Government Advocacy
Top Government Advocacy News
Tuskegee Airman Lee Archer dies at 90
When Tuskegee Airman Lee A. Archer last spoke with an AOPA Pilot editor, he had but one request: “Call me a black pilot. There are kids in the cities that need to know it was a black pilot who did these things,” Archer said.
On Capitol Hill
- On Feb. 3 at 10 a.m., the House Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the proposed FY2011 budget request for the Department of Transportation.
- On Feb. 4 at 10 a.m., the House Aviation Subcommittee will hold a hearing on an update to the FAA’s Call to Action on Airline Safety and Pilot Training.
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Calling all members: Tell us about your pilot, airport group
Are you a member of an airport or pilot group at your home base? AOPA is compiling information on airport and pilot groups nationwide in order to build up grassroots advocacy efforts and engage pilots when their airport is under attack.
Inset charts available for New York City SFRA
The FAA has created inset charts of the Hudson River to make it easier for pilots to navigate the New York City Special Flight Rules Area. The charts, one of the SFRA and the other of the New York City skyline route, will be available free online to pilots starting Feb. 11.
Sport pilot changes take effect April 2
The FAA has finalized revisions to the sport pilot regulations that will expand the operating window for sport pilots in mountainous terrain and allow Part 141 training programs to use light sport aircraft, among other changes.
AOPA to talk airport protection at Northwest Aviation Conference
AOPA plans to attend the Northwest Aviation Conference and Trade Show in Puyallup, Wash. Expect to see AOPA Foundation President Karen Gebhart as the keynote speaker; her topics will include the state of general aviation, aviation security, airport preservation, and the perception of general aviation.
FAA seeks comments on pilot training
The fatal crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 last February outside Buffalo, N.Y., sent shock waves through the airline industry and beyond: The government’s response to issues brought to light by the crash could change the way general aviation pilots train.
How to 'land' a Cessna 172 in a schoolyard
Three program coordinators at the New York City Center for Space & Science Education took a tour of the Westchester County Airport Feb. 1 to bring the real world back to the classroom.
Airspace access a pillar of NextGen plan
The FAA plans to implement procedures and infrastructure to make general aviation operations in non-radar airspace and at small airports safer and more efficient, the agency said in a report Jan. 31.
Airport land-use bill would give teeth to current law
Washington State’s public-use airports would be protected from incompatible development under a bill being considered in the Senate.
FAA seeks feedback on aircraft certification overhaul
With engine options, composite airframes, and lightweight digital electronics, the GA aircraft being built today are birds of a different feather from those manufactured just two decades ago.
