By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Northern Missouri Congressman Sam Graves took time out during
the Sound of Speed Air Show Sunday to discuss passage of the FAA
Reauthorization Act with pilots, St. Joseph city officials, as well as officers
with the Air National Guard 139th Airlift Group.
Graves, chair of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee, says the House version of the legislation prevailed for the most
part.
“Eighty-five percent of the bill is the House bill, which I
wrote,” Graves tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “I’m very proud of that and it’s a
very technical bill and I think that’s as a result of my understanding of
aviation and just being a user of the system, which makes a big difference. And
it made a big difference, too, in dealing with the Senate and just knowing more
about those aviation policies than many of my Senate colleagues.”
Graves, a Republican, says the bill focuses on some fundamental
issues of aviation; fundamental, yet too often neglected by Congress when
writing the regulations that guide the aviation industry. Graves says the new
legislation places a big emphasis on General Aviation.
“Because it’s the foundation and where most people get their
start when it comes to aviation,” Graves tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “They get
their start through, things like this, the Air Show where they show an interest
in aviation, whether that’s being a mechanic or maybe an air traffic controller
or being a technician or a pilot themselves and they get started in general aviation
and then move the way through ultimately to, if some go on to be commercial pilots
or airline pilots.”
Other aspects of the industry have been neglected for too long,
according to Graves.
“Workforce being one of those,” Graves says. “We have to make
sure that we maintain a very healthy workforce within the aviation community
and, again, that’s anything from mechanics to controllers to pilots, whatever
the case may be.”
Graves says the bill will also maintain the standard of safety
the United States is known for.
Graves, who is a pilot, participated in the Sound of Speed Air
Show.
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