and have a rulemaking on it because it
    is complex. I mean, what happened was far more than just a
    winter meltdown. Some airlines were better prepared to address
    the concerns of constituents and give them information about
    when they might be able to get on a flight and how they might
    be able to get home, and then other airlines were very ill
    prepared because they never invested in the technology.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes.
        Senator Cantwell. And that was the frustration, so.
        Mr. Sununu. So, I would simply say--yes, so I think the
    concern is having those rules in place is very important.
    Making sure we're not creating one-size-fits-all structures
    based on that one winter storm, which was devastating. As you
    pointed out, some airlines did it very well. Some airlines
    didn't. There was a lot of complexity in it. We just want to
    make sure that the rules are there and they're--they fit the
    need----
        Senator Cantwell. Yes.
        Mr. Sununu.--of the moment, and they're not so broad based
    that they crush the consumer with higher costs.
        Senator Cantwell. If I could, Mr. Chairman, one more.
        Senator Moran. Senator Cantwell.
        Senator Cantwell. I don't see any of my colleagues waiting
    in line here on either side, so thank you. We have a bunch of
    people here with us today, and we've tried to deal with this
    issue two or three times, and it's really frustrating. The
    people who are ramp workers at airports clean our planes, they
    help with the security of the system, they are part of the
    aviation system, we tried during COVID to help them and met
    with huge opposition, even though we worked very hard in about
    25 days to come up with a plan to help the airline industry
    survive during COVID. We tried in the last FAA authorization
    bill to also resolve the issue, and the issue is these people,
    they're not falling through the cracks when it comes to
    cleaning the planes and servicing our airports, and taking
    people in wheelchairs and getting them to locations. They're
    not falling. They're doing their job, but everybody acts like
    they are an island where they just appeared somewhere. They're
    not. They're part of this ecosystem. They are part of the
    aviation ecosystem, and they deserve to have healthcare. I do
    not want them coming on a plane sick. The whole point of
    getting on the plane and trying to make it not an unhealthy
    environment, why do you want the plane cleaned by people who
    are sick?
        So, will you commit to work with me to find a solution to
    resolve this issue and help us get some compensation for the
    healthcare workers? Only people at the airport. Everybody
    else--flight attendants, stewards, people who work in the
    coffee shop--everybody else in this entire system has
    healthcare but these people. And everybody dodges it because
    they think that it's not their problem, but they are part of
    the delivery system and they deserve healthcare. Will you work
    with me on this?
        Mr. Sununu. Yes. Look, in terms of the healthcare issue,
    obviously it's a giant issue, and it just doesn't affect the
    airline industry. It affects 350 million Americans, of course.
    So, but I'm here to--I'm not--I'm here to represent the
    airlines and making sure that the airlines are safe, they're
    moving on time, that we're----
        Senator Cantwell. The air----
        Mr. Sununu.--we don't get caught in the political side of
    things, and not the airlines, that the American public doesn't
    get caught on the political side of things, but those
    discussions have to happen. Those solutions have to be brought
    to bear on the healthcare section.
        Senator Cantwell. It's not--it's not the political side.
    They are part of the--a plane can't just come and land without
    somebody cleaning it, OK?
        Mr. Sununu. Sure.
        Senator Cantwell. The airport and that sector work together
    to try to have the security team, the cleaning team, the
    maintenance team, everybody have a robust system. So, I think
    what happens here is everybody points the finger to somebody
    else that, oh, they're our contract workers--so they're our
    contract workers, so we don't have to provide healthcare, and--
    --
        Mr. Sununu. Well, I would say, if I may, for those workers
    with--they obviously don't work directly for the airlines per
    se, but if they're our contractors or they----
        Senator Cantwell. They work--they are contracted--they are
    contracted through airlines.
        Mr. Sununu. And----
        Senator Cantwell. So, that's the issue, and then the
    contractors don't deliver the care, don't deliver access.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes, and I would look to their unions as well.
    I mean, a lot of them are represented by unions, and I would
    imagine that they need to make sure that they're incorporating
    that. But yes, we'll--look, we're part of the big ecosystem,
    and we know we're the big dog, so.
        Senator Cantwell. So, you will work with me?
        Mr. Sununu. Absolutely, yes.
        Senator Cantwell. Thank you. That's what I wanted to hear.
    Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Senator Moran. Senator Duckworth, anything further? I have
    a couple of questions.
        Senator Duckworth. Well, if you're going to do a second
    round, I'll do some as well.
        Senator Moran. If you want to, you can.
        Senator Duckworth. OK.
        Senator Moran. Please.
        Senator Duckworth. Thank you.
        Senator Moran. You go, and I'll wrap up.
        Senator Duckworth. OK. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    In the days leading up to the Trump administration issuing an
    emergency order mandating a significant reduction in flights,
    separate and apart from restrictions triggered by ATC staffing
    shortages, the Trump administration claimed that this order was
    dictated by data. As Secretary Duffy stated, ``The data would
    dictate what we are going to do. Data driven. Safety driven.''
    Now, the irony is that under normal circumstances, nobody would
    cheer louder than me for evidence of FAA changing its culture
    to be more proactive in using real-time safety data and, most
    importantly, making tough decisions to prevent deadly
    incidents. That is why the Trump administration's failure to
    transparently disclose the data underlying its emergency order,
    combined with Secretary Duffy's overt threats to ramp up flight
    restrictions unless Democrats rolled over and just voted for
    whatever plan Republicans proposed, was and remains deeply
    disappointing. It fails to strengthen confidence in good
    government, and the American people are understandably
    suspicious of a DOT and FAA that does not show its work.
        I have a--I have a fifth grader who I work with every day
    saying, ``Honey, I know you're doing long division, but you
    need to show your work. Otherwise, your teacher thinks you use
    a calculator.'' Right now, frankly, the FAA's failure to
    respond to basic information requests from my office and the
    ranking member's office over the past few weeks does nothing to
    dispel accusations that the Trump administration weaponized our
    aviation industry against American people to score partisan
    political points. In justifying its emergency order, FAA noted
    that voluntary safety reports submitted in October indicated
    that operators, presumably many employees of the air carriers
    that A4A represents, had concerns about the safety of the
    National Airspace System, despite the mitigation measures that
    had been put in place. Governor Sununu, did any airlines
    proactively restrict flight volumes independent of staffing
    triggers or even preemptively contact FAA to recommend that the
    Agency consider emergency action along the lines of the
    emergency order that the FAA eventually issued? I know you're
    new to the organization.
        Mr. Sununu. I don't believe that any of the carriers
    actually said we're going to cancel flights because of this,
    but to be clear, the carriers, Airlines for America, and the
    FAA were talking constantly about data, about what they're
    seeing, staffing triggers, hotspots. And I would note that what
    was interesting about this shutdown from the first day on
    October 1, all the way to the end, there was never consistency.
    It wasn't like the Northeast has a problem. It was one day it
    was in the West, one day it was in Newark, one day it was
    Burbank, one day it was Nashville, so there was--it was very
    hard to manage. It was almost like playing whack-a-mole, but at
    no time did they--did the carriers say we have to take more
    flights out. They said we just need to put more mitigation
    strategies in to ensure safety, which they did, resulting in
    the delays, and that's why the cancellations were well under 1
    percent for, you know, the bulk of October until the pressures
    really built.
        Senator Duckworth. So, in that emergency order, FAA stated
    the Agency had ``observed evidence of increased stress in the
    National Air Traffic System and aviation safety data,
    particularly 40 high-traffic airports,'' which I think is what
    you're talking--speaking to.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes.
