US Airports not Ready for the Rush; Travel needs upgrades says US Air Travel Association 

By Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer 

#USA, May 1, 2023 – On the cusp of another record-breaking summer season with over half of all Americans (53 percent ) planning to travel in the next six months, the US Travel Association is warning that US air travel is not ready for the rush.

The Association is demanding $8.5 billion in the country’s new legislation, to correct a suite of staffing and investment deficiencies.

“Years of underinvestment in the Federal Aviation Administration has led to an air travel system that is struggling under intense and growing demand,” the Association said in an April 26 press release.

Quoting a new travel survey which indicated that 81 percent of leisure travelers have travel planned in the next six months and 26 percent of Americans plan to increase the amount they spend on leisure travel in the next three months, the Association said a lack of air traffic controllers was already causing issues in the US prior to this projected increase.

They maintained that insufficient funds for staffing and investment in technology had caused the issue, that without remedy, would cause major problems come summer.

“Americans are paying the price of years of chronic underinvestment—in technology and staffing—by the federal government in our nation’s air travel system,” U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman is quoted as saying. He encouraged air travelers to demand more from the US government

They say the $8.5 billion should go to Airport Improvement Program Grants;  aviation workforce development programs; air traffic control infrastructure and technology; and hiring 1,800 new air traffic controllers per year over the next three years.

Freeman is warning that if travel continues to be such a hassle for residents, demand will peter out.

“While demand is strong now, there is concern these inefficiencies could drive travelers away in the long term,” he maintained.