Faa Reauthorization Act of 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of Nebraska. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this amendment, which would direct the Comptroller General to study the current and future availability of pilots in the aviation workforce.

Since the implementation of new pilot training requirements for first officers in 2013, two airlines which provided air service to my congressional district have filed for bankruptcy, citing the inability to find pilots as a primary factor in their financial struggles. Even before withdrawing from Nebraska, both airlines had poor flight cancellation records, which they indicated was caused by this issue, severely reducing enplanements at these airports.

In rural areas like Nebraska's Third District, commercial air service provides a vital economic link for communities which are several hours' drive from the nearest major airport.

In an effort to further address the concerns of the seven communities with passenger air service in my district and numerous others around the country, this amendment merely asks GAO to study what the current state of the aviation workforce is, where it is going in the future, and what, if anything, we can do to mitigate pilot shortages. We must do more to address these communities' concerns, and this study will provide valuable information as we seek to address this problem.

Beyond the direct economic impact on these communities from the loss of these flights, these cancellations have also caused overall enplanements at airports such as Kearney, North Platte, and Scottsbluff, Nebraska, and other airports in a number of other States, to fall below the minimum 10,000 required to qualify for full Airport Improvement Program funding.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the chairman and ranking member for moving my other amendment en bloc to provide regulatory relief to airports by treating them consistently with how they have been treated previously.

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Mr. SMITH of Nebraska. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster).

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Mr. SMITH of Nebraska. Mr. Chairman, again, this amendment just asks the Comptroller General to assess our current situation for aviation and pilot needs. Canceled flights have been a major problem for communities with the smaller airlines, and certainly we want to prevent something in a similar manner from impacting the larger airports around the country as well.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the chairman and ranking member for their support, and I urge others to support this amendment.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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