Principato: Coordination Is The Key To Avoiding Tarmac Delays

Following the announcement of a forum to be held jointly by the FAA and DOT to find better ways to manage aircraft diversions, Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) President Greg Principato (pictured) said the orgainzation looks forward to participating in the November 30th meeting.

“I applaud DOT and FAA for convening this forum," he said. "As I noted in my editorial in the USA Today on November 3, we at ACI-NA believe that this coordination is the key to both avoiding extended tarmac delays in the first place and minimizing their impacts to passengers in cases where they do occur.  We hope that this is the first of several meaningful steps in this direction.”

Principato said ACI-NA looks forward to discussing how diverted flights can be managed more effectively, starting with how the airlines and FAA make decisions regarding where to divert, long before aircraft are stuck on the ground. "Airports stand ready to assist the FAA and the airlines with information about how many diverted aircraft they can accept, what types of aircraft they can accommodate, what facilities and equipment are available to service these aircraft, and what limitations exist with respect to accommodating international passengers,” he said.

FMI: www.aci-na.org