Citing the deterioration of aviation infrastructure and the growing global recession, the CEO of American Airlines has suggested that the government include the airline industry in its federal stimulus plans.
CEO Gerald Arpey said Tuesday that any such help should not involve a financial bailout of ailing airlines, but should include spending to fix the nation’s outdated air traffic control system and crumbling runways.
Arpey made the comments at a business forum organized by a Texas newspaper, during the same week that President-elect Barack Obama proposed a stimulus program that would include massive infrastructure projects.
Though some struggling airlines did receive federal grants after the terrorist attacks of 2001, Arpey did not suggest airlines get direct aid at this time, despite the fact that every U.S. carrier except Southwest is expected to lose money in 2008.
The U.S. airline industry is actually in better shape than the auto industry, which is bleeding billions of dollars per month and is set to start receiving direct financial aid as soon as Congress approves a loan package. A vote could happen in the Senate as soon as today.
Airlines did suffer from the crippling fuel price spikes of mid-2008, which caused them to sustain millions in collective losses, but they are now recovering. North American carriers are predicted to make a small profit in 2009 after cost-cutting and revenue-boosting measures were instituted during the year.
Arpey hopes that an Obama stimulus package would include funds to improve airport runways and control towers, security enhancements for passenger and cargo facilities, and upgrades to the air traffic control system.
“There’s a long list of infrastructure needs in the industry right now,” Arpey said.
Related Links: Fort Worth Star-Telegram, USA Today, CNN, New York Times
By Karen Elowitt for PeterGreenberg.com.
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