Transportation

Cruz to revive air traffic control reform push


With help from Brianna Gurciullo

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Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is reopening the debate over air traffic control reform, a year after previous efforts to get changes into the FAA reauthorization legislation fizzled.

DOT has sidelined a trucking safety advisory committee as fatalities from truck crashes soared to their highest level in a decade.

The FAA’s certification will be back in the spotlight as House appropriators prepare to grill a top agency official at a hearing this week.

IT’S MONDAY: Thanks for tuning in to POLITICO’s Morning Transportation, your daily tipsheet on all things trains, planes, automobiles and ports. Get in touch with tips, feedback or song lyric suggestions at smintz@politico.com or @samjmintz.

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CRUZ RELAUNCHES AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL REFORM PUSH: The Texas senator, who chairs Commerce’s aviation subpanel, is launching a series of hearings, with the first set to take place on Tuesday. It’s a (very) early start to the conversation ahead of the next FAA reauthorization, which isn’t due until 2023. MT readers will remember the fight over air traffic control, which consumed Congress last year before fizzling out. With the retirement of Bill Shuster, who was the main booster on the hill for separating air traffic control from the FAA, is Cruz looking to take up the mantle?

It sounds like he might. “There is widespread agreement the Air Traffic Control system we have today is not working for the American people,” Cruz said in a statement. The series of hearings, he said, “provides an opportunity to restart the conversation around much-needed ATC reform, hear from stakeholders on all sides of the issue, and begin developing solutions that make air travel more efficient, affordable, and reliable for all Americans.”

Tuesday’s hearing will take a look at the current system, with witnesses including Trish Gilbert, executive director of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, and reps from airlines, a pilot’s union, and general aviation groups.

THE ROAD TO UNGROUNDING: Last week, FAA Administrator Steve Dickson outlined what needs to be done before there’s a certification test flight for the Boeing 737 MAX. Dickson said in an interview with Reuters that, first, Boeing must show the FAA a final description of the architecture of the MAX’s flight control system and software changes to it. The FAA and Boeing will also need a few days to work on a safety analysis. After that, the agency will have to consider “pilot workload management scenarios.” Dickson told Reuters it’s “fair” to say a certification test flight probably won’t happen for some weeks.

In the sim: Dickson went into a MAX simulator last week and tested Boeing’s updated Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System. The Associated Press reported that Dickson experienced MCAS activating, but the FAA wouldn’t make him available to comment about it. Dickson has also said he will physically fly the MAX before it is permitted to carry passengers again.

Eyes on Montreal: Today in the Canadian city, Dickson will brief regulators from other countries about the MAX. The European Aviation Safety Agency’s chief told a French publication ahead of the meeting that EASA is “in permanent contact with the FAA in order to remain coordinated and to be able to aim for a near simultaneous return to flight of the aircraft in Europe and the United States,” Bloomberg reported. Patrick Ky, EASA’s executive director, told Air & Cosmos International that differences in “administrative processes” could result in just “a few days’ difference in the end.” That’s a bit of a different tone than the one he struck earlier this month.

ICYMI: Paul Rinaldi, the president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, asked Dickson last week at a NATCA conference about the prospect of other countries not following the FAA once it determines the MAX is safe to fly. “Well, it may get to the point where we have to make our own decision,” Dickson said. “We are working very hard to keep everyone aligned. We’ve had good alignment at the technical level. And we’ll just see how things develop.”

LION AIR REPORT DETAILS LEAK OUT: A draft report on last year’s Lion Air crash concludes there were flaws in the way Boeing designed and the FAA certified the MAX, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday evening. The report by Indonesia investigators also cites pilot and maintenance errors. Meanwhile, NTSB is planning to release its own recommendations later this month on pilot training and the FAA’s certification process.

DOT SLOWS DOWN SAFETY ADVISORY COMMITTEE: Your MT host came out with a new story over the weekend looking at how DOT sidelined a trucking safety advisory committee. The top line: The Trump administration has throttled meetings of the Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee down to one a year, compared with two or three in previous administrations. The agency didn’t offer an explanation, but noted that holding two or three meetings costs roughly $250,000 (which is a drop in the bucket of the many billions in DOT’s budget).

“I’ve just been scratching my head because I think it’s a great resource for them. I wish they would use it more,” said John Lannen, MCSAC chairman. As the committee idles — its upcoming Sept. 30 meeting will be its first in 14 months — the latest DOT figures show that 2017 was the deadliest year for truck crashes in a decade.

It’s the latest example of an overall inconsistent treatment of advisory committees by Trump’s DOT. The Verge reported earlier this year that the agency had quietly killed a committee on automation in transportation, while the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee had some hiccups of its own, which we reported in MT, although it’s back up and running now.

ELSEWHERE ON THE HILL: Cruz’s air traffic control crusade isn’t the only transportation action happening in Congress this week. On Wednesday, House appropriators will grill Deputy FAA Administrator Dan Elwell about the agency’s aircraft certification process — a hot topic given the multiple ongoing investigations into its approval of the grounded Boeing 737 MAX.

He, or someone else from the FAA, will likely be back on the hill on Thursday when the House Transportation Committee holds a subcommittee hearing on implementation of the FAA reauthorization passed last year. Lawmakers have expressed frustration with the slow pace of the agency’s work on getting the many statutory mandates into place, and Thursday’s hearing will be a great opportunity for them to direct their ire at whichever senior FAA official draws the short straw.

Other hearings include a House Transportation hearing on commuter railroads, a House Budget Committee hearing on federal investment in infrastructure, and another House Transportation hearing on Coast Guard and port infrastructure.

ADD IT TO THE PILE OF LAWSUITS: As expected, California has sued over the Trump administration’s attack on the state’s fuel emissions standards. Pro Energy’s Alex Guillen writes: “The lawsuit targets NHTSA’s regulation declaring that California’s vehicle greenhouse gas emissions rules are effectively fuel efficiency regulations and are thus preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, the law that created the CAFE program.”

RAIL SAFETY WEEK: Amtrak Police and Operation Lifesaver are planning “Operation Clear Track” on Tuesday, with law enforcement officials from more than 600 agencies issuing citations and warnings at grade crossing and trespassing laws across 48 states. The three-hour safety detail will cover more than 1,500 crossings where incidents or near misses have taken place in the past.

— “Off balance: The scooter craze is too fast for safety rules.” Newsy.

— “This airline wants to fly you London-Bangkok in short-haul jets.” Bloomberg.

— “4 Chinese tourists killed, 5 in critical condition after Utah bus accident.” NBC News.

— “UAW strike puts Trump, GOP in political bind in key states.” Associated Press.

— “Budget carrier XL Airways seeks rescue deal with Air France.” Reuters.

DOT appropriations run out in 8 days. The FAA reauthorization expires in 1,470 days. Highway and transit policy is up for renewal in 375 days.





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