1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

There were over 500 near-misses by major commercial airlines last year. Every one of these misses could’ve been the next airline crash disaster killing hundreds of passengers. One of the problems is that air traffic controllers are working 10 hour shifts, 6 days a week, with mandatory overtime. And the problem is getting worse as the airline industry loses more air traffic controllers each year than it’s training to replace them. Congress can take a huge step forward in restoring public safety for travelers, workers, and the public at large by reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration now. The good news is that in August of last year, the House passed the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act -- the bipartisan legislation to restore and improve important aviation safety and infrastructure programs. Since then the Senate has passed a budget for training 3,000 more air traffic controllers over the next 5 years, but that’s not good enough. It doesn’t address the working conditions and other safety issues, and that means it won’t go far enough to improve safety and make it safer to fly. I’m writing to urge you to please co-sponsor and pass the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration with maximum staffing for air traffic controllers now.