than long-term contract air transportation within the United States, this Agency is the principal Defense Department contact with the air transportation industry. It negotiates agreements covering DOD traffic with air carriers and with land carriers through the industry associations. The Military Traffic Management Agency arranges for all charter movements and group travel performed commercially within the United States. In the case of recruits, the individual recruiting offices have been given authority to route these passengers on an individually ticketed basis. Travel for the groups on the Imperial Airlines plane that crashed at Richmond was arranged for by the Army recruiting service. Transportation service is generally determined by the characteristics and requirements of a particular movement. Preference is not accorded one mode against another. The mode which provides the required service at the lowest cost is selected; and within a mode the lowest cost carrier offering satisfactory service is chosen. There is no requirement in law that the DOD use any class of air carrier. However, the Defense Appropriation Act requires that carriers which are classified as small business be used to the fullest extent found practicable for international airlift. It also stipulates that only those carriers participating in the Civil Reserve Air Fleet program be used to augment MATS. As a matter of policy, we use both certificated route and supplemental air carriers for contract (charter) operations arranged by MTMA and, only until recently, for individually ticketed travel within the United States. The Defense Department has traditionally relied on the Civil Aeronautics Board and the Federal Aviation Agency in matters relating to the control, regulation, and safety of civil air carriers. We give major emphasis to service, reliability, and responsiveness of the carriers which have been certified by the CAB and the FAA. For several years, the Air Force has required a facility capability survey of all carriers participating in international or long-term domestic operations for the Department of Defense. These surveys have been helpful to the carriers, FAA, CAB, and to us. They permit us to award contracts with reasonable assurance that the air carrier receiving the award will perform efficiently and safely, and that it has the resources necessary to sustain its operations in support of our requirements. Any prudent contracting agency will take these steps to assure that it will receive the service or product it is procuring. Subsequent to the Imperial Airlines crash, the Secretary of Defense, on November 17, 1961, directed that MATS perform facility capability surveys of all certificated supplemental carriers performing under military charters arranged by MTMA. He also directed that individual travel by air be accomplished on certificated route carriers only. These actions were taken in recognition of the fact that "The Department of Defense has the responsibility to insure that it is procuring air transportation which affords maximum safety to its personnel and reliability of service." I would like to submit a copy of this directive for insertion in the record at this point, Mr. Chairman. Mr. HARDY. Without objection, it will be included. (The document referred to is as follows:) THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, Memorandum for The Secretary of the Army. The Secretary of the Navy. The Secretary of the Air Force. Subject: Department of Defense policy on domestic commercial passenger air transportation service. I have approved the attached policy statement this date. In implementing this policy, the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) will conduct capability surveys of each supplemental carrier desiring to participate in the domestic movement of Department of Defense passenger traffic on a contract (charter) basis. These surveys will be made on a recurring basis in accordance with criteria designed to assure maximum safety and reliability of flight operations and contribution to the maintenance of appropriate mobilization base capacity. Between surveys, representatives of MATS will spot-check carrier flight operations to the extent the Commander, MATS, deems necessary to assure continued adherence to established standards. MATS will maintain on a current basis and provide to the Military Traffic Management Agency a listing of supplemental carriers approved for contract (charter) domestic military passenger operations based on the results of capability and related surveys. Appropriate coordination will be effected between MATS and MTMA, and procedures jointly established by those agencies to assure that high standards of safety and service are met and that equal opportunity is afforded all supplemental carriers to participate in Defense contract operations. The regulations of the military departments will be amended to reflect the above and the policy set forth in the attachment. Any provision of DOD issuances in conflict with this policy is rescinded. ROBERT S. MCNAMARA. