Jay Rockefeller: “Imagine this: gridlock in the skies; passengers delayed for hours and hours on a runway; an aging, antiquated air…”

“Imagine this: gridlock in the skies; passengers delayed for hours and hours on a runway; an aging, antiquated air traffic control system just struggling to keep up with the growth of air traffic; a fight over how to pay for the billions of dollars needed to address airport infrastructure, infrastructure in all of its manifestations. I could be talking about the present, but I am not. I am talking about the years 2000 and 2001, prior to 9/11. Then 9/11 did happen. It changed our country forever, and it changed it in countless ways. It forced us to understand how important aviation is to our Nation, our economy, and, in fact, very much our way of life. It also showed how fragile our system is and, I will argue, how fragile our system remains as it further deteriorates. This Congress has worked diligently to address the security weaknesses. That was the TSA that took place a long time ago. That is working. It is not perfect, but it is working. I think people feel safe with it, but we have not adequately addressed any of the other weaknesses. We have completely inadequately funded the Federal Aviation Administration. We have a chronically unprofitable commercial aviation industry, which is the backbone of our Nation's commerce. We have an inadequate investment in aerospace research. Because of this, we face the same problems we did in 2000 except they are worse.”