Airline Trade Group Hires Congressional Staffer as Lobbyist

Updated at 6:32 p.m.

A trade group for major U.S. airline companies has picked up a senior adviser to Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas).

Josh Saltzman, who is leaving his post as chief of staff to Sessions, is joining Airlines for America as vice president of global government affairs. Saltzman has been on Capitol Hill for a dozen years, working for Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), when he was a House member, before becoming an aide to Sessions.

Efforts to reach Saltzman for an immediate comment were unsuccessful. But the Hill staffer said in a written statement released by Airlines for America that he is excited about assisting the organization and its members, including American Airlines Inc., United Continental Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc.

“It is hard to imagine an industry more dynamic and one that has more opportunity to further drive the economy than the airline industry,” Saltzman said.

Airlines for America, formerly known as the Air Transport Association of America, spent $1.13 million on federal lobbying during the first quarter of this year, according to the organization’s most recent congressional report on its government advocacy activities.