[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
[February 12, 1997]
[Pages 147-149]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks on Receiving the Final Report of the White House Commission on 
Aviation Safety and Security and an Exchange With Reporters
February 12, 1997

    The President. Thank you very much, Mr. Vice President. Secretary 
Pena, Secretary-designate Slater; Senator Lautenberg, thank you for your 
support and involvement. And a special thanks to all the members of this 
very distinguished Commission for the work that they did.
    This report lays out a clear plan of action to ensure that America's 
airways and airplanes will remain the safest and that our passengers the 
most secure in the world well into the next century.
    Our aviation infrastructure is just as important to us today as the 
great railroads were in the 1800's or the interstate highway system 
became in the second half of the 20th century. Just as they made us 
competitive in the economies of the 19th and 20th century, a modernized 
national airspace system will determine our ability to compete in the 
21st century.

[[Page 148]]

    It is fitting that the Vice President is leading this effort. One of 
the great legacies of Al Gore, Sr.'s service in the United States Senate 
was his leadership in building our interstate highway system. The 
mission to modernize and improve our airspace system for the challenges 
of the next century is every bit as important and historic, and I thank 
him for the work he has done.
    I also want to commend the members of this Commission for first 
taking on the task and especially the family members of the victims of 
airline disasters, those serving on the Commission, those who wrote to 
us, those who testified before us about how to improve our interaction 
with families in the aftermath of disasters. Out of their personal 
tragedy they have made a valuable contribution to all of us.
    The recommendations in this report are strong, and we will put them 
into action. We will use all the tools of modern science to make flying 
as safe as possible. We will bring our air traffic control system into 
the 21st century, and we will do it by converting to space age satellite 
technology. We will also change the way we inspect older aircraft, to 
include an examination of wiring and hydraulic systems, all to ensure 
that every plane carrying passengers, regardless of its age, is as safe 
as it can be.
    We are doing all these things so that we can cut the fatal accident 
rate by 80 percent in 5 years--in 10 years--and so that by the year 2005 
our air traffic control system will be the finest in the world. We are 
also taking steps to improve security for all American travelers.
    I want to say a word about two of the report's most important 
recommendations on accident reduction and security. First, it's 
important to note that air travel is still our safest mode of 
transportation and America has the lowest accident rate in the world. We 
have to keep it the lowest and keep working to improve. The FAA and the 
airline industry have been partners in this effort for years. Today I am 
pleased to announce that NASA will join them. NASA has agreed to 
dedicate up to a half a billion dollars in research and development 
budget over the next 5 years to help make sure we do achieve our 
accident reduction goal.
    Second, aviation security is one of the major fronts of our three-
part counterterrorism strategy. On September 9th, I accepted the 
Commission's 20 initial policy recommendations on security. We acted 
quickly to implement these recommendations. We have begun installing 54 
bomb detection machines in America's airports. We are training and 
deploying over 100 bomb-sniffing dog teams. The FAA is hiring 300 new 
special agents to test airport security. And the FBI is adding 644 
agents and 620 support personnel in 1997 to counterterrorism efforts.
    We are taking action to make our people more secure. But we cannot 
afford to rest. The balanced budget I submitted to Congress last week 
contains $100 million for future aviation security improvements, as the 
Commission recommends. I urge the Congress to provide this critical 
funding. This unprecedented Federal commitment reflects our resolve to 
do everything we can to protect our people and to prevent terrorism.
    Again, let me thank the Vice President and the Commission for this 
remarkable report. Your work should give the American people confidence 
that air travel in the 21st century will be better and safer than ever 
before.
    Thank you very much.
    The Vice President. Mr. President, I think we're going to have a 
chance to visit with each of them. I want to just note that every single 
member of the Commission signed the final recommendations. And it was 
unanimous on every section, with the exception of one dissent in one 
part of the report from one Commissioner. Every member of the Commission 
has signed it.

American Airlines Labor Dispute

    Q. Mr. President, on aviation, if American Airlines and its pilots 
can't come to an agreement by Friday, are you inclined to use your power 
to declare a national emergency and therefore avoid the disruption of a 
strike? [Laughter]
    The President. You're going to have another shot at me tomorrow, you 
know. [Laughter] First of all, today I want to say this and just this. 
This issue has huge implications for our country and, in particular, for 
specific parts of our country. I have been following it very closely. 
Today I want to say that the time has not expired, and I want to 
encourage the parties to make maximum use of the mediation board 
process. That's what ought to be done today, and that's all I have to 
say about it today.

[[Page 149]]

    Thank you.

Note: The President spoke at 1:47 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House.