Avionics News March 2015 - 10

Industry-wide study shows
GA continues to be major
contributor to U.S. economy
General aviation supports 1.1 million jobs and $219 billion in economic output
On Feb. 11, eight general aviation associations unveiled
a new industry-wide study detailing the economic contributions of general aviation to the U.S. economy during
a press conference at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.
The study, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, determined that general aviation supports 1.1 million total
jobs and supplies $219 billion in total economic output in
the United States. These numbers include direct, indirect,
induced, and enabled impacts.
The Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA), Aircraft
Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Experimental
Aircraft Association (EAA), General Aviation Manufacturers
Association (GAMA), Helicopter Association International
(HAI), National Association of State Aviation Officials
(NASAO), National Air Transportation Association (NATA),
and National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) funded
the study, which determined the industry's economic impact
based on data from 2013, the most recent year available.

In addition, the associations produced a narrative
report, "The Wide Wings and Rotors of General
Aviation," which captures some of the stories
behind the industry's significant economic and community impact throughout the United States. The
PricewaterhouseCoopers study and narrative report are
available on the AEA's website at aea.net.
"On behalf of the thousands of avionics professionals the Aircraft Electronics Association represents, this
economic impact study is testimony to the hard work and
dedication of American workers who design, engineer,
manufacture, and maintain products to ensure aviation is
continually more efficient, valuable to our communities
and safer in our skies," said Paula Derks, president of the
AEA. "By providing thousands of high-wage jobs in all
50 states and billions of dollars in economic output, it's
no surprise general aviation is one of the strongest contributors to the nation's balance of trade." q

In 2009, General Aviation Caucuses were formed in the
U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate to inform
congressional members and staff about the importance of
general aviation to the nation's economy and transportation
system. Today, the House GA Caucus has grown to become
one of the largest caucuses in the House of Representatives.
Rep. Sam Graves (R-Missouri) and Rep. Marc Veasey
(D-Texas) take on the role of bipartisan co-chairs for the
House of Representatives General Aviation Caucus, which
began the 114th session of Congress in January 2015 with
a strong majority of 222 members.
Graves and Veasey were appointed co-chairs on Jan.
23, and the House GA Caucus will play an important role
in educating members of Congress about general aviation

issues during this year's Federal Aviation Administration
reauthorization process. Graves served as House GA
Caucus co-chair for the past Congress, and he also is a
member of the House Aviation Subcommittee. Veasey
replaces John Barrow (D-Georgia) as the other co-chair.
On Jan. 21, the bipartisan U.S. Senate GA Caucus
named Sen. John Boozman (R-Arkansas) and Sen. Joe
Manchin (D-West Virginia) as co-chairs. Boozman was a
member of the GA Caucus during the last Congress, while
Manchin is a longtime pilot.
Sen. Boozman and Sen. Manchin replace Mark Begich
(D-Alaska) and Mike Johanns (R-Nebraska), who led the
41-member Senate GA Caucus in the previous Congress
but are no longer serving in the Senate. q

Leaders chosen for congressional
General Aviation Caucuses

avionics news

march

2015

http://www.aea.net

Avionics News March 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News March 2015