Sam Graves

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Chair.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Chairman, it has been made clear through debate that H.R. 3935 is a must-pass bill that provides a path for America's future success, growth, and leadership in civil aviation. This strong bipartisan, forward-looking legislation is going to improve efficiency and operations at the FAA. It is going to strengthen America's foundational general aviation sector, and it is going to grow the aviation workforce. It is going to invest in airport infrastructure across the country. It is going to encourage domestic innovation in aviation, enhance the passenger experience, and uphold America's gold standard in aviation safety. Before I yield back, Mr. Chair, I would like to recognize the work of staff on both sides of the aisle in the development of this legislation. I appreciate the many long days, weeks, and weekends, for that matter, that staff, including the folks in the legislative counsel's office, have put into this effort. I think it shows in the quality of the legislation that we have before us. On the Republican Subcommittee on Aviation, I thank staff director Hunter Presti, Laney Copeland, Julie Devine, Andrew Giacini, Christopher Senn, and Will Moore. On the Republican full committee staff, I thank staff director Jack Ruddy, Michael Falencki, Corey Cooke, Meghan Holland, Abby Wenk, Leslie Parker, Chris Divine, Tyler Micheletti, Wills MacKay, Payton Palazzolo, Justin Harclerode, Jake Murphy, and Kerry Goldberg. I also thank Maggie Aryea of subcommittee chairman Garret Graves' staff. On the Democratic staff, I thank committee staff director Kathy Dedrick, Helena Zyblikewycz--I am sorry; I apologize--Stanton Johnson, aviation staff director Brian Bell, Alexandra Menardy, Adam Weiss, and again, all the staff who worked on this complex and critical legislation. Mr. Chair, I urge support of the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in the American Aviation Act, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chair, I have no further speakers at this time. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this en bloc amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I don't have any speakers, so I am prepared to close. I urge my colleagues to support these amendments en bloc, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of the Graves-Larsen amendment. This amendment makes several technical conforming and clarifying changes throughout the underlying bill. Furthermore, the amendment includes provisions that were the result of bipartisan negotiations on several policy issues. These provisions include additional requirements for FAA to further coordinate the safe integration of new entrants into the National Airspace System, adding pilot apprenticeship, internship, or scholarship programs or veteran career transition nonprofits as an eligible grant recipient under the aviation workforce development program, protections on voluntary safety information disclosures, and several other provisions that reflect the bipartisan work with our colleagues across the aisle. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I would urge my colleagues to support this important amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chair, pursuant to House Resolution 597, I offer amendments en bloc.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chair, pursuant to House Resolution 597, I offer amendments en bloc.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of en bloc No. 1, containing 18 amendments from my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. This en bloc contains a number of important amendments that address issues of national importance as well as issues that are impacting individual districts. This package allows airports to use their Federal dollars to better understand the communities which they serve and the length people travel in order to take a flight. It will instruct the FAA to test and evaluate means by which general and business aviation can utilize technology to receive flight clearances as opposed to using antiquated systems. It also instructs the FAA to stand up a multidisciplinary task force to review the impact that human factors have on aviation safety and to make related recommendations. In addition, this package instructs the Government Accountability Office to consult with airports to review emergency response plans and assess electrical resiliency for the safe operations of an airport during emergency scenarios. This en bloc includes a number of provisions from members of the T&I Committee that were raised at markup but that we didn't have time to resolve. I am very glad that we were able to work together to resolve the few issues and support changes on a bipartisan basis. Mr. Chair, I urge support of this bipartisan en bloc package and reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Yakym).

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support this en bloc amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chair, pursuant to House Resolution 597, I offer amendments en bloc.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of en bloc No. 2, containing 20 amendments from my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. This en bloc reflects the bipartisan work of our committee, which has done what we have done to address Members' priorities. This includes bipartisan agreements on several amendments that we considered during our markup, including requiring the FAA to develop training materials to improve safety for airport ramp workers, and it requires the GAO to conduct a study on air cargo operations in Puerto Rico. Furthermore, the en bloc package includes amendments to ensure the Secretary responds to essential air service contracts in a timely manner, allowing the FAA to provide weather observer training to airport personnel and ensures that United States passengers on foreign air carriers are protected in the same manner as they would be on United States air carriers by avoiding Russian airspace. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan en bloc package, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this en bloc, which contains 17 amendments to H.R. 3935 offered by my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. This en bloc package includes amendments that seek to require the Government Accountability Office to study the pilot shortage, require community feedback regarding aircraft noise matters, improve emergency medical kits on board aircraft, require an audit of recent flight cancellations that continue to plague passengers and travelers, as well as many more things in this en bloc. I urge support of this en bloc package and encourage a ``yes'' vote by all Members. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose).