        Senator Duckworth. Unfortunately, FAA did not provide
    further insight into precisely what evidence and what specific
    metrics it used to determine that emergency order was required
    to immediately halt flights at high-traffic airports. Did you--
    did they--did your members provide any data to FAA, or did they
    share any data to you behind that----
        Mr. Sununu. Well, the biggest piece--yes.
        Senator Duckworth.--especially at those 40 because I
    haven't seen it, and I've been requesting it.
        Mr. Sununu. Well, the biggest piece of data is incredibly
    obvious: all the staffing callouts.
        Senator Duckworth. Well, I don't----
        Mr. Sununu. The fact that was increasing day by day by day.
        Senator Duckworth. Right.
        Mr. Sununu. The fact that you had--I mean, Nick, you could
    probably give more accurate data. On Halloween alone, the
    staffing triggers and callouts from just the morning to the
    afternoon skyrocketed, and then sometimes we'd see that go
    down, but Saturday was brutal. Sunday went down. Monday,
    Tuesday were--so the data, at least that we were looking at,
    were those staffing triggers and callouts, and we were watching
    that hour by hour, and post-Halloween, it really never went
    down. It was really, really tough. Beyond that, I mean, I'd
    have to refer to the FAA for any other data points, but those
    are the ones that we specifically were looking at----
        Senator Duckworth. Did you get the----
        Mr. Sununu.--and then there were the close calls.
        Senator Duckworth. Where did you--and that data came to you
    from the FAA, or that was--how did you get the callout data on
    how many air traffic controllers----
        Mr. Sununu. We get that data literally hourly. There's a
    couple different services that we use.
        Senator Duckworth. OK.
        Mr. Sununu. So, we get--morning, I can see what they call
    staffing triggers----
        Senator Duckworth. Mm-hmm.
        Mr. Sununu.--and then that gets--again, Nick can probably
    give you more information, but that can get to actual potential
    shutdowns where the actual towers just don't become sustainable
    to be manned in terms of landing and not landing, and we had a
    couple instances there. And if I may, shortly before the FAA
    came to us and said, look, we may need to talk about forced
    cancellations. You had three or four close calls on the
    taxiways, physical close calls, so that was clearly of concern.
    And I'm not here to defend the FAA, they can defend themselves,
    but I think they said, look--to the point that was made
    earlier--we want to be preventative here. We're not going to
    wait for a tragedy or a crisis to happen. Let's be preventative
    and make sure we can keep the airspace viable. Let's not be
    like, you know, frankly, the rest of government and wait for a
    tragedy before we do something. They said, we're going to get
    ahead of it.
        And that was really tough for the airlines, but if you talk
    to the CEOs, they all say it was the right thing to do. Being
    safe and smart is always best, and staying ahead of it and
    being proactive, and the number--those number of callouts were
    huge. Other data, I'd have to just refer you to the FAA.
        Senator Duckworth. My problem is there's, like, all this
    different callout data. I've been trying to get ahold of all of
    the data, and if you guys were getting specific data from the
    FAA, I want to see that because FAA has not provided it. At one
    point, Secretary Duffy said he was getting 56 retirements a
    day. That was the number he put out----
        Mr. Sununu. Mm-hmm.
        Senator Duckworth.--which I've not seen that backed up
    anywhere, and if it is, then I would need to know that. I'm
    just deeply concerned that there is a nebulous term of the
    data, and we don't know what that is. And if we want to look
    toward the future and do better the next time and do better
    even now, we need to know what that data is, and we should be
    sharing that data. And it concerns--deeply concerns me that FAA
    is not actually sharing the same set of data with everyone so
    that we're operating off of the same sheet of music.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes.
        Senator Duckworth. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
        Mr. Sununu. Yes, the only thing we really looked at was
    those calls. I don't mean to put Nick on the spot, but there
    are a couple different areas where I think you can see the
    actual number of calls and the triggers. We subscribe to a
    system that gives us that data, but.
        Senator Duckworth. Right, but yet----
        Mr. Sununu. Yes.
        Senator Duckworth.--Secretary Duffy put out a number that
    was not consistent.
        Mr. Sununu. Mmm. Thank you.
        Senator Moran. Thank you, Senator. Just a couple of things
    to wrap up, at least in my thinking. You all have been kind to
    mention the bill I first--I first introduced in 2019 in an
    earlier shutdown. This is not a unique circumstance. We've been
    through this before. Is there anything in that legislation--
    maybe I should explain for our audience that the Aviation
    Funding Stability Act is legislation that seeks to insulate the
    FAA in the event that there's a government shutdown. The bill
    authorizes the FAA to continue to draw from the Airport and
    Airway Trust Fund during a lapse in appropriations with no
    General Fund contributions. The AATF generates sufficient
    revenues independently to sustain all Agency programs,
    including air traffic control operations, staffing and
    training, aircraft certification, and other essential
    functions. Any of you have suggestions of how we might improve
    that legislation? Are there things that--and if you don't have
    an answer today, you're welcome to provide an answer later, but
    if we are able to pursue the passage of this legislation, what
    are we missing or what have we erred in, in any way?
        Mr. Daniels. Chairman Moran, we'll obviously work with you
    and Senator Duckworth on any changes to the language, but we
    fully support it as written, anything or any legislation that
    prevents air traffic controllers and other aviation safety
    professionals from not getting paid during a government
    shutdown. So, we're in full support of it as written currently,
    and if there are any other suggestions, we'll make sure they
    get to your office.
        Senator Moran. Thank you.
        Mr. Sununu. If I--if I may add one thing, it's terrific.
    It's awesome. We really hope it passes, like, tomorrow, but,
    and maybe even out of the--out of this committee's wheelhouse,
    understandably, TSA, CBP are also very important, and, as was
    noted, other aspects that might not fall directly within the
    FAA structure, but are part of that National Aviation
    Ecosystem.
        Senator Moran. Good reminder. We need everyone at work. Mr.
    Viola?
        Mr. Viola. Sir, I would say we strongly support the
    Aviation Funding Stability Act.
        Senator Moran. I wasn't really looking for that compliment,
    but it's helpful to be able to say that you do----
        [Laughter.]
        Senator Moran.--and I appreciate that. You have both--you
    have highlighted two things: that legislation and then the
    importance of THUD and its appropriations process. I'd like to
    give you another opportunity as we are trying, as we speak, to
    clear holds that various senators have on appropriation bills.
    And the effort is to bring the defense appropriation bill to
    the floor with a vote this week, and then allow for other bills
    to be added, including the transportation appropriation bill.
    Tell us why it's important to pass an appropriation bill for
    the Department of Transportation in the arenas in which you
    work or represent?
        Mr. Daniels. We'll start with the Modern Skies Coalition,
    as we're a part of it and has done a well--a great job of
    articulating the issues. Secretary Duffy has gone out as well
    talking about the need for the changes to staffing and
    modernization. We share many of the same components and the
    same vision. The true answers that America is looking for, the
    American flying public, are these long-term commitments in
    these bills, and that they are bipartisan and that we're
    working together, and that are supported by the entire aviation
    community and not just by one group, is that we're all coming
    together saying what makes this system better. And that's the
    true, I would say, value and importance of what's happening
    right now is you have an entire community speaking in unison of
    what is needed instead of just one entity politicking for
    themselves. I think anything that is focused on continuing to
    ensure that that voice is moved forward is the true answer
    that's going to bring the solutions that the American people
    want and deserve.
        Mr. Sununu. I would only add, it's obviously immensely
    critical in providing that confidence in the system. I think
    because the shutdown was so big, so impactful to the American
    public, folks are going to be watching. Maybe appropriations
    bills don't take headlines typically, but I think come mid-
    January, folks are going to be watching and saying is this an
    industry we can count on, not just in terms of booking travel,
    but for the workforce aspects, all the things that Nick has
