Airlines to Trump: Block Rivals and Privatize Air Traffic Control

Will the Republican administration be friendlier than Obama? Here’s the industry wish list.

Donald Trump steps off his plane as he arrives for a rally at the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Fla., on Oct. 12, 2016.

Photographer: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
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Donald Trump, a hotelier and former airline executive, has said plenty about immigrants, borders, and free trade. But he hasn’t said much about the multibillion-dollar aviation industry. This huge segment of the American economy has some priorities and complaints that have gone essentially nowhere during the Obama administration, due in part to political gridlock.

With Republicans running both houses of Congress and the White House next year, airlines are now ready to push their case on several issues they hold dear. Most aviation experts say it’s hard to gauge how Trump’s administration might respond, given that it doesn’t owe the industry any favors.