The Prez Got an Earful on Air Traffic

Behind the scenes, President Bush has been getting an earful about air-traffic delays.

And it turns out that one crucial bit of intelligence came from a member of his official "family"—Karl Zinsmeister, Bush's domestic policy adviser. In reporting to the president how frustrating it is for passengers to sit in an airplane waiting to take off, Zinsmeister explained that he endured a 61/₂-hour wait on the tarmac for a recent flight, while he crammed his 6-foot-5 frame into a coach seat.

Bush admitted that he never has such experiences on Air Force One, but he was impressed by the account. He ended up by deciding to open some military aviation routes to commercial traffic for Thanksgiving week in order to relieve congestion.

—Kenneth T. Walsh

Reader Comments

Add Your Thoughts

Comment Name State Select One AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY International Email

Please enter the two words below into the text field underneath the image.

Incorrect please try again

Enter the words above: Enter the numbers you hear:

Your comment will be posted immediately, unless it is spam or contains profanity. For more information, please see our Comments FAQ.