    been talking about and God bless his teams for hitting on. We
    want to encourage that recruitment, and it will, at a minimum,
    keep some confidence into the system.
        I would--the one argument--I'm not arguing against it by
    any means--is that it only goes until maybe mid-20-2026,
    something like that. So, we're going to be back in this pickle
    again a little bit, which is why your--I'll call it your
    follow-on bill on aviation funding is so critical because it
    really makes sure that regardless of which side, what the
    politics are today or 10 years from now, the aviation system in
    itself aren't held hostage to it. So, it's--for us, it's really
    about instilling that confidence for both the consumer and,
    more importantly, for the workforce that we need to keep coming
    into the system.
        Mr. Viola. So, the government employee, and, of course, for
    our sector, the aviation employee, the FAA, you know, the year
    has been very distracting to try to get work done with the FAA.
    I think the stability that the workforce needs, a long-term
    stability that you've heard here, not just, OK, we're going to
    make it now to January 30, but they need to know that they are
    going to get paid, that they have jobs to do, that can actually
    dig into these certification issues that my members need to get
    this new technology on the aircraft to make the system safer.
    The Modern Skies Initiative that we're all members of, you
    know, we want to see a great system out there that--that's able
    to support the new increased capacity, not reduced capacity
    that we had to show we can do here during the shutdown, but we
    want to get the EV tools of the future going. We want to get
    these new aircraft that serve the rural communities, the new
    capabilities that don't need the longer runways. So, there's so
    much activity right now with aviation that, you know, we want
    that momentum, and the passage of this bill right now, I think,
    would be key for investment in the workforce of the future.
        Senator Moran. Thank you. I'll express those views to my
    colleagues. I know that you will as well.
        Mr. Daniels. Senator Moran, if I could add just one thing--
    --
        Senator Moran. Mr. Daniels.
        Mr. Daniels.--since we're talking about those bills and
    what's moving through in the support from them. I'd be remiss--
    it was brought up on this panel about another air traffic
    controller who took their life and also about the mental health
    bill for aviation and the aviation professionals and the
    archaic medical system that remains in getting, you know,
    aviators and air traffic controllers true help. That is
    something else that is a must-pass bill and along with the
    appropriations that are--is going to go a long way for finally
    bringing this workforce up to the standards that are needed in
    getting them the help in advance of them taking their own
    lives.
        Senator Moran. What's missing in doing that?
        Mr. Daniels. The support of finally getting it passed
    through. It's out there, it's moving, and we're looking for
    everyone to support it.
        Senator Moran. Thank you. I offer my condolences to the air
    traffic control community and the individuals involved in that
    death. It is unfortunate sometimes the circumstances of a
    tragedy is what motivates us to do our jobs better. The January
    29 is a circumstance of mine, and I know that the families of
    the--of the--those who died in that crash are in constant
    contact and encouragement to Members of Congress, including me,
    about the importance of moving forward on the air traffic
    safety plan. And we will do our part, and it's a reminder that
    you just gave us about things need to be long term. It's not
    just fixing a problem for the moment but needs consistent
    attention and consistent appropriations and financial support,
    and I appreciate that reminder.
        It's always been my practice to give the witnesses of a
    hearing I chair the opportunity to say anything that they
    didn't have a chance to say that they now thought of, they wish
    they'd have said. I find myself in that circumstance often, and
    maybe something I said that I wish I wouldn't have, and you can
    retract something if you'd like. But anybody want to make
    certain that there's something included in the record that they
    feel like they need to now say?
        Mr. Daniels. I'd like to start with one thing. First, thank
    you for having us. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to
    talk about the issues. I think what this has highlighted and
    this shutdown has shown in the aviation world is how fragile
    the system is, but there are some terms that get thrown around,
    and I would say quite loosely: the terms of ``calling out.''
    Air traffic controllers have an extremely high record for
    showing up in the emergencies and crises of this country--
    September 11, a pandemic, two of the longest government
    shutdowns in history--and air traffic controllers showed up and
    stepped up day in and day out, but the term of art keeps
    continues to be ``they're calling in sick.''
        They were calling in with no money. They were calling in
    with not being able to put gas in their car. They were calling
    in with not being able to pay for childcare. Those are real
    issues, real Americans, real patriots that are doing everything
    they can. They don't want to see that burden on another air
    traffic controller. So, while the term of art may be ``air
    traffic controllers are calling out,'' it's not in protest. We
    absolutely condemn any coordinated efforts to call out, and the
    reasons that you saw it in different locations around the
    country is because you--what you can't pinpoint is when
    somebody's life situation and money situation and they're going
    to run out of it, or when the stress, the pressure, and the
    fatigue of being perfect absolutely crushes them that day, and
    they need to take a moment before reporting to duty to just
    say, well, I'll give it my best. Air traffic controllers don't
    have the option to give it their best. They have the duty to be
    perfect, and anything that we can do to support them through
    this bill and not allowing them to be subjected as a political
    pawn, again, we absolutely support, we absolutely endorse, and
    we absolutely need.
        Senator Moran. Thank you, Mr. Daniels. Mr. Sununu?
        Mr. Sununu. No, I would just say thank you and thank you
    for the timeliness. I mean, we're just on the heels of it, and
    so the fact that you're moving so promptly is--instills a lot
    of confidence.
        Senator Moran. Mr. Viola, we were concerned--when we
    scheduled the hearing, we perhaps expected that maybe the
    shutdown was still continuing and had some thought about
    whether the hearing still had merit after the shutdown
    concluded, and my conclusion was it did have merit so that we
    could learn from circumstances. Mr. Viola, anything?
        Mr. Viola. Yes. Well, thank you very much for having us
    here today. I would like to say, you know, the Modern Skies
    Coalition and getting the money now, I mean, my time in the
    FAA, 2015 when we were trying to work forward to get--to keep
    being a leader in aviation and being able to have these new
    vehicles that service society better. So, keeping that momentum
    going with the $12-and-a-half billion and getting the
    additional funding would be great.
        Senator Moran. Who do I call now, Mr. Viola, that--when I
    want something--some certification, some new rule and
    regulation, some statutory deadline to be met at the FAA?
        Mr. Viola. At the FAA?
        Senator Moran. Yes.
        Mr. Viola. Call the Administrator.
        Senator Moran. Oh, of course.
        [Laughter.]
        Senator Moran. I was hoping that you were still going to
    intercede on my behalf.
        Mr. Viola. Oh, you could call me. I absolutely would do my
    best to work behind the scenes as well.
        Senator Moran. Yes, sir. Mrs. Spickler, thank you. Your
    maiden testimony to Congress, I assume, and thank you very much
    for being here. Anything you'd like to make sure that we hear
    before I conclude this hearing?
        Mrs. Spickler. I thank you again for the opportunity to
    tell my story and to be heard.
        Senator Moran. Thank you for your willingness to tell us. I
    got to find some magic words in a script.
        Senator Duckworth. Oh, I have to read them items I'd like
    to----
        Senator Moran. OK. Yes, Senator Duckworth.
        Senator Duckworth. Yes. Mr. Chairman, I'd like to request
    unanimous consent the following documents be entered into the
    hearing record: original statement of April Barrett, President
    of Service Employees International Union; a September 24, 2025
    letter from Kansas Healthcare Providers to the Kansas
    congressional delegation in support of extending enhanced
    premium tax credits; and a September 2025 Urban Institute and
    Commonwealth Fund Health Policy Brief titled, ``4.8 Million
    People Will Lose Coverage if 20--in 2026 if Enhanced Premium
    Tax Credits Expire.''
        Senator Moran. Without objection, those documents will be
    entered into the Committee's record.
        Senator Duckworth. Yes.
        [The information referred to follows:]

