AOPA Action

GA Team 2000 Planning Under Way for 1997 Campaign

GA Team 2000 convened its new board of directors in Washington on May 9 to begin development of a 1997 campaign to promote student starts and educate the public about general aviation. The organization is now soliciting bids for a major marketing agency to design and conduct a national promotional campaign.

For the first time since the early 1980s, the aircraft manufacturers will join in to promote learning to fly and general aviation. For the first time ever, the airlines will participate (through the Air Transport Association) in recognition of America's need for future pilots. GA Team 2000 now numbers 45 founding members and is growing.

The GA Team 2000 board includes Horst Bergmann, president of Jeppesen- Sanderson; AOPA President Phil Boyer; NATA President James Coyne; President Alan Klapmeier of Cirrus Design; Cessna CEO Russ Meyer; and EAA President Tom Poberezny. Also on the board are Sporty's President Hal Shevers; Dr. Steve Sliwa, president of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University; Unison President Rick Sontag; GAMA President Edward W. Stimpson; New Piper Aircraft President Chuck Suma; Greg Summe, president of AlliedSignal Engines; and Gary Worden, publisher of Flight Training magazine.

AOPA Applauds FAA Cancellation of WAAS Contract

AOPA has applauded decisive FAA action to reassign the contract for the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) supplement to GPS satellite navigation.

"This is a breath of fresh air, the first sign of what FAA procurement reform can accomplish," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "The FAA recognized a troubled program and made a quick, businesslike decision — a welcome change from years and millions wasted on the flawed Microwave Landing System and Advanced Automation System programs."

The $475-million WAAS is needed to enhance GPS for precision instrument approaches to runways. Capabilities similar to today's expensive Instrument Landing System (ILS) would be possible at a vastly expanded number of airports. Only eight percent have ILS systems now.

"WAAS is critical for aviation's transition to GPS and must be ready by 1998," said Boyer, voicing criticism of the FAA's slow implementation of GPS. The FAA has signed a contract with Hughes Aircraft Company to continue providing WAAS development and integration.

Virginia Flight Instructor Named Collegiate Flying's Coach of the Year

Joseph Licata of Averett College in Danville, Virginia, is the National Intercollegiate Flying Association's 1996 "Coach of the Year." Sponsored by AOPA, the award was presented at this year's National International Flying Association Safety Conference (Safecon) collegiate flying meet in Daytona Beach, Florida.

A longtime supporter, AOPA previously sponsored the NIFA Top Male Pilot award.

AOPA's new recognition of collegiate flying's best team coach reflects the association's strong support for the flight instructor community and all who invest in general aviation's next generation.

Did You Know ...

...that the Federal Communications Commission will automatically issue refunds to all aircraft owners who filed applications for aircraft radio station licenses after January 1? At press time, the FCC had not announced when it would begin issuing the refunds.

Congress: Let's Reinstate Aviation Taxes Before Trust Fund Goes Bankrupt

"An aviation funding crisis is looming — one that can be avoided if Congress will simply reenact the taxes willingly paid by the aviation community for 26 years," Phil Boyer wrote to Congress last month on behalf of AOPA Legislative Action.

ATC and other FAA functions are funded primarily by the aviation trust fund financed by dedicated user taxes on fuel, air cargo shipping fees, and airline tickets. The taxes expired on December 31 and have yet to be reenacted.

Aviation's trust fund is being drained of a half-billion dollars a month for FAA expenses and is not being replenished. "We fear that once the fund balance approaches zero, there will be a last-minute panic, leaving members of Congress scrambling to find an ill-conceived 'quick fix,'" wrote Boyer, concerned about user fees far more onerous than today's reliable and efficient aviation user taxes.

House Panel Passes Excise Tax Reinstatement in Airports Bill

AOPA Legislative Action's grass-roots efforts to push Congress to reinstate the excise taxes that feed the aviation trust fund are already bearing fruit. The House aviation subcommittee passed a three-year reinstatement of the taxes on May 30, as part of a bill to provide federal airport grants.

AOPA Legislative Action is lobbying hard — and soliciting pilot grass-roots support — to get Congress to reinstate the taxes as soon as possible.

Because of a quirk in the law, most of the tax on avgas is still being collected, but it is being deposited into the Highway Trust Fund with other gasoline tax revenue.

