Applications and Petitions: None Answers and Replies: Congestion Management Rule at LGA - Comments of NACA, NATA and NetJets Orders and Notices: None Rules and Regulations: None Grant of Petitions: None

	Congestion Management Rule for LaGuardia Airport FAA-2006-25709 June 17, 2008 Comments of the National Air Carrier Association As we noted in our comments to the DOT proposals to revise the rates and charges policy for airports, we are concerned that the statutory authority for the FAA to move forward with a slot auction remains unsettled. In the FAA's NPRM for establishing a system of operating allocations at LaGuardia, the FAA specifically recognized that it did not have the authority to implement congestion pricing or slot auctions. The FAA stated in the NPRM that "legislation would be necessary to employ market-based approaches such as auctions or congestion pricing at LaGuardia because the FAA cunently does not have the statutory authority to assess market-based clearing charges for a landing or departing authorization." During the NYARC proceedings, the Air Transport Association submitted a legal opinion for the record which concluded that "neither the FAA nor the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey possess the authority to impose congestion pricing or slot auctions. . . A court would invalidate any attempt to do so as contrary to federal constitutional and statutory requirements." Finally, we would note that the FAA has also acknowledged that airport operators have limited abilities to institute mechanisms such as slot auctions. In light of the uncertain statutory standards upon which this proposal is based, we respectfully submit that the FAA and the DOT should either provide additional time to consider the proposal or in the alternative, should convene some public forum in which the many questions and issues could be discussed and debated. There is no question that the aviation industry as a whole shares the same concerns about the capacity constraints at LaGuardia Airport. By: Thomas Zoeller, 703-358-8060 June 18, 2008 Comments of the National Air Transportation Association Like the airline operator, a Part 135 air carrier relies on the operation of aircraft as the lifeblood of their business. The operator risks substantial loss of income and loss of customers if his or her aircraft cannot fly at a specific date and time. This similarity, we believe, justifies special consideration for Part 135 on-demand operations in the slot reservation process. NATA requests that the FAA permit Part 135 on-demand operators the same benefit afforded to the public charter operators with regard to advance slot reservations. Specifically, we recommend that both public charters and Part 135 air carriers be permitted to reserve up to one-third of available slots up to six months in advance. We know that it is not the intention of the FAA to provide scheduled air carriers with competitive and marketing advantages at the expense of other certificated air carriers and ask for your assistance to provide on-demand operators with equal opportunity to serve the public. By: Eric Byer, 703-845-9000 June 18, 2008 Comments of NetJets Providing efficient and flexible access to and from the New York City area, the business capital of the country, is a key service offered by General Aviation. In addition, GA represents only a small fraction of the operations at LaGuardia, JFK, and Newark, and it thus plays virtually no part in the congestion problems of these airports. For these reasons, it would be highly unjust to make changes to current congestion management procedures that have a disproportionate effect on GA versus the Part 121 air carriers serving those airports. In the case of LaGuardia, for instance, the FAA proposes to cut in half the number of slots available to unscheduled operations during key periods of each day, slashing the number of slots from six per hour to three per hour during most hours of the day, including those time periods that are most important to business travel. This contrasts with the restrictions the FAA proposes imposing on the Part 121 air carriers, which amount to gradual reductions over a period of years. Further, one of the three slots for unscheduled aircraft is available for advance reservations by public charter operations, so in some instances only two of these unscheduled operations slots would be available for non-commercial GA flights. JFK and Newark already limit GA operations to one or two per hour, and similar limitations on GA operations into LaGuardia would significantly erode the ability of GA to provide adequate point-to-point service for business professionals. Counsel: Hogan & Hartson, Tazewell Ellett, 202-637-8644 Index