| USA Today has reported that "For nine years, Texans in Congress have been steering federal money to a Fort Worth airport with no passenger flights. The funds — $26 million since 2001 — are going to lengthen two runways at Fort Worth Alliance Airport to 11,000 feet from their current spans of 9,600 feet and 8,220 feet. The improvements will enable fully loaded cargo planes to take off during the hottest days, when more runway length is needed, airport spokesman David Pelletier said. That will be a big help to the airport's principal cargo carrier, FedEx, which has a major hub at Alliance. "FedEx is the only carrier that uses the runways on a regular basis," Pelletier said. FedEx and competitor United Parcel Service (UPS) have benefited on numerous occasions from "earmarks," which are specific projects that lawmakers add to spending bills, a USA TODAY review shows of the annual transportation spending bills for the past nine years." from postcom.org |