                                    Contact:

                              SEIU National Media

                            Issued November 9, 2025

    SEIU'S VERRETT: WORKING PEOPLE MADE CLEAR THROUGHOUT THE SHUTDOWN THAT
                HEALTHCARE IS A PRIORITY--WE WON'T BACK DOWN NOW
        WASHINGTON, DC--Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
    President April Verrett released the following statement today after
    the Senate took a procedural vote clearing the way to end the
    government shutdown:

        ``I'm proud of how working people showed up across the longest
    government shutdown in our Nation's history to demand that Congress
    protect affordable healthcare for every American. But unfortunately,
    Republican leaders showed that they would rather jeopardize people's
    health and punish Federal workers than make billionaires pay taxes.
        Now that the shutdown is ending, Federal workers will get paychecks
    again. But this weak deal is no cause for celebration. Millions of
    working families of all backgrounds will now see their healthcare costs
    skyrocket as ACA tax credits expire. Federally contracted workers are
    still not guaranteed backpay.
        We won't back down until Congress takes action to resolve our
    healthcare crisis and ensures that every federal worker receives
    backpay. Working people don't fold--we fight forward.''
                                     ______

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        Senator Moran. Now----
        Senator Duckworth. Did I take enough time?
        Senator Moran. You did. I should've just turned the--turned
    the page.
        Again, I would thank all the witnesses for being here. I
    wanted to perhaps join Senator Cantwell in her remarks about
    people who work at airports. I'm a frequent traveler not--I
    guess it's by choice, but I live in Kansas and work here, and
    I'm in airports and on airplanes on a consistent basis like
    almost all of my colleagues. And during the shutdown, I found
    the employees at the airport, including the ones that Senator
    Cantwell mentioned, to be--I don't know about good spirits, but
    they were certainly polite, respectful, kind of we're all in
    this together kind of attitude. And again, it's something
    special, I suppose, about Americans and America at--in times of
    difficulty and adversity. There's still a common sense that we
    owe each other respect and try to make certain that the well-
    being of those who we care for is maintained, and I experienced
    that without exception. And so, I thank the folks who work at
    an airport and the people who work at the airlines and across
    the country. And just I worry that we're beginning to take
    these kind of circumstances as too commonplace, and they ought
    to be extraordinary and not the norm, but regardless of which
    one they are, I appreciate people who are polite and
    respectful.
        Oh, let me see. Do I have something else I need to do on
    documents? OK. There are documents from the Modern Skies
    Coalition, the National Business Aviation Association, Boeing
    Aircraft, and one for the American Society of Traveler Advisors
    that I would ask to be placed in the record, and without
    objection, I would do so.
        [The information referred to follows:]

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              Prepared Statement of Ed Bolen, President and CEO,
                     National Business Aviation Association
        Chairman Moran, Ranking Member Duckworth, and Members of the
    Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation, thank you for holding
    this hearing to address the impact of the 43-day lapse in Federal
    funding on Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transportation
    Safety Administration (TSA) services and the national economy. On
    behalf of the National Business Aviation Association's (NBAA's) 11,000-
    member companies, I am honored to provide this testimony for the
    record.
        I would like to start by thanking the dedicated public servants who
    shouldered a tremendous burden, showing up day after day without
    compensation to maintain the safety, security and efficiency of the
    national airspace system-without their commitment and professionalism,
    America's air transportation system and the national economy would have
    come to a halt.
    Business aviation is an important segment of the aviation industry.
        Business aviation is an indispensable part of the aviation
    ecosystem, providing an efficient, effective and flexible
    transportation solution to users. It is essential to America's economy
    and local communities supporting more than 1.3 million jobs and
    contributing $339.2 billion per year in economic activity. General
    aviation helps businesses be more competitive, especially those small
    and mid-sized enterprises, headquartered in small towns and rural areas
    that have little or no airline service.
        Business aviation also provides emergency medical transportation,
    and delivers humanitarian aid in times of need. Business aircraft
    provide around 15,000 relief flights each year, responding to natural
    disasters, transporting organs, and taking cancer patients to treatment
    centers. With 46.7 million Americans living more than an hour away from
    a Level 1 or 2 trauma center, business aviation is more critical than
    ever.
    The government shutdown impacted all segments of the aviation industry,
            including business and general aviation.
        The 43-day government shutdown stalled critical FAA work that
    impacted business and general aviation safety oversight, certification,
    training and operations; it impacted an industry that serves as a
    lifeline to rural economies, provides emergency medical transportation
    and delivers humanitarian aid in times of need.
        The most severe impacts occurred on November 6, when the FAA
    implemented an Emergency Order to reduce all flight operations,
    including commercial and business aircraft operations, at 40 U.S.
    airports. Just days later, on November 10, the FAA implemented
    additional restrictions, banning non-scheduled operations at 12
    airports, disproportionately impacting business aviation, an industry
    that drives local economies, connects communities, and supports
    humanitarian missions every day. General aviation complied with the
    emergency order and avoided operating at the Nation's busiest airports
    whenever possible to support the safety and efficiency of the system.
    The national airspace is a public resource open to all users. With the
    shutdown resolved, and moving forward, we ask Congress to ensure access
    remains equitable and available to every segment of the flying
    community.
        Specifically, the government shutdown had a significant impact on
    business aviation as it delayed safety approvals, jeopardized
    investments, reduced safety margins, and restricted airspace capacity.

       The government shutdown forced the FAA to furlough safety
            inspectors, resulting in reduced services and significant
            delays to aviation businesses.

       The furloughs meant operators waited on certification
            approvals for more than a month which caused inefficient
            operations and prevented operators from using aircraft to their
            full capability.

       The furloughs halted new certification activities, resulting
            in certificate holders being unable to complete aircraft
            conformity checks, keeping some aircraft grounded.

       Inspectors did not approve revisions to manuals, delaying
            implementation of safety-enhancing procedures.

       Finally, furloughs meant inspectors were unable to review
            and approve the use of new training simulators, creating a
            backlog that will not begin to be addressed until March 2026
            creating inefficiencies and sub-optimal safety.
    Business Aviation supports critical modernization efforts and funding
            stability.
        Congress must pass legislation to provide stable funding for the
    FAA during any future shutdown to mitigate harm to the safety and
    efficiency of the aviation system, the travelling public, and the
    national economy.
        Long before the shutdown, Congress recognized that a modernized air
    traffic control system was a national imperative, essential to safety,
    and made an important down payment on needed reforms. The government
    shutdown threatened that progress and drew critical resources away from
    essential initiatives to expand controller hiring, improve training,
    and update technology and facilities. Business aircraft operators rely
    on a safe and efficient nation's air traffic control system and support
    a renewed focus and investment in these much needed reforms.
        Congress must act now to ensure funding stability for the FAA,
    equitable airspace access and a returned focus on air traffic control
    modernization work.

       Congress must pass a full-year FY2026 Transportation,
            Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill to ensure
            continued investment in controller staffing, aviation safety
            personnel, technicians, and the modernization of critical
            aviation infrastructure.

       We urge Congress to approve legislation to ensure user-
            funded aviation services continue in the event of another
            government shutdown. Airspace users pay billions in taxes and
            fees to maintain air traffic control services, safety and
            security and deserve uninterrupted delivery of those services.
            Legislation such as Chairman Moran's Funding Stability Act of
            2025, and The Aviation Funding Solvency Act introduced in the
            House would ensure these services are uninterrupted.

       Congress must continue its critical work on airspace
            modernization, strengthening the staffing, technology,
            infrastructure and facilities to build the best air traffic
            control system in the world, enabling safe and efficient air
            transportation.

        Ending the government shutdown was an essential first step. Next,
    Congress must establish funding stability to ensure aviation services
    continue in the event of another government shutdown and return focus
    to modernizing the air traffic control system to maximize safety and
    efficiency in the national airspace system and strengthen the
    resilience of the American economy.
        Thank you for your consideration. I appreciate the Committee's
    careful oversight of our Nation's aviation system and look forward to
    working with you to enhance aviation safety, improve the airspace
    system and maintain America's global leadership in aviation.

