thoughtleaders
BY MARK B. SOLOMON, SENIOR EDITOR
The head of the Cargo
Airline Association
sometimes zigs when
official Washington zags.
But few in town have a
better grasp of aviation,
regulation, and the law.
going
against
the grain
interview with Steve Alterman
WASHINGTON, D.C., IS NOT FOR NON-CONFORMISTS. “GO ALONG
to get along” is the city’s unofficial mantra, and those marching to a different drummer often find themselves getting drummed out of town.
So how does one explain the staying power of Steve Alterman?
Alterman, the long-time president of the Cargo Airline Association,
which represents the nation’s all-cargo air carriers, isn’t a typical
Beltway power broker. For one thing, if he could, he would avoid
Washington altogether in favor of working from the Outer Banks of
North Carolina, where he’s had a home for decades.
For another, Alterman has never been afraid to ruffle the feathers of
government officials. On one memorable occasion, he suggested that
the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) consider using pigs
instead of dogs to sniff out explosives. “Pigs have a better sense of smell,
they can work longer hours than dogs, and if they don’t work out, you
have bacon for breakfast,” he said.
But beneath the iconoclastic exterior lies a professional with non-
pareil skill in steering his association through the highly complex path-
ways of aviation, regulation, and the law. With 42 years in D.C.’s trench-
es— 35 of those running the same association—Alterman knows his
business inside and out. His knowledge of rules and processes has made
him worth his weight in gold to his members. As one executive
remarked in the 1990s when Alterman’s “association” was just himself:
“We get more mileage from one person than from an army of lawyers
and lobbyists.”
Earlier this year, Alterman spoke with Senior Editor Mark B. Solomon
about his outlook for air freight and aviation, and the challenges con-
