The House and Senate passed the 14th extension of the 2003 FAA Reauthorization bill late last week and the president signed it into law on Friday. The extension provides operating authority for the FAA through Aug. 1.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies marked up their Fiscal Year 2011 appropriations bill last week. During the mark up, Subcommittee Chairman John Olver (D-Mass.) noted that funding in the bill for aviation remains relatively flat because a new FAA reauthorization bill has not yet been passed.

On July 1, the United States and Barbados initialed an Open Skies agreement. The agreement allows each side to have any number of airlines with the right to determine their routes including code sharing services, capacity and pricing.

There will be four seats open next year on the ACI-NA World Business Partners/ Associates Board of Directors and recruiting efforts are now underway to find candidates for the three-year terms.

On Tuesday, the DOT issued its final order allocating four daily slot pairs for services between the United States and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport. In doing so, the DOT adopted its tentative decision which was issued in May.

The FAA last week accepted the preliminary applications of two airports seeking to participate in its Airport Privatization Pilot Program. The next step for each airport will be to select a private operator and negotiate an operating agreement.

The FAA has selected Stewart International Airport in Newburg, N.Y. and Sacramento Mather Field Airport in Sacramento to participate in the 2010 Military Airport Program, which uses federal funds to convert former military airports to civilian or joint-use airports.

Registration is open for the ACI-NA 19th Annual Conference & Exhibition, which will take place in Pittsburgh on Sept 26-29. Register today and save with the Early Bird discount. This opportunity will only be available now through July 30.

Deicing Management Conference:  Registration still available
This year’s ACI-NA/Air Transport Association/Regional Airline Association Deicing Management Conference will be held July 20-21 at The Dupont Hotel in Washington, D.C. On the agenda, there will feature sessions on the latest developments in the U.S. EPA’s effluent limitation guideline rulemaking, including expert analysis on the potential impact to the industry and what airports and airlines can do now to prepare for new requirements. Register online to save $35.

Airport Concessions Conference:  Registration Now Open!
The Airport Concessions Conference will be held Nov. 8-11 at The Westin Kierland in Scottsdale, Ariz. This all-in-one conference covers the latest in retail and restaurant design, merchandising trends, and networking opportunities. On the agenda will be sessions on innovations in airport terminal concession concepts and revenue strategies.
 
Oct. 17 is the Early Bird discount deadline and the last day to obtain the special group rate of $225 at the Westin Kierland. Call the hotel directly at (800) 354-5892 or reserve your room online.

The past three months have been busy ones for members of the ACI-NA Operations & Technical Affairs Committee. At the end of April, the Committee held its Spring Conference in Orlando. This conference, which was held in conjunction with ACI-NA’s Public Safety & Security and Business Information Technology committees, focused on the critical convergence between airport operations, security and technology and provided airport operations, planning, engineering and design professionals with practical guidance and lessons learned on topics ranging from safety management systems to security checkpoint design and operation to surface traffic management. The conference was very successful, attracting over 250 airport operations, planning, security and information technology professionals.

In June, the committee’s Project Delivery Working Group co-sponsored Airport Project Delivery Systems Summit V in Indianapolis together with the Airport Consultants Council and the Associated General Contractors of America. The summit attracted over 80 airport construction and design professionals to learn the latest about alternative project delivery systems and project procurement strategies. Summit highlights included real world lessons learned during terminal renovation projects at San Francisco and San Jose international airports and a keynote address from Past ACI-NA Chair and Indianapolis Airport Authority Executive Director & CEO John Clark. The Indianapolis Airport Authority also provided an informative tour of its Midfield Terminal Complex.

In other news, the committee’s steering group is in the process of revitalizing several of its working groups. These working groups include NextGen, Airport Planning and Airport Operations and Maintenance. These working groups will complement the already active Project Delivery and Safety working groups.

The committee has also been focused on preparing comments regarding several draft FAA advisory circulars. ACI-NA staff submitted consolidated comments regarding draft AC 150/5210-13C, Airport Water Rescue Plans, Facilities and Equipment on June 25 and draft AC 150/5200-xx, Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Vehicle High Reach Extendable Turret on July 6. The ACI-NA staff is also in the process of compiling comments regarding two other draft ACs: 150/5210-23, Foreign Object Debris Management, and 150/5345-44J, Specification for Runway and Taxiway Signs.

Last but not least, committee members have been active in supporting activities related to the FAA’s Next Generation Air Transportation System. Committee Secretary Chris Oswald led efforts to revise the Joint Planning and Development Office’s Concept of Operations for airfield surface operations and several committee members have been participating in the NextGen meetings and stakeholder outreach sessions.

Looking forward to September, the committee will be holding its Fall Seminar in Pittsburgh on Sept. 25-26, immediately prior to the ACI-NA Annual Conference. Seminar highlights will include a joint half-day session with ACI-NA’s Environmental Affairs Committee, updates from the FAA regarding safety management systems and other regulatory initiatives, and discussion of the benefits airports have realized through the use of asset management systems.

Contact Committee Secretary Chris Oswald for more information.