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                            American Society of Travel Advisors
                                      Alexandria, VA, November 18, 2025

    Hon. Jerry Moran,
    Chair,
    Senate Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation,
    Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
    Washington, DC.
    Hon. Tammy Duckworth,
    Ranking Member,
    Senate Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation,
    Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
    Washington, DC.

    Re: Statement for the Record to the Subcommittee on Aviation, Space,
                and Innovation: Subcommittee Hearing titled, ``Flying on
                Empty: How Shutdowns Threaten Air Safety, Travel, and the
                Economy,'' on November 19, 2025.

    Dear Chairman Moran, Ranking Member Duckworth and members of the
                Subcommittee:

        On behalf of the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) and the
    more than 300,000 individuals working in the travel advisor profession,
    thank you for the opportunity to submit this statement for the record.
    We appreciate the Subcommittee's leadership in examining issues that
    affect travelers, the air transportation system, and the broader travel
    economy.
        Travel advisors play a central and indispensable role in the global
    travel and tourism industry. ASTA's membership encompasses the full
    breadth of the marketplace from home-based entrepreneurs and
    traditional brick-and-mortar agencies to large travel management
    companies (TMCs) and online travel agencies. These professionals
    provide critical services to the traveling public, offering informed
    guidance, real-time problem solving, and dedicated assistance in the
    event of emergencies, disruptions, or unexpected changes in plans.
    Corporations rely on TMCs to manage their business travel programs
    efficiently and effectively, ensuring policy compliance and cost
    control while maintaining traveler safety and satisfaction.
        With more than 300,000 travel advisors nationwide, nearly two-
    thirds of which are independent contractors, the profession represents
    a significant segment of the U.S. small business community. Ninety-five
    percent of travel agencies are small businesses under the SBA standard,
    and 80 percent are women-owned. In 2024, travel agencies sold 781,000
    air tickets per day, totaling $99.2 billion in annual airline sales,
    and were responsible for booking more than 66 percent of all cruises
    and tour packages. The profession booked $119.3 billion in travel last
    year alone, with continued industry growth projected by the U.S. Bureau
    of Labor Statistics. Given this scale and economic importance,
    understanding the challenges faced by travel advisors during the
    government shutdown is essential to fully evaluating its effect on
    their businesses, U.S. travelers, and the broader travel economy.
        In the final days of the longest Federal government shutdown in
    history, ASTA surveyed its members nationwide to assess the operational
    and economic impacts on both travel advisors and the travelers they
    serve. The results provide a clear and consistent picture of an
    industry under significant strain.
        Travel advisors overwhelmingly reported increased workloads,
    heightened client anxiety, disrupted travel operations, and material
    impacts on their business performance. While the severity of the impact
    of the government shutdown varied, overall sentiment across the
    profession was decidedly negative.
        The following summary of the impacts from the 43-day government
    shutdown on travelers and travel agencies presents a myriad of
    challenges and concerns to the travel industry. ASTA would welcome
    sharing the complete results of the research with the Subcommittee if
    it is of interest.
    Financial Impact on Travel Agencies and Advisors
        The most common theme expressed by advisors in the survey responses
    was a loss of income while their clients dealt with flight
    cancellations, national park restrictions and postponement of future
    travel. A large portion of survey respondents commented that travelers
    were postponing trips until the shutdown ended, or even until next
    year.
        Travel advisors overwhelmingly reported that the shutdown created
    significant financial strain for their agencies, largely due to
    widespread flight disruptions that required hours of unpaid rebooking
    work and lost commissions when trips were canceled. Many advisors noted
    a sharp decline in new bookings, with clients delaying or abandoning
    travel plans entirely because of uncertainty, fear of being stranded,
    or financial stress from missed paychecks. For Federal government
    employees and contractors hit directly by loss of pay, even long-
    planned vacations were canceled in order to free up funds for basic
    living expenses.
        Many travelers expected advisors to have answers that didn't exist
    given the day-to-day uncertainty around air traffic control staffing,
    TSA operations, and flight cancellations. This anxiety translated into
    a sharp decline in inquiries and bookings for many agencies, with sales
    for some agencies dropping to levels not seen since the pandemic.
    Advisors spent more time calming clients than creating new business,
    and many noted that they were doing dramatically more service work
    while earning less revenue.
        In fact, nearly two-thirds reported clients delaying travel
    decisions. The hesitation spanned both leisure and business travelers
    and resulted in revenue drops averaging 25 percent for agencies.
    Overall, the shutdown shook consumer confidence, with many advisors
    reporting their phones had ``gone silent'' as clients adopted a wait-
    and-see approach. These dynamics suppressed travel demand and
    threatened long-term financial risk for small agencies.
    Travel Agency Operational Disruption
        More than seventy percent of advisors reported moderate or severe
    impacts on their business operations during the shutdown. Additionally,
    nearly eighty percent indicated they spent additional hours each week
    resolving shutdown-related issues, time that was largely uncompensated.
    While navigating crises for clients is part of the job, many advisors
    reported serving as a therapist to their clients, who were rightfully
    distressed about the possibility of missing an important client
    meeting, long-planned vacation, occupational conference, or a cruise
    departing from a distant port.
        One comment from a travel agency owner summed up the sentiment
    voiced throughout the survey: ``As a travel agency, we've definitely
    felt the ripple effects of the government shutdown. Air travel has
    become more unpredictable, with increased delays and limited staffing
    impacting both flight schedules and traveler confidence. Our team has
    spent much more time assisting clients with rebookings, schedule
    changes, and [offering] reassurance due to the uncertainty. Customer
    service has also been affected because many travelers are
    understandably anxious, and we're working harder to provide the support
    and communication they need. Overall, we've seen a slowdown in new
    bookings as clients hesitate to plan future travel until things feel
    more stable. It's been a challenging time, but we're staying proactive
    and doing everything we can to guide our clients through it.''
    Stress on the Air Travel System
        Unsurprisingly, uncertainty around air travel represented the most
    significant disruption. Delays, cancellations, or rebookings for
    clients affected 83 percent of those responding. Travel advisors
    absorbed the brunt of traveler frustration as airlines and air traffic
    control faced capacity and staffing challenges. Government-mandated
    restrictions of flights across the system had immediate disruptive
    impacts resulting in fewer options to offer clients. These impacts
    continue to be sorted out in the days following the shutdown.
        While advisors also reported disruptions to sales volume, customer
    service workloads, group tours and national park availability, air
    travel disruptions far exceeded the other concerns. The concentration
    on air travel issues reflects the role of the travel advisor on the
    front lines of the traveler experience. Advisors are absorbing the
    burden of airline disruption and uncertainty, which erodes efficiency
    and client satisfaction.
    Limited Federal Communication
        Advisors also reported little to no communication from Federal
    agencies during the shutdown, reducing their ability to provide
    accurate and timely guidance to travelers. In the absence of complete
    and comprehensive communication, advisors often relied upon anecdotal
    information and their own experiences to guide travelers.
        With limited guidance from Federal agencies and constantly changing
    conditions, many advisors felt they were operating without reliable
    information, trying to reassure clients in an environment where facts
    shift daily. The industry spent far more time managing crises than
    selling travel, leading to concerns about long-term revenue health.
    Broader Industry Consequences
        More than sixty percent of respondents believed the shutdown
    produced ripple effects across the travel ecosystem, including concerns
    about consumer confidence, airline reliability, and the economic health
    of key travel-dependent destinations.
        At the center of the disruption is the instability of the air
    travel system. When flights are delayed or canceled, travelers miss
    cruises, tours, hotel stays, meetings, and events, creating a chain
    reaction of rebookings, refunds, and lost revenue for suppliers across
    the industry. Advisors described airports as chaotic and unpredictable,
    with limited information, long hold times, and inconsistent
    communication from both airlines and government agencies. This
    instability has eroded traveler confidence, which emerges as one of the
    most damaging industry-wide consequences.
        As one respondent summed it up: ``This shutdown is strangling our
    industry. Airports are chaos. Flights delayed. Passports and visas
    stalled. Conferences canceled. Small businesses are watching their
    income vanish overnight. The ripple effect is devastating--hotels,
    airlines, restaurants, drivers, guides, and local shops across the
    country are paying the price for Washington's paralysis.''
    Policy Considerations
        Travel advisors serve every congressional district and provide
    critical real-time support for millions of travelers. Based on the
    survey results, ASTA respectfully urges Congress to consider the
    following:

      1.  Prioritize stabilization of Federal travel infrastructure,
            particularly aviation systems heavily affected during
            government shutdowns.

