FAA targets flight delays

WASHINGTON, July 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said it hopes to cut airline delays by 20 percent on the East Coast within 18 months, it was reported Tuesday.

Some flight patterns would change by redesigning airspace over New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey, which also would reduce delays at Washington-area airports, The Washington Times reported.

"It is not high technology or very expensive new runways," FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey said in the Times' article.

U.S. flights were delayed more often during the first five months of this year than in any other year since the government began tracking delays in 1995.

The FAA plan, which requires congressional approval, has been in the works for a decade because of the complexity of drafting flight plans that affect the fewest number of residential areas, Blakey said.

"Anytime you move an aircraft over someone's house, that person squawks," she told the Times. "To be fair, you have to have a lot of literal engineering work. Airspace is real estate like anything else."