Says Flights “Will Not Compromise Safety In Any Way”
Washington, D.C. – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) appeared on Bloomberg to discuss the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization bill and the quickly-approaching May 10th passage deadline. During the interview, Senator Warnock voiced his support for including five new flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) in the bill. The five flights, a bipartisan compromise reached by U.S. House and Senate negotiators, would improve affordable access to the national capital region.
Senator Warnock said the new flights would only add one percent to DCA’s daily operations and, contrary to what the Senators from Virginia and Maryland claim, will not compromise safety in anyway and notes that the issue has been addressed with the FAA.
Current and former FAA Administrators have confirmed that DCA has the capacity to safely add more flights, as there are three times during the day where runway capacity exceeds demand. New flights would be added during non-peak times. What’s more, data shows that DCA operates 40,000 fewer flights annually today than it did 24 years ago. Capacity existed then, and capacity exists now. More flights will help boost competition, lower ticket prices and help consumers travel to Washington, D.C. more affordably.
Watch Senator Warnock’s full interview HERE and read his comments on DCA flights below:
BLOOMBERG’S KAILEY LEINZ: “What do you say to those though who suggest that adding slots at Reagan could potentially lead to further delays or even safety risks?”
SENATOR WARNOCK: “Well, I have great respect and really affection for my colleagues in Maryland and Virginia, but they are wrong on this issue. To put it bluntly, they’re just wrong. This will not compromise safety in any way. We have addressed this issue with the FAA. Basically, we want to make sure that flyers throughout our country have access to the nation’s capital. This is the seat of government. Basically, this is a modest proposal that will add about one percent to DCA’s daily operations. I think that my colleagues, respectfully, have certain interests that they’re trying to protect. Their safety issue simply does not hold water, and I’m hopeful that at the end of the day, we’ll be able to have some more flights. Really, it’s just a handful more flights coming in and out of the airport that serves the nation’s capital, and certainly people west of the Mississippi should have access, as well as folks on this side who go back and forth every single day.”
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