      2.  Improve communication from Federal agencies to travel
            professionals who disseminate critical information to
            travelers.

      3.  Recognize travel advisors as essential partners in maintaining
            consumer confidence and navigating system-wide disruptions.

      4.  Include travel advisors in stakeholder discussions related to
            aviation reliability, shutdown impacts, and traveler-protection
            initiatives.
    Conclusion
        While many advisors believe their own role becomes more valuable in
    moments like these, the consensus is clear: government shutdowns
    disrupt not just travel plans, but the fundamental functioning of and
    confidence in the entire travel industry. The government placed
    substantial operational, economic, and emotional burdens on travel
    advisors, the travelers they support and the greater travel economy.
    Advisors are working longer hours under immense pressure, managing
    elevated traveler concerns, and absorbing the effects of widespread
    travel disruptions. Despite these challenges, they continue to provide
    stability and expertise during a period of significant uncertainty.
        We appreciate the Subcommittee's time and consideration of our
    concerns, and stand ready to assist in your ongoing work. To that end,
    please don't hesitate to contact ASTA Vice President, Advocacy, Jessica
    Klement at jklement@asta.org.
                Sincerely,
                                                    Zane Kerby,
                                                     President and CEO,
                                       American Society of Travel Advisors.

        Senator Moran. As a Kansan and someone that the state is
    hosting a FIFA and the Olympics coming up, and as Chair of the
    Congressional Senate Caucus on Travel and Tourism, we need the
    airlines fully operational and the travel industry capable of
    meeting significant demands as many international travelers
    will be visiting the United States, including Kansas City, in
    the near future.
        I thank all of our witnesses for their testimony today.
    Senators on this committee will have until the close of
    business on November 26 to submit questions for the record, and
    the witnesses will have until the close of business on December
    the 10 to respond to those questions. What that means is my
    colleagues and I may ask you questions in writing, and then if
    you would respond to those questions to--for the satisfaction
    of those senators and for the Committee record by the December
    the 10, that is what we would ask you to do.
        And that concludes today's hearing, and the Committee
    stands adjourned.
        [Whereupon, at 4:06 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]

                                A P P E N D I X

        Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Jacky Rosen to
                                  Nick Daniels
    Question Topic: Shutdown Impacts on ATC Workforce Pipeline
        During the 44-day government shutdown--the longest in our Nation's
    history--Nevada's Federal aviation workforce, including air traffic
    controllers (ATC) and TSA personnel, worked for weeks without pay.
    Fortunately, our airports and local organizations stepped up to support
    our workers. For example, the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority partnered
    with The Children's Cabinet and the Northern Nevada Food Bank to
    provide essential support, from food to household necessities.

        Question 1. From your perspective, despite these critically
    important community efforts, how has the economic and emotional strain
    of the shutdown affected morale, retention, and the future pipeline of
    skilled aviation personnel?
        Answer. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is
    extremely thankful for the efforts in Nevada through the partnership
    that included the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority to provide essential
    support for air traffic controllers and other aviation safety
    professionals who worked without pay during the shutdown. NATCA is also
    grateful for the countless other organizations who provided support
    across the country for these dedicated patriotic Federal workers.
    Groups like the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), the Association of
    Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association
    (SWAPA), and the NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots
    (NJASAP), and many individual airlines stood in solidarity and provided
    food and other forms of support during the shutdown.
        NATCA has always been concerned about the risks inherent in a
    government shutdown and the compounding negative effects a shutdown has
    on aviation safety, the U.S. economy, and the morale of the frontline
    workforce that safeguards the National Airspace System (NAS) every day.
    Government shutdowns--of any length--are incredibly stressful and
    distracting for the nearly 20,000 air traffic controllers and other
    aviation safety professionals NATCA represents, the vast majority of
    whom worked without pay during the shutdown. This is not acceptable and
    not sustainable.
        Nevertheless, during the shutdown, controllers continued to show up
    and step up for the American flying public and each other, deftly
    performing their safety-critical functions at the highest level despite
    operating 3,800 fully certified controllers short of the Federal
    Aviation Administration's (FAA) staffing target.
        It was incredibly unfair to expect hard-working, patriotic American
    air traffic controllers and their families to bear the full burden of
    policy disagreements in Congress. Increased stress decreased morale,
    personally, for controllers and their families who were enduring the
    effects of the shutdown as much as they were. Morale was also harmed as
    the workforce struggled financially to pay for rent, food, utilities,
    and childcare to make ends meet. The reality is that these
    professionals were required to oversee the movement of the Nation's
    passengers and cargo while many continued to work ten-hour days and
    six-day workweeks due to the ongoing staffing shortage, all without
    pay. All of these factors compounded to decrease morale.
        In spite of this, even as they went without pay during the record-
    long government shutdown, America's air traffic controllers remained
    steadfast in their commitment to ensuring the safety and efficiency of
    the National Airspace System.
        Although stress, financial insecurity, and decreased morale led to
    some unanticipated attrition among these professionals, NATCA does not
    have any specific data on how many controllers retired or resigned as a
    direct result of the shutdown. However, NATCA is extremely grateful to
    Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy who kept the FAA's
    controller hiring and training pipeline open during the shutdown. In
    fact, for the first time ever, Secretary Duffy directed the FAA to
    continue hiring and training controller candidates at the FAA's Academy
    in Oklahoma City during the shutdown, thereby ensuring controller
    staffing would not be as negatively affected unlike previous shutdowns.

        Question 2. What long-term impacts could we see on ATC and TSA
    workforce retention, and what policy solutions should Congress consider
    to ensure that talented young people continue to pursue careers in the
    Federal aviation workforce?
        Answer. Currently, NATCA is not aware of any long-term impacts to
    the ATC workforce in terms of recruitment or retention. However, the
    FAA was already operating near a 30-year low in terms of fully
    certified professional controllers: 3,800 controllers short of its
    staffing target.
        The controller workforce has been understaffed for more than a
    decade, resulting in mandatory overtime, including regular 10-hour days
    and six-day weeks. Last year, controllers at 40 percent of FAA
    facilities worked six days a week at least once per month. Several
    facilities require six-day workweeks every week. The FAA and NATCA are
    acutely aware of these thin staffing margins and the compounding
    effects they have on controller stress and fatigue.
        Retention efforts could become more challenging in the future if
    controllers elect to retire when first eligible, rather than waiting
    until age 56 mandatory retirement. However, recent efforts in Congress
    to raise the mandatory retirement age for controllers beyond age 56
    would not solve the current staffing crisis. Earlier this year, there
    were fewer than 50 controllers across only 32 facilities who would have
    reached age 56 within a year. Therefore, permitting controllers to work
    past age 56 would not have a meaningful effect on current controller
    staffing challenges.
        NATCA thanks this Committee for its work to address the shortage in
    the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024. It not only updated FAA's
    controller staffing targets, but it also requires the FAA to hire the
    maximum number of controller trainees for five years and deploy tower
    simulator systems to every FAA tower to improve training. This
    Committee must continue its oversight role to ensure that the
    requirements it established come to fruition.
        Additionally, NATCA supports S. 1985--the Safe Operations of Shared
    Airspace Act of 2025, which would, among other things, improve
    controller training and extend FAA's max hiring requirements contained
    in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 for an additional five years.
        Finally, NATCA continues to strongly support Secretary Duffy's plan
    to supercharge the hiring of controller trainees to bring in the best
    and brightest controller candidates.
        It is through these types of consistent, intentional, and sustained
    hiring and training efforts that we will begin to approach improved
    controller staffing numbers for years to come.
                                     ______

        Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Jacky Rosen to
                         Governor Christopher T. Sununu
        Question Topic: Impact of Trump Policies on International Air
    Travel
        The Trump Administration's policies have been undermining
    international travel and tourism for the past year. More visitors come
    to Las Vegas from Canada every year than from any other country across
    the globe. But thanks to Trump's tariffs, Canadian air travel to Las
    Vegas is down more than a third year-over-year. That is in addition to
    a 13 percent overall drop in international visitors--all of whom must
    decide whether or not to travel to the U.S. amidst a backdrop of
    foreign travelers being detained at airports, tariffs raising costs and
    undermining trade with our allies, and new fees that make international
    travel more expensive--like the $250 ``visa integrity fee'' created by
    the so-called ``One Big Beautiful Bill Act''.

        Question 1. Governor Sununu, can you talk about the impact these
    policies are having on air travel to the United States and how Congress
    should work to mitigate them in order to promote international travel
    and tourism?
        Answer. A4A, and our members, continue to support and are actively
    collaborating with Federal partners to drive both policies and
    investment that will benefit the travel and tourism industry. Travel
    and tourism investment will play a critical role in accommodating
    upcoming global events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and America 250,
    amongst many others.
        Additionally, maintaining and promoting the deregulatory policies
    that have democratized air travel to the benefit of both domestic and
    international travelers will be key to growing and promoting
    international tourism. We support the Department of Transportation's
    deregulatory agenda and directives, which squarely align with
    Congress's nearly 50-year mandate for a deregulated airline industry.
    The successes of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 (ADA) are
    undeniable, including a diversity of airline businesses that provide
    consumers with record air travel and cargo choices, as well as
    unprecedented affordability that allows more people to fly than ever
    before. Straying from these bedrock deregulatory principles or
    insisting on more regulatory controls will only create barriers for
    travel and tourism.
        However, the most material and impactful threats to a robust
    travel, tourism and aviation sector that need immediate mitigation and
    action are--

       Ensuring the Aviation System Is Not Harmed by Government
            Shutdowns--The most recent government shutdown clearly
            demonstrated the serious safety, human and economic
            consequences of subjecting the aviation sector to unnecessary
            stress and chaos. It must never happen again. Congress should
            take immediate actions to:

         Short-term: Pass the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026
                Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related
                Agencies (THUD) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
                appropriations bills to make sure the Federal Aviation
                Administration (FAA), Transportation Security
                Administration (TSA) and Customs and Border Protection
                (CBP) are not subject to shutdown impacts for the rest of
                FY 2026; and

         Durable Solution: Identify and enact solutions that
                will ensure the FAA, TSA and CBP are insulated from the
                impacts of any future lapses in appropriations, ensuring
                their employees can continue their work uninterrupted and
                with pay. Options include, but are not limited to, S. 1045
                and H.R. 6086 that both guarantee that essential Federal
                workers are paid for their essential work during any future
                government shutdown.

       Addressing the Air Traffic Controller Shortage. The ongoing
            air traffic controller staffing shortage, which was an acute
            issue prior to the shutdown and will only be exacerbated by the
            long-term impacts of the most recent shutdown. Beginning in
            October 2023, airlines reduced their flying from the New York
            metropolitan area by 10 percent to accommodate the lack of
            controller staffing at critical facilities.

        Additionally, in November 2024, the Department of Transportation
            Inspector General (DOT IG) put out its DOT Top Management
            Challenges report. That report states:

                    ``. . . FAA has not ensured adequate controller
                    staffing at its most critical facilities. For example,
                    we (IG) found that 20 of 26 critical facilities were
                    staffed below the Agency's threshold of 85 percent.''

                    ``FAA's implementation of pauses in air traffic
                    controller training during the COVID-19 pandemic
                    contributed to controller staffing challenges by
                    resulting in an increase in certification times for
                    controllers. FAA needs improved resiliency in staffing
                    and contingency planning for disruptions, and our audit
                    work shows that FAA's lack of a plan to address these
                    staffing challenges limits the capacity of the NAS.''

        Congress should work collaboratively with the Administration to
            execute, implement and invest in Secretary of Transportation
            Duffy's plans to ``supercharge'' air traffic controller hiring.

       Building the Brand New Air Traffic Control System. The U.S.
            ATC system is very safe, but the lack of government action has
            made it inefficient, antiquated and far from the ``gold
            standard'' Americans deserve. Unnecessary travel delays cost
            the U.S. economy and passengers more than $30 billion annually.
            These delays are the direct result of systemwide ATC
            inefficiencies resulting from the use of outdated, World War
            II-era radar technology. Controllers are still using paper
            strips to control traffic instead of electronic strips. Some
            computer system updates are done with floppy disks. Flights
            between Washington, D.C., and New York used to take 55 minutes,
            but to account for air traffic delays and inefficiencies, these
            flights are now scheduled to take 80 minutes or longer. Despite
            being a vital part of U.S. economic infrastructure, our
            airspace and the technology that supports it are the modern
            equivalent of driving a horse and buggy on a gravel road. This
            lack of efficiency and the resulting reduced capacity directly
            and negatively impacts carriers' ability to grow and compete
            and robs consumers and the economy of growth, jobs, tourism and
            related benefits.

        The aviation sector strongly supported Congress's $12.5 billion
            downpayment toward air traffic control modernization that was
            included in the ``One Big Beautiful Bill Act,'' and we continue
            to advocate for at least an additional $19 billion that will be
            needed to completely build a new air traffic control system.

        Fixing these fundamental government problems and challenges will
    provide the necessary stability and predictability needed to
    accommodate and grow the travel and tourism sector and will benefit
    every member of the traveling and shipping public.
    Question Topic: Impact of FAA Reduction Order
        The FAA recently mandated flight reductions of up to six percent at
    our busiest airports due to air traffic controller shortages that were
    worsened by the government shutdown. Airlines were forced to adjust
    tens of thousands of daily flights, directly affecting passenger travel
    and creating significant operational and financial strain.

        Question 1. Mr. Sununu, in your view, how have these travel
    disruptions impacted airline operations, passenger confidence, and the
    broader aviation system?
        Answer. The data from this most recent shutdown shows the material
    impact and real-world consequences of extended shutdowns and will
    hopefully convince policymakers that we should never subject our air
    traffic control system to this chaos again.
        Controller Staffing Triggers and Operational Limitations. According
    to FAA data, controller staffing issues contributed to 5 percent of
    National Airspace System (NAS) delay minutes from January through
    September, jumping to 16 percent in October and 62 percent in November.
    Over 6 million A4A member airline passengers were affected during the
    shutdown.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Many of the disruptions faced by passengers between October 1 and
    early November were a function of controller staffing-driven flight
    delays. During that period, A4A airlines incurred over 30,000 staffing-
    related delays but were able to minimize cancellations to about 400
    (<0.1 percent). This shutdown disrupted 3.7 million passengers in that
    time period and pushed the airlines to scramble to minimize customer
    impacts. The air traffic controller staffing issues then led to an
    unprecedented shutdown consequence where the FAA issued an Emergency
    Order (Order #1) directing air carriers to reduce domestic schedule
    operations across the NAS at 40 airports. Specifically, Order #1
    directed a 4 percent reduction in operations on Friday, November 7,
    ramping up to 6 percent by November 11, 8 percent by November 13 and 10
    percent by November 14. On November 12, citing substantial and rapid
    improvement in facility staffing conditions, the FAA issued a new
    Emergency Order (Order #2), which superseded Order #1. Order #2
    modified the operational limitation escalation to 6 percent. From
    November 7--the first day of the FAA-mandated flight-schedule
    reductions--through November 12, A4A airlines incurred more than 15,600
    staffing-related delays and more than 7,100 staffing-related flight
    cancellations, disrupting 2.3 million passengers.

