Jack Reed: “Virtually no other. Comments were made on the floor with respect to legislation passed back in 1994 with respect to…”

“Virtually no other. Comments were made on the floor with respect to legislation passed back in 1994 with respect to general aviation. I think it is important at this juncture to clarify that. There was very limited legislation that applied to general aviation aircraft, 18 years or older, in terms of liability because of the concern about the manufacturing base. But there is a distinct difference between this legislation and the General Aviation Revitalization Act of 1994, and it goes to the point we just discussed. There is no more highly regulated industry than the aviation industry. Every time an engine is worked on, there has to be a log entry made which is subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Aviation Administration. It is the most detailed legislative scheme we have in place perhaps because the safety of the passengers, all of us, depends upon it. So giving a limited grant of immunity to an industry that is so highly regulated is quite different than telling an unregulated industry you have no liability. That is essentially what this bill does, with very minor exceptions; clearly, I think exceptions which were artfully crafted to avoid the cases that exist today.”