No Mention Of Ebola-Related Travel Ban At Aero Club Of Washington

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta gave a detailed account of the work that was done to bring the Chicago Center back on line during a speech October 16th at the Aero Club of Washington. But in his prepared remarks, he avoided any mention of the agency's position on a possible a travel ban involving African countries affected by the Ebola outbreak.

Huerta talked about the fire that was deliberately set in the Chicago air traffic control facility September 26th, and praised those involved in bringing the center back online. "As an industry, we have the responsibility to pull together as one, like we did in Chicago, and create the kind of airspace system that will serve our needs and provide a very bright future for this country. When we cooperate, look what happens. Chicago Center came back into service three days ago, as promised. It took just two weeks," Huerta said.

He then went on to say that the "same teamwork and collaboration ... is a model for what we, as an industry, need to do more of.  In fact, that same level of cooperation has taken place between the FAA and industry over the last year as we defined and focused our NextGen priorities.  We have worked collaboratively with industry through the NextGen Advisory Committee. We listen to what you say and we actively respond."

On the subject of ADS-B, Huerta said that a report by the MITRE corporation released last week shows the agency is "right on track with NextGen," but the report "recognized that the full benefits of ADS-B will be realized once industry equips to use the system that we have built.
 
"The deadline for equipping is a little more than five years from now. As many of you know, we are holding a Call to Action on ADS-B equipage at the end of this month. We are going to bring together industry leaders and associations to identify the barriers to compliance and discuss solutions. We need to make sure that everyone is prepared to comply with the January 1, 2020 mandate, because that deadline is not going to change."

Huerata also praised TSA Administrator John Pistole, who announced Thursday he would be retiring at the end of the year. "I have the deepest respect for his work and the dedicated leadership he has provided and wish him the very best in his new endeavors," Huerta said.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.faa.gov