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE POLICY ON DOMESTIC COMMERCIAL PASSENGER AIR TRANSPORTATION SERVICE The Department of Defense has the responsibility to insure that it is procuring air transportation which affords maximum safety to its personnel and reliability of service. In discharging this responsibility, the following specific actions are directed: 1. Only certificated supplemental carriers which have been approved by the Executive Agency (Military Air Transport Service) of the Single Manager for Airlift Service, after a capability survey, or the certificated route carriers, will be used for short term domestic contract (charter) military passenger airlift operations. 2. Department of Defense individually ticketed passengers will travel only on certificated route carriers within the United States. ROBERT S. MCNAMARA. Mr. RILEY. The policies directed by the Secretary of Defense on November 17 were put into effect immediately. MTMA immediately suspended air charter operations with all but MATS-approved carriers. The Secretary also instructed MATS and MTMA to establish, jointly, procedures to assure that high standards of safety and service are met and that equal opportunity is afforded all supplemental carriers to participate in Defense charter business. The executive directors of MATS and MTMA have reached formal agreement on procedures required to implement the policies directed by Secretary McNamara, a copy of which I would like to insert in the record at this time. Mr. HARDY. Without objection, it will be included. (The document referred to is as follows:) Pursuant to the direction of the Secretary of Defense and in implementation of policy relating to domestic commercial air transportation services announced November 17, 1961, copy attached, the following understandings have been reached: 1. Only pressurized aircraft are considered by the Department of Defense as adequately meeting criteria applicable to contract (charter) passenger operations. Accordingly, the Military Traffic Management Agency (MTMA) will procure air transportation utilizing this type of equipment only. Service regulations will be amended accordingly. 2. The following-named certificated supplemental carriers possess current Military Air Transport Service Capability Survey Committee clearance for 4 engine pressurized aircraft and only those certificated supplemental carriers may be used by MTMA pending clearance of additional carriers. *A.S.A. International, Inc. *Airline Transport Carriers, doing business as California Hawaiian Airlines. Capitol Airways, Inc. *Slick Airways. *Trans-International Airlines. United States Overseas Airlines. World Airways, Inc. Overseas National Airways. 3. Military Air Transport Service (MATS) will expedite action to survey additional supplemental certificated carriers in accordance with priorities established by MTMA. 4. There will be developed and implemented criteria and standards designed to assure optimum use of the types of passenger aircraft making the maximum contribution to the domestic passenger airlift mobilization base. 5. It is the ultimate objective of MATS to conduct appropriate checks of each charter operations. In the interim, efforts toward this goal will be vigorously pursued. 6. MATS will physically locate such representatives as are required with Headquarters, MTMA, pursuant to coordinated determinations of the respective executive directors. 7. MTMA will provide appropriate membership on MATS commercial airlift capability survey teams. 8. MATS and MTMA will exchange such data as the executive directors thereof agree is necessary for the performance of their respective functions. 9. MATS and MTMA will coordinate, as appropriate, in the development and negotiation of such agreements with the air carrier industry as may be required. 10. The executive directors of MATS and MTMA will expeditiously develop such additional procedures and/or agreements as may be necessary to effectively implement the policy referred to herein. JOE W. KELLY, Lieutenant General, USAF, Executive Director, I. SEWELL MORRIS, Major General, USA, Executive Director, Mr. RILEY. Both General Morris, the executive director of MTMA, and General Kelly, the executive director of MATS will discuss their agreement with you. Although we believe that our policies and their implementation will give our personnel safe and reliable air transportation, we are continuing to review our transportation policies to assure that our practices result in maximum safety and reliability of flight operations and contribute to the maintenance of mobilization base capacity. This concludes my statement, Mr. Chairman, and I shall be glad to answer any questions you may have. Mr. HARDY. Thank you, Mr Secretary. *Certificated cargo route carriers who are parties to IAA Agreement No. 8. Now, Mr. Smart, you have some questions for the Secretary? Mr. Chairman, at the outset I think we should all fully understand some of the terms which will recur throughout this inquiry. First, let us distinguish between certificated route carriers and supplemental carriers As I understand these terms, a certificated route carrier is a civilian aviation company which has been