Call on Trump Administration, Congress to Continue to Emphasize ‘One Level of Safety’ for Regional Airlines
Buffalo, New York – January 30, 2017 – With the 8th anniversary of the crash of Continental Flight 3407 fast approaching on February 12th, members of ‘The Families of Continental Flight 3407’ announced that they would be journeying to Washington this Wednesday to continue their fervent advocacy for regional airline safety. Group members are planning on conducting outreach with both Houses in Congress and with the Federal Aviation Administration.
“It has been eight years and countless trips to Washington as we continue to honor the memory of Lorin and everyone else who was needlessly lost that night outside of Buffalo,” stated Scott Maurer, of Palmetto, Florida, who lost his thirty year old daughter Lorin. “There is a new administration and plenty of new faces in Congress, and it is critical that we continue to remind everyone of what was allowed to happen when the government and FAA took a laissez-faire approach to regulating the airlines in the decade prior to the crash. People in every state and every congressional district board flights operated by regional airlines, and we continue to fight on these passengers’ behalf to ensure that regional airlines make the same commitment to, and investment in safety that is made by our country’s mainline carriers. It is imperative that this upcoming FAA Reauthorization process continues the forward progress that has been made in the last eight years towards achieving a true ‘One Level of Safety’ for all commercial airlines.”
From 2001 through 2009, there were six fatal commercial airline crashes in the U.S., all occurring on U.S. regional carriers. In the aftermath of Flight 3407 and subsequent investigation and inquiries by both the National Transportation Safety Board and Congress, Congress unanimously passed PL 111-216, the ‘Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010’. This landmark aviation safety legislation, and the subsequent actions taken by DOT, FAA, and the airlines, have resulted in nearly eight years of no fatal commercial crashes on domestic U.S. airlines, by far and away the safest period of commercial airline travel in our country’s history.
“So much has been accomplished in a bipartisan manner in the past eight years in terms of addressing some of the safety gaps that were allowed to occur with our nation’s regional airlines, and we are determined to make sure that safety continues to be the first and foremost priority,” stated Karen Eckert of Williamsville, New York who lost her sister and noted 9/11 widow Beverly Eckert on Flight 3407. “There is a constant tug-of-war as the airlines and their lobbyists fight for every inch when it comes to their bottom line, but we are counting on the administration and Congress to continue to be resolute in preserving the safety initiatives that have been implemented in the last eight years, as well as allowing FAA to complete the provisions that remain to be accomplished. We look forward to being visible as we walk the halls in our trademark ‘Red’ garb on Wednesday.”
Further details on the group’s schedule and media availability will be made available as their meeting plans are finalized.