Fighting for reliable rural flights

Access to commercial air service is crucial to keeping rural America connected to the rest of the country and attracting entrepreneurs to invest and expand in our communities. As Kevin Howard, director of the Alliance Visitors Bureau, has said, "Economic developers don't come into town on the bus." One of the primary responsibilities of the federal government is maintaining transportation infrastructure, and I am working to prevent red tape from disproportionately harming rural airports.

In January 2014, new regulations on pilot hours of training and rest went into effect for airlines. Under these regulations, the number of hours in training required for co-pilots increased from 250 to 1,500. Additionally, pilots are now required to have 30 consecutive hours of rest each week, a 25 percent increase over previous requirements.

These new rules are threatening rural airports and contributing to thousands of flight cancellations. It is difficult for small regional airlines to hire and retain co-pilots who meet the training hours certification. Airlines are then forced to cancel scheduled flights if they are not able to comply with this arbitrary rule.

Not only are these increased cancellations troublesome for travelers, but they are also preventing many rural airports from meeting funding requirements despite qualifying in the past. The Airport Improvement Program (AIP) helps airports pay for projects to improve infrastructure, including runways, taxiways, noise control, navigational aids, safety, and security. To qualify for maximum program funds, airports must reach 10,000 enplanements, or passengers boarded, per year. Unfortunately, many rural airports have been unable to reach this target due to cancelled flights.

Three Third District commercial airports have been hit particularly hard by these pilot regulations. In 2014, North Platte Regional Airport saw a 55 percent drop in enplanements from its 2012 numbers. Enplanements at Western Nebraska Regional Airport in Scottsbluff dropped 45 percent during that timeframe, while Kearney Regional Airport saw a 33 percent decrease. These airports had been meeting the 10,000 enplanements target prior to the regulations taking effect, but all three have now fallen beneath this threshold.

To help small airports in the Third District and around the country continue to serve rural communities, I have reintroduced the Small Airport Regulation Relief Act. This legislation would require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to use enplanement numbers from 2012, before the regulations took effect, when calculating appropriate annual funds for airports under the AIP for the next two years. Last week, I sent a letter to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee asking them to include the Small Airport Regulation Relief Act in the next FAA reauthorization.

Through my Regulation Rewind initiative, which I launched in 2014 and have continued this year, I am working to identify and fight overly burdensome federal regulations such as these pilot rules which hurt economic growth, limit opportunities for rural Americans, are inconsistent with the law, or are unfair. I hope you will partner with me in this effort. For updates on Regulation Rewind or to share your thoughts, please visit http://AdrianSmith.house.gov/RegulationRewind.

Though rural airports are currently bearing most of the burden, these new pilot regulations will lead to disruptions and flight cancellations in urban areas and perhaps even international markets if we do not step in with solutions. There are more effective ways to ensure passenger safety without blocking access to air travel, and we must pursue alternatives to the current situation. I am encouraged by conversations taking place in Congress on this issue and will continue fighting for reliable, affordable rural air service.