certified by both CAB and FAA to operate its aircraft over a specified route and on a recurring basis. Is that a fair definition of the term, Mr. Riley? Secretary RILEY. I think that is right, sir. Mr. SMART. I understand a supplemental air carrier to be one which is certificated by both FAA and CAB to operate over nonscheduled routes and to exceed 10 trips per month between any two specified points. Is that a fair definition of that term? Secretary RILEY. That is right. Mr. SMART. You have stated that MATS has the contracting authority for the movement of military passengers to oversea destinations and also for long-term contracts for the movement of military personnel within the continental United States. Is a long-term contract one which permits operation for a period in excess of 90 days? Secretary RILEY. A long-term contract exceeds 90 days, yes, sir. Mr. SMART. This being true, the areas of contracting with which this inquiry is concerned are those short-term contracts of less than 90 days for the domestic movement of military personnel? Secretary RILEY. That is right, and for group movements of 15 or more. Mr. SMART. Is this the class of contract which is exclusively handled by the Defense Traffic Management Service? Secretary RILEY. That is right, sir. Mr. HARDY. Now just to clear this up. Do I understand, then, that MATS does not make any contract for less than 90 days? Secretary RILEY. That is correct. Mr. HARDY. All right. Mr. SMART. You stated that military traffic Secretary RILEY. Mr. Smart, may I add one thing here? Mr. SMART. Yes. Secretary RILEY. In addition to the contractual work performed by both MATS and MTMA-the long term and the short term-you understand that the recruit travel is handled by local transportation officers? Mr. SMART. I will develop that point. You have stated that the Military Traffic Management Agency, which is now known as the Defense Traffic Management Service, does not operate its own transportation equipment, but rather provides a management service to all elements of the Department of Defense in arranging commercial transportation within the United States. Upon what basis is that commercial transportation obtained? Is there a legal contractual arrangement between the Government and the air carrier which performs the service, and if so, what is the governmental agency involved? Secretary RILEY. These agreements are reached between the agency and the associations of air carriers, the railroads, and buslines. The charters are set up for each individual movement, which contain the standards, and the requirements of the movement set forth in the. charter agreement. The contract itself is consummated when the transportation request the Government transportation request-is officially signed. by the transportation officer and the contractor. Mr. SMART. It is clearly a contractual arrangement? Mr. HARDY. Well, now, could we understand that a little bit better. The transportation request, itself, constitutes a contract? Secretary RILEY. The transportation request is an offer by the Government to receive transportation services. Mr. HARDY. I understand that. It is binding on the Government, but what stipulates, under that sort of a contract, the kind of performance which is going to be carried out by the carrier? Secretary RILEY. The charter agreement spells out the Mr. HARDY. All right. That charter agreement is with whom? Secretary RILEY. The charter agreement is with the association, between Mr. HARDY. With the association. Now how does it bind the individual member of the association? Secretary RILEY. The carriers, themselves, are bound by this agreement, through the association. Mr. HARDY. The carriers then subscribe to the agreement individually? Secretary RILEY. Yes, sir. Mr. VAN ZANDT. Mr. Chairman. Mr. HARDY. Go ahead. Mr. VAN ZANDT. This charter was granted to a particular type of transportation, through an association: Does the charter require members of the association to meet all of the requirements laid down by agencies of Government? Secretary RILEY. Yes, sir. Mr. VAN ZANDT. From the standpoint of safety, and so forth? Secretary RILEY. Reliability, time of service, cleanliness of the equipment, meals, and all of the other arrangements that have to be made for satisfactory transportation. Mr. VAN ZANDT. Well, let's see. In the event we will say, of railroads, they would provide through the association receiving the charter, information to the extent that they were meeting all ICC requirements; is that correct? Secretary RILEY. That is right, sir. Mr. VAN ZANDT. The bus would also have to provide information that they are meeting ICC requirements? Secretary RILEY. Yes, sir. Mr. VAN ZANDT. In the event of the airlines, it would be FAA, CAB, and MATS; is that correct? Secretary RILEY. That is right. Mr. SMART. Before the Richmond crash on November 3, the supplemental air carriers transported military traffic either on a charter basis or on an individually ticketed basis. So far as the contractual position of the Government is concerned, is there any difference between these two methods of transportation? Are they both contracts? |