WASHINGTON – Representative Nick Langworthy surprised the aviation industry in his first year in Congress by leading a bipartisan initiative that preserved a major aviation safety reform that stemmed from the 2009 crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 – and now he’s taking aviation safety a step further.
Rep. Nick Langworthy speaks at the 15th anniversary of the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 in Clarence Center on February 12. Langworthy has introduced a bill to improve charter airline safety.
Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
Langworthy, a conservative Republican who represents remote parts of Erie County as well as the Southern Tier, recently introduced a bipartisan bill that would increase passenger screening for the growing charter flight industry. The bill, called the Safer Skies Act, immediately won the support of airline unions and 11 other lawmakers from both parties, including several liberal Democrats who rarely work with people like Langworthy.
The effort stems from Langworthy’s work as chairman of the House Aviation Safety Caucus, which he took over shortly after joining the House. He said in that role he worked with the aviation industry and government experts to identify potential safety vulnerabilities.
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What is particularly striking, he said, is the fact that passengers on charter flights do not have to go through the same Transportation Security Administration security checks as passengers on commercial flights. Yet charter airlines are increasingly offering passenger services that resemble regular commercial flights from smaller airports that have been abandoned by the major airlines.
“The Safer Skies Act will close a legal loophole that has allowed certain operators, such as ticketed charter flights, to circumvent the strict screening requirements that ensure the safety of all passengers,” Langworthy said. “It is critical to protecting our airspace and the lives of passengers and crew.”
The bill’s lead Democratic co-sponsor, Texas Rep. Marc Veasey, agreed.
“I am concerned that a growing number of public charter flight operators are attempting to circumvent TSA security standards,” Veasey said, adding that the bill “underscores rigorous security standards and holds those who do not adhere to those standards accountable.”
The bill would require the TSA to impose security screenings on charter airlines that offer individual seats based on publicly available flight schedules in advance. Such charter flights with more than nine passenger seats would be subject to the same security screenings as regular commercial airlines.
This is a sensible step, says Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the pilot who safely landed a damaged American Airlines plane on the Hudson River just weeks before Flight 3407 crashed.
“The Safer Skies Act will close security loopholes that public charter operators often exploit,” said Sullenberger said to X. “All airlines must ensure a uniform level of safety for all passengers.”
Several lawmakers from both parties appear to agree. Democrats supporting Langworthy’s bill include Reps. Jerrold Nadler of Manhattan and Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, D.C. Republican co-signers include three of Langworthy’s fellow New Yorkers: Rep. Mike Lawler of the Hudson Valley and Reps. Anthony D’Esposito and Andrew Garbarino of Long Island.
Several unions representing pilots and flight attendants also supported the bill.
“Air passengers should be able to board an aircraft and trust that they will be provided with the same level of safety whether they are flying to a big city or a small town,” said Captain Jason Ambrosi, president of the Air Line Pilots Association. “Loopholes and abuse of current rules and regulations undermine a system that has made U.S. commercial aviation the safest in the world.”
Langworthy announced his plan two months after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was reviewing the possibility of imposing the same safety regulations on charter airlines as commercial airlines.
“Part of the FAA’s safety mission is to identify risks early, and that’s exactly what we’re doing with public charter flights, the use of which is increasing,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said at the time. “If a company is actually operating as a scheduled airline, the FAA must determine whether that operation is subject to the same strict rules as scheduled airlines.”
The families of Continental Flight 3407 won a years-long battle for commercial aviation safety laws after the 2009 crash that killed 50 people and that regulators blamed on pilot error. And although those laws completely ignored the charter industry, which is subject to different and sometimes looser federal regulations, a key member of the family group praised Langworthy for expanding his aviation safety efforts to the charter industry.
“He recognizes that it is a security violation” to operate charter flights without TSA agents screening their passengers, said Karen Eckert, who lost her sister, Beverly Eckert, in the crash of Flight 3407. “We are all for requiring passengers on all airlines that offer the same type of service to go through the same screening. Otherwise, it’s a huge loophole in the law.”
Beverly Eckert’s husband, Sean Rooney, died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and Beverly Eckert co-founded Voices for September 11th, an organization that advocates for the families of the victims of the attacks.
