The Pros And Cons Of Air Traffic Control

The sector employs more than 3 million people. Prior to the 1990’s, the air transport industry in Europe had been traditionally highly regulated and dominated by national carriers and state owned airports. Since then a single market for aviation has been created. The single market has seen the removal of all commercial restrictions for airlines flying within Europe. These include restrictions on routes, number of flights and the setting of prices.

This case study will discuss the pros and cons of operating an airport with a government-operated system of security versus returning to a privately owned and operated security organization. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was introduced to the airline industry after the attacks on September 11th, 2001. Complaints of slow wait times during periods of heavy traffic and the ability to manage the labor force have recently sparked an interest of Airports switching their security to a privatized company.

The United States Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 was a dramatic turning point in America. It was the first systematic dismantling of a comprehensive system of government control since the Supreme Court declared the National Recovery Act unconstitutional in 1935. It was also part of a broader movement that, with varying degrees of thoroughness, transformed such industries as trucking, railroads, buses, cable television, stock exchange brokerage, oil and gas, telecommunications, financial markets, and even local electric and gas utilities. Since the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, the airline industry has experienced significant growth,

The odds are that at some point in time, most people in America will travel by air. What most of these people do not realize is that a simple flight is in reality a well-oiled, complex machine unlike any other air navigation service provider in the world. After the Wright brothers took their first successful flight, America embraced air travel.  The Federal Aviation Agency (now Administration) officially began operations in May of 1958, and later developed a sophisticated air traffic control system that is responsible for the largest volume of air traffic in the world (“A Brief History of the FAA”). Today, however, many politicians believe that government involvement in air traffic control is inhibiting the overall performance of air traffic control. Several bills have been proposed to Congress since the 1970s in attempt to separate air traffic control (referenced as ATC) from the FAA by privatization, corporatization, or other means (Elias 2). The most recent of these bills has caused serious debate in the aviation world over economic policies, safety regulations, and overall effectiveness of the current ATC system. The Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization Act (21st Century AIRR Act) as proposed by Representative Bill Shuster should not be passed by Congress because it would privatize air traffic control by removing it from the Federal Aviation Administration. This would entail the creation of a board of stakeholders who would have the power to make regulatory

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 shook the United States in a profound way, deeply upsetting the national perception of safety within U.S. borders. No industry or sector of the economy felt the impacts of these events more than the airline industry. Both the immediate reaction to the attacks and the long-term repercussions have negatively affected the industry. Today’s airline industry is much different than it was prior to September 11. There is a much smaller work force, more low-cost carriers, more security and more fees associated with flying.

This paper reviews the tragic mid-air crash of PSA flight 182 and Cessna N7711G a Cessna 172 over San Diego and its resulting FAA rules and regulation changes, and their affect on the U.S. aviation industry. PSA Flight 182’s mid-air resulted in the most sweeping FAA changes to airspace to date. The FAA rules and regulation changes was a success in preventing similar mid-airs of this type.

The TSA have caught “TSA officers discovered 2,212 firearms in carry-on bags” (“TSA releases 2015 statistics.” Transportation Security Administration, 21 Jan. 2016) The TSA screen up to 1.9 million people per day to see if their trying to pass with any illegal traveling weapons or if they have any firearms. The TSA “screened more than 432 million checked bags, more than 1.6 billion carry-on bags and 12.9 million airport employees”, they check everyone and try to ensure that everyone who enters and leaves the airport travels with safe passage and with nothing to worry about. The TSA also put Air Marshals on planes so many times to make ensure the safe passage of citizens that if the total amount of miles were to be added up it would be more than a billion miles that Air

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have become a quickly growing part of the aviation community over the last five to ten years. More and more of these aircraft are flying in the National Airspace System (NAS) with each passing year, without any set rules governing their operation. With the growing population of UAS in the NAS, for military, civil, and commercial use, the need for regulation is becoming increasingly obvious. How to regulate this type of aircraft is no simple task. Taking into consideration the many factors of these aircraft such as size, purpose, who is using them, and location of use, it is difficult to determine what regulation is required. That is the task that has been set before the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). To determine what type of regulation is needed to integrate and ensure the safe operation of UAS in the NAS since the skies that they share are shared with manned aircraft.

Transportation security today has evolved into a proactive process rather than a reactive response to threats, or failed attempts involving skyjacking. “The only recorded

September 11, 2001, was a horrific event that rocked the world and the way people viewed the safety of airline travel. The airline industry was hit the hardest after that day and it was uncertain if they could regain their customer’s

At the onset of the airline industry in the United States, major network airlines were the sole providers of air travel. This multifaceted industry was a difficult industry to break into as a consequence of “sophisticated customer segmentation, hub-and spoke models and costly information systems for reservations, fare wars and intense competition” (Thompson 2008). Shrinkage in airline ticket prices augmented the demand for airline travel. Many markets were simply deserted or over-looked by major network airlines; this is a region a fresh “second tier of service providers” could enter into. This endeavor proved to provide a consumer savings of billions per year. Thus in June of 1971, after a tumultuous battle with other Texas-based

Another emerging trend in the past five years has involved the progress made on open skies agreements between the United States and other countries. Open skies agreements serve to liberalize Orlando International Airport transport markets between the two signing countries or parties in the agreement. These agreements remove government restrictions, such as limits to the number of flights any one airline is allowed to operate per week between countries. The removal of these limitations has opened some routes up to increased competition, by allowing Orlando International Airport to fly more frequently and making these routes more accessible. Orlando International Airport could not previously justify the capital expense of operating on routes with limited flights are now able to profit on routes with high demand.

A drop in fares has been the best result of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. It has been the impetus for the increase in the number of flights, which in turn has spurred a drive for greater safety in airlines. But with the current airline market, this development has given us one negative. Since ticket prices have dropped to new lows, the realities of an industry which operates on such economies of scale dictates that only a few competitors have the capacity to operate within the market. This is not the desired effect of either political side on this issue, but it is an economic necessity with the environment that has been created, very similar to that of public utilities and phone companies.

There have been few inventions to change how people live and experience the world considerably as the creation of the airplane. Today, traveling by air has become the norm and it would be difficult to imagine life without it. Air travel has improved the way people are able to conduct business by shortening travel time and changing their thought of distance. The companies within the airline industry exist in a very competitive market. One of those companies, Southwest Airlines, features low-fare, no-frills air service with frequent flights of mostly short routes. Costs are kept down by the exclusive use of Boeing 737 aircraft, which allows for low maintenance costs and quicker turnaround times for flights, and by an emphasis on ticketless travel (Encyclopedia Britannica). This paper will address two segments of the general environment and how they affect Southwest and the airline industry; evaluate how Southwest has addressed two forces of competition; predict what Southwest might do to improve its ability to addresses these forces; assess the external threats affecting Southwest; discuss Southwest’s greatest strengths and most significant weaknesses; determine Southwest’s resources, capabilities, and core competencies; and analyze their value chain.

In examining the history of aviation in the U.S. and the development of the airlines, it is clear that the Federal Government played a vital role in the development of both. Historical records clearly show that this involvement by the Federal Government was critical in getting them established and in helping to develop them into the globally dominant enterprises they are today. Furthermore, it can be easily argued that U.S. aviation as a whole, and the airlines in particular, would not be where they are today without this direct involvement by the Federal Government and some of the very specific actions that it has taken to keep them relevant and competitive during the most dire of times. The Federal Government ensured that U.S. aviation and its airlines would develop and achieve a worldwide leadership role by becoming involved in three major ways: through funding, legislation, and policy setting.