Business aircraft operators have been taken by surprise by the US Department of Transportation's decision to reinstate general aviation slot controls at Chicago O'Hare airport as part of its move to cut flights at the USA's most delay-prone hub (Flight International, 24-30 August).
Reinstatement of the Airport Reservation Office (ARO) GA slot programme from 1 November is an "unfortunate ramification" of the DoT's decision to impose reductions on peak-hour arrival rates at O'Hare in a bid to reduce airline delays, says the US National Business Aviation Association, which has objected to the move.
The decision re-imposes slot controls lifted just a year ago at O'Hare, says the NBAA. At that time, slot restrictions were eased at New York's LaGuardia and Kennedy airport, and these remain unaffected by the O'Hare decision, the association says. A fourth slot-controlled airport, Washington DC's Reagan National, remains closed to general aviation.
The NBAA says it has been given no information on how the reinstated O'Hare slot controls will work. The previous ARO system required all operators other than scheduled airlines to reserve a landing slot up to 72h in advance, and limited the number of hourly slots available depending on the time.
GRAHAM WARWICK / WASHINGTON DC
Source: Flight International
