Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Says Paper Portrayed Biz-Av In An Irresponsible Way
NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen sent the following letter to the
Wall Street Journal following a front page article
"Corporate Jet Set: Leisure vs. Business" in its June 16th
edition:
The Wall Street Journal
ATTN: Letters Editor
200 Liberty Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10281-1015
June 17, 2011
Your front-page story detailing the movements of "general
aviation" airplanes by businesses ("Corporate Jet Set: Leisure vs.
Business," June 16) unfortunately neglected to mention that the
personal use of a company’s airplane typically accounts for
only a tiny fraction of the aircraft’s flights.
A view of business aviation beyond the select list of flights
included in your story would reveal that for the most part,
businesspeople use an airplane to reach towns with little or no
airline service, work more efficiently and productively while in
flight, and be more nimble and competitive in a global
marketplace.
That said, directors at publicly traded companies do allow for
some personal use of an airplane in accordance with applicable SEC
reporting requirements, including proxy-statement reporting to
shareholders. Directors make this allowance because a typical
business executive is on call 24 hours a day, whether in the office
or in the air - facts taken into account, along with bottom-line
considerations, including the terms of executives' compensation
packages, and the important role of business aviation in
maintaining the confidentiality of corporate travel for competitive
reasons.
In fact, we have documented instances in which business flights
have been tracked by competitors interested in who or where their
customers were, where an acquisition target might be, and the
like.
That's why the National Business Aviation Association and other
organizations are actively opposing the government's plan to roll
back a long-standing program, referenced in your story, which
provides citizens and companies with the ability to "opt out" of
having their aviation movements tracked.
We will continue to oppose the government's move to dismantle this
congressionally enabled program, because whether you're a top
executive, or one of the countless mid-level managers, salespeople,
marketing representatives or technicians who make up the vast
majority of a business airplane's passengers, the simple fact is
that boarding that airplane should not be tantamount to sacrificing
the confidentiality of the company’s business
activities.
Sincerely,
Ed Bolen
President and CEO
National Business Aviation Association
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