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OSHKOSH - Rep. Tom Petri brought Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Jerry Costello (D-IL) to the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in Monday to learn about issues important to both public and private flying. Petri is the ranking Republican on the subcommittee.
The congressmen participated in a well-attended forum hosted by Experimental Aircraft Association President Tom Poberezny on matters dealing with the federal role in aviation. High fuel prices was the number one issue, followed by airport security and concern that the Federal Aviation Administration continue to tailor regulations so that private aviation can operate and innovate.
"I got to inspect the latest version of the innovative Eclipse aircraft, which may make air taxi service affordable," said Petri. "At lunch, airplane manufacturers told me that the current collaborative approach between private aviation and the government is responsible for our recent excellent safety record. It's good business to be safe because accidents are expensive, but if the government takes the approach that errors will be dealt with punitively, that leads to cover-ups instead of cooperation."
"Five-thousand volunteers worked months in advance to make this a great event, and it shows," said Petri. "Everything seemed to be going smoothly, lines were short, people were having a good time, and this was certainly the biggest event I've attended where I didn't see a single piece of litter, which says a lot about attention to detail."
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