Brookings: Topics - Airline Industry

Air Travel Congestion in the United States

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 16:16:15 GMT

While air travel has made the globe and the nation more accessible, simply flying from one state to the next is often fraught with delayed flights, runway congestion and a host of other problems. Robert Puentes, an author of a new report on air travel trends, says that their report findings can help policymakers address critical issues affecting the nation’s transportation infrastructure.

Air Support: Creating a Safer and More Reliable Air Traffic Control System

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Our nation’s air traffic control system, run by the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), has not kept up with the explosive growth in air travel. In as discussion paper for the Hamilton Project, Dorothy Robyn proposes to measures to increase air traffic effeciency and safety.

Delayed! U.S. Aviation Infrastructure Policy at a Crossroads

Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In this chapter excerpted from their new book, Aviation Infrastructure Performance (Brookings 2008), Steven Morrison and Clifford Winston argue that privatized airports and air traffic control would have the potential to improve service to travelers and reduce the cost of carrier operations while maintaining the nation’s outstanding record of air travel safety in the face of an ever greater volume of traffic. In addition, privatized airports could facilitate greater competition among airlines that would lead to lower fares.

Aviation Infrastructure Performance : A Study in Comparative Political Economy

Thu, 01 May 2008 12:00:00 GMT

International transportation experts compare and contrast how different nations have managed their airports and air traffic control systems and how well they are meeting the needs of their people.

Transportation and the Economy

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 10:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

April 28, 2008, 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Opportunity 08 hosted U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters for a discussion of America's transportation infrastructure. Secretary Peters focused on the challenges facing the nation’s transportation network, and how local, state and national leaders can take advantage of new technology and approaches to unleash a new wave of transportation investments in this country.

The State of Airline Competition and Prospective Mergers

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

This fall the United States will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 and, Clifford Winston and Steven Morrison argue, the nation has reason to celebrate because airline deregulation has benefited both travelers and carriers.

Airlines are Safer than Ever

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Flights on U.S. airlines have never been more crowded, but despite recent reports, Clifford Winston and Robert Crandall argue, U.S. airlines have never been safer.

Extending Deregulation

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:10:42 GMT

Few industries remain subject to classic economic regulation in the United States. Senior Fellow Robert Crandall says the next president should help remove some of the controls left on these industries in order to help promote economic expansion.

The Effect of FAA Expenditures on Air Travel Delays

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) seeks to prevent the nation’s aviation system from becoming congested. To reduce delays, the FAA makes investments in air traffic control. Clifford Winston and Steven A. Morrison assess the efficacy of these investments by developing an empirical model of delays that is motivated by air traffic control operations.

Another Look at Airport Congestion Pricing

Mon, 31 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

In this paper, Steven A. Morrison and Clifford Winston develop a model of the net benefits to air travelers from flights to and from US airports and calibrate it with data that account for a large share of the nation’s passenger air travel in 2005.

Extending Deregulation: Make the U.S. Economy More Efficient

Wed, 28 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Since the 1970s, deregulation has succeeded in increasing overall economic welfare and sharply reducing prices, generally by about 30 percent, for transportation—including air travel, rail transportation, and trucking—and for natural gas and telecommunications. Few industries remain subject to classic economic regulation in the United States.

Unfriendly Skies

Mon, 18 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Robert Crandall and Clifford Winston argue that policy-makers take the wrong approach in opposing recent merger attempts in the airline industry. While enforcement of antitrust laws can improve consumer welfare in some cases, Crandall and Winston conclude that government efforts to prevent such mergers "do little to improve consumer welfare and sometimes actually reduce it."

What's Wrong with the Airline Industry? Diagnosis and Possible Cures

Wed, 28 Sep 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Steven Morrison and Clifford Winston testify before a House committee that the airline industry's financial problems are broadly associated with the industry’s long-term adjustment to airline deregulation. They propose ways that policy-makers can allow the industry to be more efficient and benefit the public.

Still Searching For Airport Security: Wasn't TSA Going to Be the Solution?

Sun, 24 Apr 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Paul C. Light; The Washington Post (4/24/05)

Getting Airport Security Right

Fri, 01 Feb 2002 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Paul C. Light, Vice President and Director, Governmental Studies, the Brookings Institution, in Government Executive, January 2, 2002

Why Rely on Low-Bid Airport Safety?

Mon, 05 Nov 2001 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Paul C. Light, Vice President and Director, Governmental Studies, the Brookings Institution, in USA Today, November 5, 2001

Bailing Out the Airlines

Mon, 24 Sep 2001 00:00:00 GMT

In the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Clifford Winston and Steve Morrison argue that Congress's airline assistance package should be achieved at minimal societal cost. "Attempts by policymakers to use this tragedy as an opportunity to correct perceived failings of airline competition," they argue, "are inappropriate and unjustified. Industry competition has been strong and effective."

Fundamental Flaws of Social Regulation: The Case of Airplane Noise

Tue, 15 Sep 1998 00:00:00 GMT

Steven A. Morrison, Tara Watson, and Clifford Winston review the regulatory battle over airplane noise to illustrate how addressing these questions can improve regulatory policy by targeting government action where it is needed.

The Fare Skies: Air Transportation and Middle America

Mon, 01 Sep 1997 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review article by Steven A. Morrison and Clifford Winston (Fall 1997)

Perspective on Airline Safety: Deregulation Increases Risk

Wed, 24 Jul 1996 00:00:00 GMT

After two airline crashes, Donald Kettl examines how the FAA is torn between its twin roles of promoting airline travel and regulating airline safety.