"While several differences make comparisons between the U.S. [air traffic control] system and other countries’ systems difficult, such as the size and complexity of the U.S. system, there are several lessons that can be learned from examining other nations’ experiences in separating their aviation functions,” a U.S. DOT Inspector General audit released today concludes. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) and aviation subcommittee chairman Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.) asked the DOT watchdog to assess the FAA’s air traffic organization (ATO) structure as the lawmakers push to privatize the ATO and implement users fees in the forthcoming FAA reauthorization bill.
Besides the government-controlled FAA ATO, the DOT IG also examined independent air navigation service providers (ANSPs) in four nations—Canada, the UK, Germany and France. “Unlike the FAA, the ANSPs are financially self-supporting and finance their operations primarily through user fees, but also have borrowing authority for modernization and infrastructure projects,” the watchdog agency said. “The ANSPs also do not embark on large modernization efforts or conduct extensive aviation research and development.”
The report found that separating air navigation and safety/regulatory functions has not affected safety. However, it did note several transition issues during the transfer of ATC services from a government to commercial entity, as well as financial considerations. Since the objective of this audit was to do a comparison of the organizations and operations of these countries, the DOT IG did not make any recommendations about whether or not the U.S. ATO should be privatized.