[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 86 (Thursday, June 17, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                   SUPPORT OF THE AIR 21 LEGISLATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DANNY K. DAVIS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 16, 1999

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Air 21 
legislation. I believe it is a fair attempt to ensure the safety and 
economic well being of our nation and its airports. I also support the 
Shuster manager's amendment. Mr. Speaker this legislation is fair and 
right. For those who oppose immediate elimination of slots this 
amendment postpones the elimination of slots at O'Hare for two years 
until 2002, and for New York's Kennedy and Laguardia airports until 
2007. This will allow many of the smaller airlines increased access to 
larger airports ultimately increasing flight availability, reduced 
flight delays and decreased airfares.
  It is imperative that Congress seize this opportunity to invest in 
our nation's aviation system and protect the flying public. Mr. 
Speaker, while airports are crowded today, air travel is forecast to 
increase by over 50 percent to one billion passengers over the next 10 
years. We desperately need more funding to curb the increasing demand 
on our nation's airport. Capacity constraints and air traffic control 
outages have caused many flight delays and cancellations. Air 21 will 
enable America to continue to prosper and avoid gridlock in our 
aviation system. If we fail to invest in our nation's aviation system 
we will compromise aviation safety, increase delay time and hinder much 
needed technological innovations. Air 21 is exactly what we need, it 
provides airport modernization, improves capacity, and increases fair 
competition.
  For this reason I support Air 21 and urge all of my colleagues to 
vote in support of this very important legislation.

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