Is it Time to Re-Regulate America's Broken Airline System?

America's air transport system is losing altitude fast. Even with the economy growing again, airlines continue to slash service. Worse, industry leaders warn higher fares and more cuts lie ahead. The effects are real. And they are increasingly unfair, as they affect some regions far more than others. In heartland cities like St. Louis, Cincinnati, and Memphis, for instance, businesses find themselves cut off from world markets, and citizens find it ever harder to get where they want to go.

We held a conversation about the causes, effects, and potential fixes for America’s air transport crisis. The discussion departed from an article by New America’s Phil Longman and Lina Khan in the latest Washington Monthly that details the deterioration in service since the air transport industry was “deregulated” in 1979. But the discussion will mainly look forward and discuss practical ways to keep America’s business and leisure travelers in the air.

Participants

Panelists                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Jim Oberstar
Former Minnesota Congressman (D-MN)
Former Chair, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

Josh Marks
Executive Director, American Aviation Institute

Tom Jones
Columnist, Memphis Magazine
Principal, Smart City Consulting

Phillip Longman
Senior  Fellow, Markets, Enterprise, and Resiliency Initiative
New America Foundation

Moderator
Paul Glastris
Editor-in-Chief, Washington Monthly