AOPA Legislative Action's grass-roots efforts include communications via Western Union with AOPA members in the districts and states of congressional leaders on the key committees, asking these pilots to lobby their members of Congress to reinstate the tax.

Airlines Propose New Fees to Replace Ticket Tax — and Shift Costs

The seven largest U.S. airlines have proposed new user fees to replace the expired 10- percent ticket tax. Under the "Big Seven" plan, airlines would pay $4.50 per passenger, $2 per seat (whether occupied or empty; $1 per seat for commuter airlines), and one- half cent per passenger per mile. The Big Seven hope that Congress will pass the fees as a temporary measure while it considers permanent changes in FAA financing.

Although it does not shift the FAA to a user fee system, the Big Seven proposal would achieve for the big airlines the real goal of user fees — to shift costs from high-cost airlines to low-fare discount airlines.

Truth in Transportation Budgeting Act Passes House

AOPA Legislative Action has praised the Truth in Transportation Budgeting Act, passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on April 17, that would take the Airport and Airway Trust Fund off the unified federal budget and out of budget politics. The bill was sponsored by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bud Shuster (R-PA) and ranking minority member James L. Oberstar (D-MN).

"The Shuster Bill brings honesty back into the federal budget and permits dedicated user taxes to be spent for their original purpose — improving our airports and airways," said AOPA President Phil Boyer, speaking for AOPA Legislative Action. "Trust fund surpluses would no longer be used to mask part of the federal deficit." The Senate must act next if dedicated aviation user taxes are to be insulated from Washington's budget shell game.

AOPA Backs Federal 'Jessica Bill' as Reasoned Response to Tragedy

AOPA Legislative Action told a congressional hearing on May 1 that it supports a reasoned response to the Jessica Dubroff tragedy in H.R.3267, the Duncan-Lipinski bill, which would prohibit aeronautical record attempts, competitions, or "feats" by children and other nonpilots.

"What we do in response to the Dubroff tragedy should be done right. We should not make a snap decision dictated by media attention or our sorrow for Jessica and others involved," Phil Boyer told the House aviation subcommittee.

He said that H.R.3267, the "Child Pilot Safety Act," directly addresses the root cause of the tragedy without imposing new regulations on top of those that already adequately regulate flight training.

To illustrate that the flight instructor is at the controls at all times, Boyer showed the committee a cockpit video of the dual controls in a Cessna 177B Cardinal, similar to the Dubroff aircraft. The setup, Boyer said, is not analogous to learning how to drive or handing over the wheel of a car to a child.

Boyer dramatized for Congress the government's long-standing support for aviation education with a photo of President Clinton's in-person tribute to the Washington, D.C.-based "Opportunity Skyway" program, which motivates young people's interest in science and math through exposure to their real-world application in aviation.

He also pledged an AOPA Air Safety Foundation campaign on safe demonstration of aircraft controls, safe introductory flight training, and diligent exercise of pilot-in-command authority.

AOPA Praises Plan to Preserve Philadelphia Airport, AOPA'S Birthplace

AOPA is praising local pilots and Montgomery County (Pennsylvania) commissioners for adopting a plan to preserve historic Wings Field, a valuable GA reliever airport in the northwest Philadelphia suburbs.

County commissioners voted on May 2 to create an airport authority and explore the purchase of the privately owned public-use airport. Wings Field Preservation Associates, a group of individuals and local corporations dedicated to maintaining the airport, spearheaded the effort.

Now under pressure for residential development, Wings Field has been a public-use airport since 1929. The Montgomery County airport authority would seek federal and state grants for 95 percent of Wings Field's $8.5-million purchase price. Wings Field Preservation Associates would supply the remaining five percent.

Significant in the development of general aviation in the 1930s and after World War II, Wings Field was home to the influential Philadelphia Aviation Country Club, where business and social leaders of the day based their involvement in the new field of aviation. AOPA was founded there by five Philadelphia aviators in May 1939.

AOPA Asks Delaward County to Enforce its Airport Ordinances

AOPA has asked Kent County, Delaware, to enforce its own zoning ordinance to protect flight paths around Henderson Airport in Felton, Delaware, home base of David Henderson, award-winning restorer of classic Piper Cub airplanes.

"Kent County has an excellent ordinance to protect the approach slopes to public airports," said Bill Dunn, AOPA vice president for regional affairs. "But by not enforcing this valuable safety ordinance, the county might be risking suit in the event of an accident."

