"Mike Rapoport" wrote in message
ink.net...
No way. Everything I have read, including anti-privatization pieces from
AOPA, says fuel taxes and airlilne ticket taxes do not come close to
funding
ATC and airport improvements. If it was already self funding, there would
be no incentive to privatize it and the controllers union wouldn't be
afraid
of privatization.

The controllers union isn't afraid of privatization because the of a system
funding issue. Whatever entity provides ATC in the system will have the
system users by the short hairs. Funding will be had because the system
users won't have a choice other than pay to play. Likewise, whatever entity
provides ATC in the system will employ air traffic controllers. The
Canadian controllers even got a raise when NavCanada was chartered. The
issue for American federal controllers isn't funding or job security. The
issue for American controllers is that we don't trust a for-profit private
entity to properly staff and run an ATC enterprise with a "safety above all"
corporate attitude. Hell, we hardly trust FAA, and FAA actually *does* have
a "safety above all" corporate attitude. We know that a contractor will be
in the game to make money, and that staffing levels, salaries and equipment
costs will all eat at the profits. Not good for us. We fear that
privatization will place us into an environment where the contractor pushes
us to cut major safety corners (you know, in the name of "efficiency") and
then when people get hurt or airplanes get too close, the poor SOB working
the sector will get fired for "poor job performance" rather than the
contractor getting sacked for putting the controller in that situation and
the people in the airplanes in that situation. Skyguard here we come...

Chip, ZTL