7.17.19 – APFA National President Lori Bassani Testifies Before Congress

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

APFA National President Lori Bassani Testifies Before Congress

APFA National President Lori Bassani was asked to testify before the House Aviation Subcommittee in Washington, D.C. this morning. The Congressional hearing was titled “State of Aviation Safety” and the panel also included leaders from TWU, ALPA, PASS, the NTSB and family members of victims of Ethiopian Air Flight 302.

As stakeholders of aviation safety, numerous concerns on various issues were brought forward. Lori focused APFA’s comments on seat size, evacuations, air rage, cabin air quality, emotional support animals, the 10-hour minimum rest FAR, FAA oversight and the Boeing 737 MAX.

Many of the issues that Bassani spoke to were included in the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Bill which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, but little progress has been made to implement them. “I appeal to Congress to act with your full oversight authority. The continued safety of our transportation system deserves no less,” Bassani stated. “Many deadlines to implement these safety provisions have been missed. It’s time for the DOT and the FAA to stop dragging their feet and move forward.”

This is a significant opportunity for APFA and our membership for Flight Attendant voices to be heard and it is important that we have the support of decision makers in Washington. Later in the day, Bassani met with Chairman Peter DeFazio (OR-4) and senior staff to continue the discussion.

Full testimony: https://www.apfa.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/2019-Lori-Written-Testimony-71719-Final-Signed.pdf

Video of the Hearing: https://transportation.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/the-subcommittee-on-aviation-hearing-on_–state-of-aviation-safety

C-SPAN video: Lori’s section begins at 1:12: https://www.c-span.org/video/?462724-1/house-transportation-subcommittee-hearing-aviation-safety

In Unity,