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HELICOPTER AIR SERVICE PROGRAM     95

Mr. PUCINSKI. That is correct, as far as I know, sir. 

Senator MONRONEY. Thank you.

Do you have any further questions?

If not, we thank you very much. 

Mr. PUCINSKI. Thank you, Senator. 

Senator MONRONEY. We are honored today to have an old friend of this committee, a man who speaks for the major part of the airline industry and who has always been very helpful to this committee with his cogent and timely advice, Mr. Tipton, back with us again.

STATEMENT OF STUART G. TIPTON, PRESIDENT, AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Mr. TIPTON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I always enjoy coming before this committee. I do hope that on this occasion I can be helpful, and I do hope on past occasions, I have.

Senator MONRONEY. You may, as you always have, proceed in your own way. Would you like to be interrupted before you complete, or would you rather complete your statement first?

Mr. TIPTON. Anything the committee would like. I think it might be more useful if I would proceed all the way through my statement. If that is all right, I believe it might be better. However, if any member of the committee wishes to interrupt, I would surely be pleased.
 
Senator MONRONEY. You may proceed. Unless there is an urgent question, we will reserve our questioning of you until you have completed.

Mr. TIPTON. My name is Stuart G. Tipton. I am president of the Air Transport Association of America, which represents substantially all of the certified scheduled airlines of the United States, including in this specific instance the helicopter carriers, New York Airways, Los Angeles Airways, and Chicago Helicopter.

Our industry appreciates the opportunity to state our position on the helicopter question. We agree that there is great urgency in settling this issue promptly. The existence of uncertainty over the continuance of this worthwhile experiment obviously adds to the difficulties of the operators. Detailed studies have been made of these operations in recent months and we have every reason to believe that that a record can be made here on which this committee can base a decision that will be in the public interest.

Let us begin at the beginning. Why was the helicopter experiment launched? Anyone who drives a car in the great congested urban areas knows the answer to this question. The estimates are that by 1980, better than 72 percent of the U.S. population will be squeezed into our metropolitan areas. Everyone is agreed that a massive effort must be made by Federal, State, and local authorities to prevent strangulation. The costs in lost time of productive people who must sit in traffic jams, and the cost of moving freight in congested urban areas, is a major concern to business and government alike.

The problem is one of the most difficult facing our society. Our growing prosperity, instead of helping to provide solutions, is contributing to the problem for the huge populations in urban areas. One car per family is not enough. Two- and three-car families are becoming