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Aerospace Commission Makes Recommendations on Industrial Base Issues WASHINGTON, D.C., May 16 - The Commission on the Future of the U.S. Aerospace Industry recommended at a public meeting May 14 that the Defense Science Board (DSB) assess the Defense Department's policies on acquisitions and mergers in the aerospace industry. The commission is also recommending that the DSB study the adequacy of existing Department of Defense programs to sustain the industrial design base for fixed-wing military aircraft and solid rocket motors. AIA President and CEO John W. Douglass, one of the 12 members of the commission, said at the meeting that increased funding will be needed for the preservation of the manned flight industrial base. He also asked that the commission follow up on its recommendation to modernize air traffic control and that the administration quickly fill the position of FAA administrator upon the conclusion of current FAA administrator Jane Garvey's term of office. The commission heard testimony from a broad range of representatives from industry and government on issues of human capital, the preservation of the aerospace industrial base, and civilian and military use of space. Rep. Norman D. Dicks, (D-WA) presented data to the commission indicating defense procurement should be in the range of $90 billion a year, a $28 billion increase from the current figure of nearly $62 billion. The importance of maintaining an adequate depth and quality of human capital was a common theme among most of the witnesses appearing before the commission. There was agreement that existing programs designed to replace aerospace talent being lost due to retirements in an aging aerospace workforce are inadequate. Most recommendations took the form of various financing arrangements designed to aid students in pursuing technical and scientific educational programs as an incentive to enter the aerospace field. Suggestions ranged from direct forgiveness of student loans to tax incentives for company sponsored apprenticeship programs. The commission will issue its third interim report in June and a final report with recommendations for the administration and Congress in November. P.A. Rel 2002-19 05.16.02 -AIA- Contact: Matt Grimison, AIA |
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