Bureaucracy reigns when it comes to airports, which doesn’t help travelers’ opinion of them.

A prime example of a frustrating location is Reagan National Airport in Washington. National is the only airport where the federal government controls the daily flight quota. The 1966-era rule has created a bonanza for crony capitalists and the airlines already dominant there. With some exceptions, airlines aren’t allowed to fly into or out of National from or to any destination more than 1,250 miles away — a move designed to protect incumbent airlines flying out of Dulles Airport, 30 miles away.

Some good news is that the new congressional bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allows five more round-trip slots at Reagan National. This is likely to open up new routes to markets such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Antonio.

The next reform that’s now being debated is once again allowing private passenger jets to fly out of National. When the 1966 limits on National were set up, private jet traffic was projected to be around 10 percent. Post-9/11, however, changed that, and private access is highly limited.

The new FAA bill authorizes a study of the 23-year-old security rules with an eye to making it possible for private planes to once again access National.