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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release April 7, 1993

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

Today I am signing into law H.R. 904, a bill providing for appointments to the "National Commission to Ensure a Strong Competitive Airline Industry." I am pleased to have the opportunity to join with the Congress so quickly in the new session in this effort to gain a fuller understanding of the difficulties facing the Nation's aviation industry -- both airlines and aircraft manufacturing.

The recent experience of the aviation industry has not been good. Unemployment in the airline industry has reached record levels over the past few years. The backlog of new orders for aircraft has shrunk, leading to unemployment in the aircraft manufacturing industry as well. When I visited the Boeing Corporation in Everett, Washington, managers and employees alike described the personal impact of these developments.

The issues facing the industry have an international dimension. In recent remarks at the American University here in Washington, I stressed that our Nation is ready to compete in the world economy fairly and squarely. In our bilateral and multilateral aviation negotiations, my Administration will promote fair competition in international trade and airline routes.

I asked Secretary of Transportation Pena to join with the Congress to develop a process for addressing the industry's problems, and I am pleased by this strong bipartisan result. The aviation industry is important not only to our economy, but (as Operation Desert Storm demonstrated just 2 years ago) to our national defense as well. The information and recommendations developed by the Commission will assist us in building a consensus from the many competing views on how government and industry can best work together to address the aviation industry's current difficulties.

I am pleased that this legislation accelerates the deadline for the Commission's report. I have asked Secretary Pena, working with the rest of the Cabinet, to do everything possible to get the Commission up and running quickly. I look forward to receiving the Commission's report within 90 days after appointments to the Commission are completed.

I note that the House Subcommittee on Aviation has already begun to assemble a record of the relevant issues during its hearings in February. With concerted effort by all parties, this Commission can provide valuable, timely answers.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON

THE WHITE HOUSE,

April 7, 1993.

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