NBAA, NATA Lament Reduction in LGA Slots

In response to the FAA’s decision last week to reduce the number of hourly slots available for general aviation operators at New York La Guardia Airport (LGA) from six to three, NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen maintains that the FAA is emphasizing operational limitations at the airport instead of focusing on measures to increase capacity there. “Although general aviation does not contribute to congestion at La Guardia, we remain disappointed that the FAA seems to be most interested in adopting measures to limit operations for all aviation segments at this and other New York City airports,” he said. “This spring, an ad hoc industry group including NBAA provided the FAA with a list of specific capacity-enhancing techniques that could be quickly implemented at La Guardia. As of today, very few of those techniques are in effect.” In comments submitted in June on the then-proposed LGA slot rule, the National Air Transportation Association (NATA) said it is “greatly concerned about the potential negative effect of these new restrictions on the ability of our members to use LGA on a fair and reasonable basis.” NATA said business jet operators barely contribute to LGA’s congestion and as such don’t deserve the 50-percent slot reduction.