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to amendment No. 10 offered by Mr. Langworthy.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, it is hard to even know where to begin. The sad thing about it is that very few people have actually read the report on what happened to Flight 3407. Starting out, I have to say that I don't question anybody's motives on whether they oppose or support, or whatever the case may be. The sad thing about it is the wrong questions are being asked. Now, what we are trying to do does not in any way change or weaken the 1,500-hour rule. What we are trying to say is that simulator time-- which you can simulate anything--should be used in training pilots. I am an ATP, and I will kind of explain how that process works. You get your private pilot certificate, and then you move on to your commercial certificate. After an instrument rating, you get the single- engine commercial rating, the multiengine commercial rating, and then you move on to the ATP. It stands for airline transport pilot, and I have that rating. I have flown all the profiles that anybody would have to go through to achieve an ATP. What is interesting in this whole process is that if you take a look at the recommendations that came out of the investigation when it comes to Flight 3407, the Buffalo accident, you have to wonder--again, this is where the wrong questions are being asked. The pilot had 3,379 total hours before the accident. This pilot failed six checkrides, and not just checkrides that were recurrent. He failed his initial instrument checkride. He failed his commercial single-engine checkride. He failed his commercial multiengine checkride. He failed at the Gulfstream Academy when he was checking out in Gulfstreams. He failed his checkride in the Gulfstream. He failed his ATP checkride and had to do remedial training. Then, ultimately, when he was upgraded to the plane that was in the accident, he failed his sixth checkride. He didn't fail some of his checkrides when he advanced from one rating to the next. He failed all of them and had to go to remedial training. I ask whether you would get on an airline or a flight or put your family on a flight if you knew that the captain had failed all six checkrides as he advanced through his process. No, you wouldn't, not in a minute. Would you get on a flight if it was recommended that the pilot have remedial training? Here we are with a simulator. You can simulate anything. I remember one of my simulator profiles, one of my simulator flights. We were coming in. I was doing an approach and lost my autopilot as a result, so I had to hand-fly the approach--zero visibility, 200-foot ceiling, which is at the minimum. As I am on approach, I lose sight of the runway because the ceiling comes down. I have to execute a go-around to reestablish my approach. This is all being done in the simulator. As I am executing my go-around, I lose an engine. I have to execute a go-around with one engine to minimums, and I have to get it on the ground in zero-zero visibility. You can't simulate that in a real airplane. You can't simulate any of this, any emergency, in a real airplane. First of all, in an airliner, that means the airplane is going to have to be taken down because it is going to have to be checked. If you do stalls in a full-blown airliner, you are going to have to take that aircraft down to have the airframe inspected because of the stress that is put on it. Now, what I do want to point out is ALPA, the airline association that represented the pilots, I got on their website and found it fascinating. One of the things that they like to point out--I am glad they were part of the board that was the ARAC. That is the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee, which is who we established to make recommendations on exactly how much simulator time we should add. They co-chaired the ARAC when it came to investigating this accident. Do you know one of the things that they tout, one of the things that they are very proud of on their website that they push? When it comes to one of the recommendations made by the NTSB, additional training on upset prevention and recovery, a new certification training program course requirement. These new simulator-based training requirements also include performing manual controlled maneuvers, procedures, slow flight--all these things. They actually endorsed more simulator training because you can simulate anything. Today's simulators, by the way, are far and above what they were just 10 years ago. I also have the testimony that the NTSB gave in the Senate hearing. It is unfortunate, Mr. Chairman, because the testimony in the Senate hearing says it all. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire how much time I have remaining.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues not to support this amendment.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong opposition to this amendment and urge Members to vote ``no.'' The Essential Air Service program has proven to be a vital tool for rural connectivity, and for decades, it has been providing commercial air service to rural America. It ensures our constituents in rural communities are connected to the national air transportation system and provides businesses across the country with the opportunity to grow their businesses and families easier access to loved ones across the Nation. It drives economic development in many of our districts. This amendment most certainly eliminates air service to our smallest, most rural communities. I have been a longtime, strong supporter of the EAS program. In order to ensure the program's long-term viability, smart and targeted reforms are needed to ensure the program can continue to serve our communities. Those reforms are in this underlying bill. It phases in cost-saving reforms to secure the program's long-term stability and ensures that it will continue to meet the needs of communities served while reining in the ballooning costs. I, myself, have an EAS airport in my district that will be subject to the cost-share provision beginning in fiscal year 2027. I fear that without reducing costs, the entire program will cease to exist in due time, thanks to the program's cost. Let's do anything we can to attempt to save this program. I think anything that we do if we are not attempting to save this program is literally a disservice to our constituents. Please vote ``no'' on the amendment.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Chair, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Carolyn Applegate of Queen City, Missouri. Carolyn retired from her position as a second-grade teacher for the Schuyler R-1 School District at the end of the school year, closing the book on a remarkable 28-year career. A good education is one of the building blocks of a strong citizenry, particularly in rural America. Few individuals can touch the hearts and minds of young people like teachers. They serve the public in ways many others cannot and forge the fate of our Nation for generations to come. Mrs. Applegate has been exemplary in her service to Schuyler County and her students. In her nearly three-decade career, she continued to be the definition of what an educator should be: caring, committed, and patient. Although her time as a teacher for Schuyler R-1 schools has come to an end, she will always be remembered as a world-class educator. Mrs. Applegate's impact to her community will be carried on in the students she taught. Her much-deserved retirement will be spent making new memories with her friends and family. Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me and the people of the Sixth Congressional District in thanking Carolyn Applegate. I am proud to represent her in the United States House of Representatives and wish her well in her retirement.

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri

Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize John Carpenter Erickson. John is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 5, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. John has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years John has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. John has also contributed to his community through his Eagle Scout project. John led an effort to redo the community garden at Camp Mabry. John mapped out plant beds, ordered the necessary materials, recruited and coordinated volunteers, and handled the logistics of the food that was donated. Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending John Carpenter Erickson for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.