NBTA

Media Brief – December 11, 2009

CONTACT:       Caleb Tiller, +1 703-684-0836 ext. 138
                        Nicole Hayes, +1 703-684-0836 ext. 133

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) – the voice of the business travel industry – today expressed frustration and disappointment as the U.S. Congress again failed to pass Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization legislation. Along with important safety and tarmac delay provisions, the bill would establish funding to upgrade the nation’s air traffic control system through the implementation of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen.)

NBTA Executive Director & COO Michael W. McCormick said, “The passage of yet another extension in current law regulating and funding the FAA is unacceptable. Maintaining the status quo is unacceptable. Today’s air traffic control system is antiquated, and business travelers are suffering delays and lost productivity as a result. This reauthorization is long overdue. The traveling public has been waiting three years for Congress to pass the FAA Reauthorization bill, which promises to make NextGen a reality that will benefit millions of business travelers and their employers.”

NBTA has called on the Obama Administration to make the upgrade of the U.S. air transport system a priority in early 2010 and urges the Senate to join with the House in tackling these critical issues in January.

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) is the world’s premier business travel and corporate meetings organization. NBTA and its regional affiliates – NBTA Australia / New Zealand, the Brazilian Business Travel Association (ABGEV), NBTA Canada, NBTA Europe, NBTA Mexico, and NBTA USA – serve a network of more than 17,000 business travel professionals around the globe with industry-leading events, networking, education & professional development, research, news & information, and advocacy. NBTA members, numbering more than 5,000 in 30 nations, are corporate and government travel and meetings managers, as well as travel service providers. They collectively manage and direct more than US$340 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually on behalf of more than 13 million business travelers within their organizations. For more information, visit www.nbta.org