ATA welcomes release of crude oil reserves

ATA welcomes release of crude oil reserves    In the aftermath Hurricane Katrina, the U.S. Air Transport Association (ATA) has welcomed the government’s plans to release crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR).
   ATA president and chief executive officer James C. May also called for the government to move quickly to assist with the restoration of refinery capacity diminished by storm damage.
   “We believe such a release will ease some of the upward pressure on prices that accelerated in the days leading up to the storm,” May said. “A release from the SPR, however, is just a first step. It is now critical that the government act aggressively to provide much-needed assistance to restore refinery capacity damaged by Katrina, particularly since capacity was already extremely tight prior to the storm.”
   ATA Airlines are Aloha, Alaska, America West, American, ATA, Continental (including Micronesia), Delta, FedEx, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Midwest, Northwest, Southwest, United, UPS and US Airways.