Corporate Jets Clog America's Skies
It isn't 1970 anymore. At that time, there were few airplanes besides airlines plying America's high-altitude airways, and virtually all travelers used the nation's airlines to fly around the country.
Though the ATC system remains stuck in the analog era of the 1970s, aircraft technology has evolved substantially giving rise to new methods of transportation. The birth of the business jet in 1964 opened an untapped market for private and corporate aviation, using airplanes that delivered airline-like speed, safety and efficiency. The number of private jet aircraft in the United States has grown from roughly 1,800 aircraft in 1970 to 18,000 aircraft in 2007. Learn more about the many diverse types of airplanes in America's skies >>
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The Changing Fleet of Jet Aircraft in the U.S. |
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| Sources: FAA Aerospace Forecast, 1970 - 2006 |
The advent of smaller jets has radically changed the workload facing FAA, as airplanes continue to increase in number, but decrease in size. In the 1970s, for instance, when the current funding system for the FAA was implemented, many U.S. airlines were relying on three- and four-engine airplanes, which could carry two or three hundred passengers on each trip. With deregulation of the industry in 1978, the average aircraft size began to decrease, especially after the introduction of regional jets (smaller jet-powered aircraft, designed primarily to service smaller markets). The proliferation of these aircraft, in addition to the unprecedented growth of the business aviation sector, has been the primary factor in the increased workload for FAA. Corporate aircraft now account for the largest segment of non-recreational aircraft.
The advent of the Very Light Jet (VLJ) in 2006 is a continuation in the trend of decreasing aircraft size. With over 3,000 of these small jets on order by the end of 2006, VLJs represent a new aircraft type which must be merged into the existing flow of traffic. Learn more about growth in America's skies >>