Western Lawmakers Push For More Flights From Reagan National
Washington Post, July 7, By Lisa Rein
A handful of federal lawmakers are seeking to vastly expand the number of long-distance flights at Reagan National Airport, easing long-standing restrictions designed to protect neighboring communities from noise and air pollution.

Delta, USAirways To Sue FAA Over Slot Swap
Aviation Week, July 2, By Andrew Compart
Delta Air Lines and US Airways have decided to take the FAA to court to challenge the conditions it imposed on approval of their proposed swap of slots between New York LaGuardia and Ronald Reagan Washington National airports.

Start-Up Airlines in a Struggle to Survive
New York Times, July 6, By Andrew Sorkin
In the airline industry, the fittest do not always survive. But that has not stopped start-up carriers like Virgin America from trying.

SocialMedia Airport: Case Study from Charleston
Forbes, July 2, By Carl Lavin
A look at how Yeager Airport in Charleston, W.Va. used various social media to interact with passengers about an Air Force One landing and more.

• Airport Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
• Selected airport investor relations web pages
• Airport Economic Impact Studies
• Recent economic studies, forecasts
• Airline Use and Lease Agreements
• Capital Improvement Program policy documents
• Airport monthly financial reporting

Contact ACI-NA’s Liying Gu for more information.

New Research Posted
Guidebook for Addressing Aircraft/Wildlife Hazards at General Aviation Airports: Airport Cooperative Research Program report explores wildlife challenges that airports may face and potential techniques and strategies for addressing them. The guidebook examines the different species that can be found at airports and specific information that may be helpful in identifying and controlling them and the various wildlife attractants and best management practices that can be employed by airport operators to minimize wildlife activity at and around airports. The report also highlights wildlife control strategies and techniques that may be appropriate at general aviation airports, and reviews how to develop a wildlife control program.

GAO Review of the Mandate for Screening Air Cargo on Passenger Aircraft: The U.S. Government Accountability Office has released a report that explores the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to establish a system to screen 100 percent of cargo flown on passenger aircraft. The report also examines the challenges DHS faces related to domestic and international cargo.

Contact OLC Manager Eddie Ragauskas for more information.

Contact OLC Manager Eddie Ragauskas for more information.

North American carriers overall June performance showed a normal season drop in performance with the onset of the busy summer travel season and thunderstorms delayed flights at some major hubs, according to data released on Tuesday by FlightStats.

Overal performace for airports is on a steady downward trend. The June 2010 average on-time arrival performance for the top 40 North American airports was 71.91 percent -- down from May's 76.09 percent.

Contact ACI-NA’s Jane Calderwood for more information.

Contact ACI-NA’s Annie Russo for more information.

On July 1, the United States and Barbados initialed an Open Skies agreement. The agreement allows each side to have any number of airlines with the right to determine their routes including code sharing services, capacity and pricing.

The pact also includes seventh freedom traffic rights for all-cargo services. These allow an airline to operate cargo services between another country and third countries without touching its home country. The agreement brings the U.S. total of Open Skies partners to 99.

The agreement will be implemented upon its signing so the rights are not yet available for airlines to use. The Open Skies agreement will replace the current agreement which does contain restrictions on scheduled and charter services.

Contact ACI-NA’s Diane Peterson for more information.

Contact ACI-NA’s Amy Peters for more information.

On Tuesday, the DOT issued its final order allocating four daily slot pairs for services between the United States and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport. In doing so, the DOT adopted its tentative decision which was issued in May.

As published in May, the DOT has allocated the four daily slot pairs as follows:

• One slot pair to Hawaiian Airlines for Honolulu-Haneda service;
• One slot pair to American Airlines for New York JFK-Haneda service;
• Two slot pairs to Delta Air Lines for Detroit-Haneda and Los Angeles-Haneda services.
• The carriers will be required to start the Haneda services by Jan. 29, 2011.

The Haneda opportunities became available as part of the U.S.-Japan Open Skies agreement initialed on Dec. 11. However, the ability to use the slots depends on the United States and Japan signing the Open Skies agreement.

Contact ACI-NA’s Diane Peterson for more information.

GwinnettCounty, in Lawrenceville, Ga., submitted a preliminary plan on April 26. The FAA authorized the county to select a private operator for Briscoe Field and submit a final application. If it qualifies for the program, it will be the pilot project for general aviation airports.

At the same time, the FAA authorized the Puerto Rico Ports Authority to select a private operator for San Juan’s Luis Munoz Marın International Airport and submit its final application. The authority submitted its preliminary application on Dec. 1.

In both cases, once a final application has been accepted by the FAA, there will be a 60-day public comment period.

In September Centerlines, ACI-NA will be exploring the issue of airport privatization.

Registration is open for the ACI-NA 19th Annual Conference & Exhibition, which will take place in Pittsburgh on Sept 26-29. Register today and save with the Early Bird discount. This opportunity will only be available now through July 30.

ACI-NA has frozen the Annual Conference & Exhibition fees at the 2008 prices. Register today to make sure to receive the discount. For a registration form, email meetings@aci-na.org.

An agenda for the Conference, as well as the Pre-Conference Seminars, are now posted on the conference website.