Aviation

The Republican and Democratic leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will hold a joint press conference Wednesday to discuss efforts to block European Union efforts to require airlines operating in its countries to trade emissions.

The influential EU has said that beginning in 2012, U.S. airlines and others flying into airports in its counties will be required to participate its Emissions Trading System, which is similar to cap-and-trade proposals that have become politically toxic in the United States.

Committee members said the EU's decision was "unilateral" and was being challenged in European court as a violation of international law.

Democrats on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee called on House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) to open negotiations with the Senate over a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding bill, saying Republicans on the panel had dragged their feet on the talks.

Earlier this spring, the House and Senate passed drastically different versions of the reauthorization bill for the FAA. The Senate measure provided $34.5 billion over two years, while the House provided $59 billion over four years.

However, the House measure, which President Obama has threatened to veto, includes provisions that would make it harder for airline and railroad employees to unionize.

In a letter to Boehner obtained Tuesday by The Hill, the ranking Democrat on the Transportation Committee, Rep. Nick Rahall (W.Va.), said it was time for Boehner to step in and accelerate talks between the chambers.

"On April 7, 2011, the Senate requested a conference with the House on H.R. 656, the 'FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011,' and appointed conferees," Rahall wrote to Boehner. "Nevertheless, over the past 100 days, the House has taken no action to agree to a conference with the Senate to resolve the differences between the House and Senate-passed Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bills.

The Transportation Security Administration's proposed "trusted traveler" program will improve the airport security experience for frequent fliers traveling for work, an Alexandria, Va., business group said Tuesday.

The Global Business Travel Association, which calls itself "the world's premier business travel and meetings organization," said the TSA pilot of a program that would allow passengers who agree to provide personal data is a "much-needed" improvement.

"Our members have the utmost respect for the work TSA does and we applaud the launch of this pilot program as an important next step in advancing our air transit system," GBTA Executive Director Michael McCormick said in a statement. "Our 5,000 members have been advocating for a Trusted Traveler system and the way this pilot program is designed, business travelers are going to see benefits.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

A woman who was arrested for assaulting a TSA agent has a lot of new friends on Facebook.

Is it safer for kids to drive with their grandparents than their parents?

Washington's Metro transit system is trying to win over social media critics.

The Federal Aviation Administration has made its acting Air Traffic Organization head permanent.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is in Orlando, Fla., for the signing ceremony for a commuter rail there.

Delta Airlines is eliminating flights to several small-town airports.

A Colorado woman tried to give a Transportation Security Administration officer a taste of the pat-down medicine.

A hailstorm in its hub of Denver caused United Airlines to cancel several flights.  

With negotiations between the House and Senate over a long-term funding bill for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) appearing to be going nowhere, the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Friday he was introducing another short-term measure.

Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) said he did not want to do another stopgap version of the bill that funds the agency that oversees the national aviation system, but he had little choice, with talks with the Senate stalled. If the measure, which funds the FAA to September, is passed, it would be the 21st short-term bill since the last FAA authorization bill was approved in 2004.

Mica said Friday he was disappointed to be offering another temporary measure.

“It is unfortunate that we have been put in this position, again, by the current Senate leadership, who refuse to negotiate in the best interest of the American public,” Mica said in a statement released by his office. “When Democrats controlled the House and Senate, Congress also failed to act, and unfortunately Democrat tactics have not changed. Our nation’s aviation system cannot operate effectively under the Senate’s ongoing political gamesmanship.”

Your morning transportation speed-read:

The manager of the Chicago Cubs baseball team was detained by the Transportation Security Administration after the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Phoenix, Ariz., this week.

An Amtrak train caught on fire at Washington's Union Station.

The agency is testing a program to allow passengers to bring golf clubs on board trains near Midwest courses.

Another jet clipped the tail of a regional plane at Boston's Logan Airport.

The nation’s largest business group is urging the budget office to reject a proposed regulation to guard against pilot fatigue.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

A man was arrested for skinny-dipping near New York's John F. Kennedy airport.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) supports the Republican surface transportation bill proposal, even though it would cut funding to his state.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's plan to mediate a disagreement on Washington, D.C.'s MetroRail expansion to Dulles International Airport is being met with skepticism.

Officials are trying to convince riders that Amtrak's Downeaster route is safe after a train hit a truck on the route.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

A throwing star was found in a woman's luggage at southern California's Ontario International Airport.

The Heritage Foundation doesn't like the idea of the Transportation Security Administration having a union.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is going to Orlando, Fla. for the groundbreaking of a commuter rail there.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has signed a law making texting-while-driving a primary offense.