The Real Reason For Airline Delays—And The Simple Change That Could Fix Everything

The horrific flight delays over the Christmas holidays, January’s crash of the FAA’s air traffic control system, which temporarily grounded all U.S. flights, and other hair-raising incidents all underscore the need for a basic change that should have been implemented back in the 1990s.

FAA technology is out date, and efforts to modernize it have floundered.

This segment of What’s Ahead discusses why and offers up the solution: getting the air traffic control system out of the hands of Washington politicians and into those of an independent, nonprofit entity controlled by the aviation industry. Safety regulations would remain with the FAA.

This is no theory; it’s been done successfully by more than 60 countries. The results are far greater efficiency, especially concerning flight delays, and less cost. The U.S. is the big holdout. That must change.