VZCZCXYZ0006
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHSN #0324 0772045
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 172045Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY SAN SALVADOR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9186
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SAN SALVADOR 000324 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR H 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OREP EAIR ECON SNAR
SUBJECT: Codel Costello Visits ES Aircraft Maintenance Facility 
¶1. Summary.  A 16 person Congressional delegation led by Jerry 
Costello (D-IL) visited El Salvador February 28 - March 1. The 
primary purpose of the visit was to see the Aeroman aircraft 
 
maintenance facility. The CODEL also met with other aviation and 
transportation officials in the public and private sectors, 
including U.S. air carrier officials, and saw the Cooperative 
Security Location at Comalapa airport. They were particularly 
impressed with the aircraft maintenance operations at Aeroman.  End 
Summary. 
 
The Delegation 
-------------- 
 
¶2. The CODEL was led by Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL), the 
Chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee of the House Transportation 
and Infrastructure Committee.  The other Members of the delegation 
were Henry Brown (R-SC), Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Cliff Stearns (D-FL) 
and Mazie Hirono (D-HI). Congressman Capuano had to cancel his visit 
at the last minute.  The Assistant Director of the Office of 
Interparliamentary Affairs of the Office of the Speaker of the House 
and FAA Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety Nicholas 
Sabatini came with the Representatives. Five Staffers and four 
military escorts also accompanied the delegation. 
 
Aviation Focused Visit 
---------------------- 
 
¶3. After a Country Team meeting with Ambassador Glazer, the 
delegation went to the Aeroman aircraft maintenance facilities 
located at Comalapa airport. Currently, Aeroman services Jet Blue, 
US Airways and TACA jets. Aeroman expects to announce an agreement 
with Southwest Airlines in April for Aeroman to service Southwest 
jets. Two senior managers from JetBlue joined Aeroman's presentation 
and emphasized Aeroman's high quality standards and high worker 
morale as key factors in their success. 
 
¶4. After the Aeroman presentation and tour of their facilities, 
Congressman Costello said he was impressed with their operations. 
Another delegation member complimented Aeroman on the strict parts 
and inventory controls used by the company. A third delegate said 
Aeroman was better than some US facilities he had seen. One of the 
Staffers commented positively on the incentive pay structure used by 
Aeroman as an incentive to achieve quality control and client 
satisfaction. Aeroman said that they had been audited over 40 times 
in 2007, which also helped keep their quality of work very high. 
 
¶5. Following the Aeroman facilities visit, the CODEL had a briefing 
at the Cooperative Security Location (CSL).  They heard first hand 
about the success of the CSL, even with limited resources, to combat 
illegal drug trafficking through aerial surveillance. They were also 
interested to hear about the latest methods used by drug traffickers 
to evade detection and how the CSL (and the traffickers) continue to 
change their tactics in response to one another's moves. 
 
¶6. The delegation met with other aviation and transportation 
officials from the public and private sectors at a reception at the 
Ambassador's residence. On Saturday, they met with U.S. air 
carriers.  American Airlines said it was expanding its operations in 
El Salvador with additional flights to and from Miami and opening a 
new route to Dallas.  American, Delta and Continental all said they 
had seen increased traffic, but mentioned that Salvadoran-based TACA 
had a solid grip on the Central American regional air traffic. 
¶7. This cable has been cleared by CODEL Costello. 
 
GLAZER