[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 137 (Wednesday, October 1, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S12273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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        75TH ANNIVERSARY OF NEWARK LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

 Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise today to celebrate 
Newark Liberty International Airport's 75th Anniversary. On October 1, 
1928, the New York metropolitan region's first major airport was built 
by the great city of Newark on 68 acres of marshland just 16 miles from 
midtown Manhattan. Soon those 68 acres became the world's busiest 
commercial airport. The U.S. Army Air Corps operated the Airport during 
WWII, and in 1948, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 
assumed control of it. The Port Authority has operated this airport 
ever since.
  Today, some 30 million passengers use the airport annually. And 
international airlines offer direct service to many destinations around 
the world from Newark Liberty. It is also one of only two truly 
intermodal air-rail connections in the country. Passengers can take a 
train from any city on the Northeast corridor and transfer at the 
airport for a flight. In some cases, they can even book the entire air/
rail trip all at once. This should serve as a shinning example of how 
our national transportation system can work.
  Over 24,000 people are employed at the Newark Liberty International 
Airport. The airport contributes $11.3 billion in economic activity to 
the New York/New Jersey metropolitan region, including $3.3 billion in 
wages for some 110,000 jobs resulting from airport activity. In 
addition, the original 68 acres of marshland has grown to more than 
2,000 acres.
  Newark Liberty International Airport's 75th birthday deserves more 
than just a brief nod. As a former Port Authority Commissioner, I am 
pleased to point out that the airport has been a leader in aviation 
technology. Newark, for instance, was the site of our great Nation's 
first air traffic control tower. The very same airport had the first 
paved runway, the first runway with lighting, which permitted nighttime 
operations, and the Nation's first airport weather station.
  So, today I congratulate the Port Authority of New York and New 
Jersey, Chairman Anthony Coscia, Executive Director Joseph Seymour, 
Mayor of Newark Sharpe James, Aviation Director Bill DeCota, Airport 
General Manager Susan Baer, her staff, and all others who have made 
Newark Liberty International Airport the world class facility it is 
today, and I look forward to celebrating 75 more years of safe, 
efficient operations.

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