Remarks In Testimony To The International Trade Commission
NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen told the U.S. International
Trade Commission (ITC) that the U.S. civil aviation industry
remains one of the strongest positive contributors to the nation's
balance of trade, despite the daunting economic challenges that
have confronted the industry in recent years.
In a statement made during testimony he provided at a hearing
held by the commission, Bolen pointed to 2010 statistics from the
General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) showing 2,015
general aviation (GA) aircraft made that year, with 1,334
manufactured in the U.S. and 52 percent of those sold elsewhere,
for an export value of almost $5 billion. Those figures, he told
Commissioners, were down from 1,161 aircraft worth almost $6
billion exported in 2008, reflecting adverse economic
conditions.
"No one knows better than you that we are living in a global
marketplace," he told the six UITC Commissioners in his remarks
Wednesday. "And the fact is, aviation has the ability to make
face-to-face transportation possible in this global marketplace."
Every culture throughout history has valued face-to-face
communication, he said, reminding Commissioners that doing
face-to-face business in India, Brazil, China, Russia or elsewhere
is often possible only by using aviation.
Using a video advertisement produced by NBAA and GAMA for the No
Plane, No Gain advocacy campaign, Bolen made the case for business
aviation as a job creator, an essential business tool for companies
of all sizes, an economic lifeline for small towns, and a critical
mode of humanitarian transport.
"Many small and mid-size businesses are located in areas without
scheduled airline service," he said. "Businesses of all sizes
require in-person travel for such operations as sales, technical
support and other types of customer service. Such trips may call
for multiple stops in a short period of time or travel to remote
locations."
He served up the example of the Apogee Medical Group in Phoenix,
AZ, which serves far-flung rural hospitals in 15 states. The
company's Hawker 800 business jet often leaves its base before dawn
and returns long after sunset, with multiple stops in between for
unmatched business efficiency. After one trip, company owner Dr.
Michael Gregory received a call from an American Express
representative worried that his American Exrpess credit card was
being used fraudulently. "However, Dr. Gregory assured the
customer-service representative that he had indeed rented cars in
four different states in one day," Bolen said.
Bolen reminded the ITC Commissioners that aviation will be the
defining mode of transportation in the Twenty-first century. "Two
miles of waterway will take a boat two miles," he said. "Two miles
of highway will take a car two miles. Two miles of railway will
take a train two miles. Two miles of runway will take an airplane
anywhere in the world. That’s our industry. It's a great
one."