| Airlines for America | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1936 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Membership | 14 airlines (2011) |
| Key people | Nicholas E. Calio, President and CEO |
| Website | http://www.airlines.org/ |
Airlines for America (A4A), formerly known as Air Transport Association of America (ATA), is America's oldest and largest airline trade association. A4A member airlines and their affiliates transport more than 90 percent of U.S. airline passenger and cargo traffic. Based in Washington, D.C., the association advocates for the U.S. airline industry as "a model of safety, customer service and environmental responsibility." The fundamental purpose of A4A is to foster a business and regulatory environment that ensures "safe and secure air transportation and enables U.S. airlines to flourish, stimulating economic growth locally, nationally and internationally."[1] It is the only trade organization that represents the principal U.S. airlines and is the airlines' key voice before Congress.[2]
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A4A's stated purpose is to "foster a business and regulatory environment that ensures safe and secure air transportation and enables U.S. airlines to flourish, stimulating economic growth locally, nationally and internationally." [1]
A4A advocates on behalf of the airline industry to the U.S. Congress, state legislatures, the Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Homeland Security, the Transportation Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection. The association has played a major role in all government decisions concerning aviation since its founding in 1936, including the creation of the Civil Aeronautics Board, the creation of the air traffic control system and airline deregulation. A4A also advocates that the American government implement a national airline policy that will enable U.S. airlines to function as effective multi-national enterprises. A4A believes an element of such a policy is the modernization of the U.S. air traffic management system, the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). [2] [2]
A4A senior staff members have testified before Congress on numerous legislative and regulatory matters including arguing that government policy must enable airlines to be job creators by no longer suppressing growth through overly burdensome taxation, enhancing competition in international markets and advocating for a comprehensive review of the FAA's NextGen program costs, benefits, progress and management. A4A works with its members on legal and technical issues affecting the U.S. airline industry. A4A operates member committees related to fuel; airports; engineering and maintenance; the environment; training; security; facilitation; ground safety; cargo; passenger services; communications; government affairs; and international affairs. A4A advocates common industry positions before state and local governments to assure governmental and public understanding of all aspects of commercial airlines. [3][3][4]
A4A's priorities include maintaining airline safety; reforming energy-commodity markets; creating an international framework for reducing industry emissions; accelerating modernization of the air traffic control system; and reducing government taxes on airlines.[5] Airlines for America also has been very involved in promoting fuel efficiency and the development of alternative fuels.[6]
The Air Transport Association supports NextGen modernization of the air traffic control system. This system will update the current 1950s radar-based technology with a modern, satellite-based navigation system.[7] Aviation experts predict that a modern air traffic management system will save jet fuel and reduce delays by allowing planes to fly shorter routers and by allowing more aircraft to fly safely at any given time. Modernizing the air traffic control system would also reduce the amount of time that airplanes spend waiting on runways and in holding patterns.[8]
Since 1937, A4A has typically released an annual economic report on the U.S. airline industry that includes statistics on operational and financial results for passenger and cargo operations.[9] This report includes data on industry revenue, expenses, traffic, fuel use, safety, economic impact and employment. A4A also publishes a handbook on the airline industry that provides background information on airline economics, operations, safety, security and history.[4]
The then Air Transport Association released the newest version of ATA Spec 100 in 1999. According to the A4A website, this information will not be revised, and has been combined with ATA Spec 2100 to produce the ATA iSpec 2200: Information Standards for Aviation Maintenance manual.
This specification defines a widely-used numbering scheme for aircraft parts and the appearance of printed aircraft maintenance information. The Federal Aviation Administration's JASC (Joint Aircraft System/Component) code table provides a modified version of ATA Spec 100.
ATA Spec 100 contains format and content guidelines for technical manuals written by aviation manufacturers and suppliers, and is used by airlines and other segments of the industry in the maintenance of their respective products. This document provides the industrywide standard for aircraft systems numbering, often referred to as the ATA system or ATA chapter numbers. The format and content guidelines define the data prepared as conventional printed documentation. In 2000, ATA Spec 100 and ATA Spec 2100 were incorporated into ATA iSpec 2200: Information Standards for Aviation Maintenance. ATA Spec 100 and Spec 2100 will not be updated beyond the 1999 revision level.