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        The operational reduction percentages may seem trivial to the
    average observer, but when put into context they are extreme. On
    November 12, for example, 99.8 percent of the 861 staffing-related
    cancellations were attributable to FAA-mandated flight reductions at 40
    airports. For perspective, in November 2024, data from the Bureau of
    Transportation Statistics show that U.S. airlines canceled just 0.46
    percent of scheduled flights--across all categories of causation,
    including NAS issues. Promulgating a cancellation rate of 6 percent for
    several consecutive days, if not longer, for ATC staffing reasons
    alone, without a chance for operations to recover, is highly disruptive
    to our customers and takes a toll on our frontline employees--at the
    airport, on the plane, on our help desks, etc. At the 40 target
    airports, applying the 6 percent directive translates to approximately
    875 cancellations and 60,000 disrupted passengers per day which is more
    than 13 times the normal rate.
        A4A estimates that if Order #1 would have reached the original 10
    percent threshold, by November 14, the daily average toll on the U.S.
    economy would have reached as much as $580 million depending on the
    degree to which airlines could reaccommodate cancellation-disrupted
    passengers on the remaining flights.
        Of note, that economic impact estimate is tied solely to compliance
    with the flight-reduction directive, and it does not include the costs
    associated with the value of passenger time, reduced bookings,
    passenger refunds, etc. It does include indirect and induced impacts
    tied to reduced visitor spending, state and local tax revenue and
    spending across the broader economy as individuals within and outside
    the aviation supply chain curtailed expenditures.
        The air traffic controller staffing crisis also triggered broad
    secondary impacts. In many instances, even those passengers who
    successfully reach their destination encountered long departure delays,
    extended tarmac times and highly unpredictable arrival times. For the
    airlines, many flight crews were timing out (per regulated limits) or
    missing connections because of late aircraft arrivals and equipment
    mis-positioning.
        For the controller staffing issues in particular, unlike weather-
    driven disruptions, each controller shift change or facility staffing
    trigger could result in added hours of delay with no advance notice,
    undermining the airlines' ability to plan, staff or accommodate
    impacted customers.
        Despite airline mitigations, it created mass disruptions and should
    serve as an example of the real-world economic and human impact of a
    government shutdown. This simply should never happen again, and it is
    most certainly preventable.

        Question 2. Looking forward, what specific steps can airlines and
    the FAA take collaboratively--such as workforce planning, accelerated
    training, investment in advanced traffic management technologies, or
    operational coordination--to address the underlying air traffic
    controller shortage and ensure that the air travel system can safely
    and efficiently handle peak demand, even during unexpected crises?
        Answer. The most recent shutdown distinctly showed the lengths at
    which the FAA and the aviation community will go to collaborate and
    maintain safety in the system. A4A welcomes opportunities to
    collaborate with the FAA, but ATC staffing is a uniquely governmental
    responsibility that can only be addressed through government action.
        A4A supports an ``all-of-the-above approach.'' Every facet of the
    controller recruitment, retention, training, staffing and hiring
    framework should be analyzed for better efficiency and effectiveness.
        A4A also supports DOT Secretary Duffy's ATC staffing
    ``supercharge'' effort to hire at least 8,900 new air traffic
    controllers through 2028.
        In addition to fully utilizing and expanding the capacity of the
    FAA Academy through the efforts above, A4A supports the FAA's expansion
    of the Air Traffic-Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI) program
    which provides a strategic pathway to increase the hiring capacity for
    air traffic controllers. As the FAA reestablishes and expands the AT-
    CTI program, A4A supports the FAA establishing and certifying a program
    that allows applicants to graduate and go directly to on-the-job
    training at air traffic towers, Terminal Radar Approach Control
    (TRACONs) and Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) facilities
    across the country.
        Congress and the Administration need to coordinate and establish a
    governance and funding system that will provide stable and predictable
    funding to holistically address the controller shortage. A4A is not
    alone with these recommendations, as we are part of an unprecedented,
    industry-wide broad aviation community coalition established earlier
    this year, the ``Modern Skies Coalition,'' which wholeheartedly
    endorses ``supercharging'' air traffic controller hiring.
                                     ______

         Response to Written Question Submitted by Hon. Jacky Rosen to
                                 James A. Viola
    Question Topic: FAA Recovery from Shutdown Impacts
        Question 1. Mr. Viola, your testimony has several suggestions on
    ways FAA can manage the backlog from shutdown to expedite recovery. Can
    you elaborate on that?
        Answer. Thank you for the opportunity to elaborate on ways that FAA
    can manage the backlog created by the recent government shutdown. My
    response is focused on two areas: the FAA's ability to hire the
    workforce needed to provide safety oversight and the ability of
    existing employees to have flexibility to utilize their Personal Time
    Off (PTO) into 2026.
        A significant concern involves the approximately 600 engineers,
    pilots, inspectors, and technical specialists that AVS was actively
    hiring when the shutdown began. These candidates were left in limbo and
    may now decide not to pursue Federal employment. It takes 6-12 months
    to train a new certification engineer before they can just start to be
    productive. It is a multi-year process to qualify a new flight test
    pilot. This highlights the compounding effect of lost time and lost
    applicants. It isn't a six-week disruption, it's a multi-year set back,
    particularly for highly technical and unique skills such as structural
    loads, software, hybrid propulsion, system safety, and flight test
    pilots.
        For these highly technical safety positions, direct-hire authority
    is one of the FAA's most effective tools for attracting, rebuilding and
    sustaining the specialized technical talent pipeline and ensuring the
    agency can meet its safety mission, support U.S. innovation, and uphold
    global aviation leadership. The FAA competes directly with
    manufacturers, technical firms, and global aerospace companies for the
    same highly skilled professionals, and industry hires in days while the
    traditional Federal hiring process can take months. Direct-hire
    authority allows the FAA to recruit in weeks instead of losing top
    candidates to faster-moving employers. Several of these direct-hire
    authorities for engineers, pilots, and inspectors expire at the end of
    this year so we recommend that this be extended or permanently
    implemented for these highly specialized safety positions particularly
    given the shutdown.
        FAA workforce availability is also essential to effectively and
    efficiently work through the backlog of activities that build up during
    the shutdown and restoring U.S. aviation business activities and
    competitiveness in product development, innovation, manufacturing, and
    global exports. Given the amount of change and uncertainty for the
    Federal workforce this year, further exacerbated by the six weeks of
    shutdown, one of the greatest challenges and significant risk to
    recovery is the backlog of the individual personal time off (PTO)
    ``use-or-lose'' annual leave benefit which must be used by January 10,
    2026, or be forfeited. Consistent with what was implemented following
    the 2018-2019 shutdown, we recommend that the Administration extend the
    ability for Federal employees to use their earned PTO annual leave
    benefit at least to the end of CY2026 so that the FAA does not face a
    significant workforce shortage when they are needed most for starting
    to make up for lost ground.

                                    [all]