The ordinance should prevent construction of obstacles intruding into runway flight paths, but it must be enforced to do so. Recently, a Henderson Airport neighbor placed a mobile home only 670 feet from the runway end. The FAA recently declared that the structure exceeds the agency's obstruction standards.

Update: AOPA Active on a Variety of State Legislative Issues

Alaska

Land Access: AOPA has actively sought passage of legislation to preserve access to the state's vast land holdings. H.B.447 has passed the House and is now pending in the Senate Rules Committee; its companion bill, S.B.230, has passed the Senate and is pending in House Rules. These bills would require legislative approval before any long-term access restrictions on public lands can be put into place. All too often the Department of Natural Resources has restricted or prohibited access to public lands without consulting users, most recently in Denali State Park. Enactment of this legislation will safeguard the right to recreational access on state land for Alaska's pilot population and other users.

Colorado

Support of Aviation Education: Legislation (H.B.1215) supported by AOPA that would increase the authority and powers of Colorado's Aeronautics Division has been signed into law. Among other functions, enactment of this bill will allow the Colorado Aeronautics Division to provide funding for aviation education activities such as the Rocky Mountain Air Fair and the personal computer-based Fantasy of Flight.

Connecticut

Personal Property Taxes: AOPA quickly went on record in opposition to legislation (H.B.5743) that would give municipalities the option of assessing personal property taxes on aircraft. AOPA strongly opposed that measure and it died in committee. AOPA had been instrumental in obtaining an exemption for aircraft from the state's property tax several years ago and had worked closely with a number of legislators to find a solution to the problem of inequitable taxation. That solution came in the form of aircraft registration fees in lieu of personal property taxes.

It came to AOPA's attention, however, that the language contained in H.B.5743 was going to be offered as an amendment to H.B.5306, which authorizes certain persons injured at Bradley International Airport to bring an action against the state for recovery of damages. When word of this proposed amendment surfaced, AOPA immediately contacted members of the appropriate committees — as well as the amendment's sponsor, state Representative J. Vincent Chase (R), who was effectively persuaded and gave his word that he would not offer the amendment when H.B.5306 was brought up for consideration.

Pilot Age Requirements: S.B.389, a very well-intentioned piece of legislation to protect children by ensuring the proper use of child restraint systems in cars was corrupted by a poorly considered amendment in the wake of the tragedy that killed seven-year-old Jessica Dubroff. The language of the amendment read "no person under the age of 16 shall engage in the operation of aircraft and...no person shall aid a person under the age of 16 in the operation of aircraft."

AOPA worked to remove this language from the bill. Those efforts proved successful, as that amendment was stripped from the bill during the closing hours of the 1996 session.

Maryland

Tax Relief for Airports: The Maryland House of Delegates and Senate have approved H.B.1304, which would provide a property tax exemption for privately owned public-use airports. AOPA went on record in support of this legislation.

H.B.1304 expands the definition of what qualifies for exemption by including approach zones and taxiways. In addition to county tax exemptions, this bill also provides an exemption from state property taxes (assessed at a rate of 21 cents per $100). According to a House Ways and Means Committee staff representative, the total savings to all privately owned public-use airports will amount to approximately $4,000. Perhaps because the fiscal impact to the state and counties is so minimal, there was no opposition to the bill. Maryland has 38 public-use airports, of which 22 (or 58 percent) are privately owned. This bill now awaits the governor's signature.

Michigan

H.B.5257, which would substantially increase funds available for general aviation facilities by increasing the fuel tax rate, has passed the state House and is currently pending in the Senate Transportation Committee. AOPA sent a conditional letter of support to state Representative Michael Nye (R), sponsor of the bill and chairman of the aviation caucus.

Rhode Island

Fuel Taxes and Refunds: S.B.2765, legislation that would eliminate a very burdensome filing process for the reimbursement of taxes paid on jet fuel and aviation gasoline, has passed the Senate and is currently pending in the House Finance Committee. Passage of this bill will represent a move to eliminate bureaucracy, streamline government, and make Rhode Island more competitive with other states; it should also effectively increase business revenue in the state.

Currently, Rhode Island imposes a 28-cent-per-gallon tax on all fuel purchases — the highest aviation fuel tax rate in the New England region. As a result, many members have informed AOPA that they overfly the state instead of stopping for fuel in Rhode Island. Elimination of this time-consuming filing requirement will reduce the costs of administering refund requests and create an environment that could generate additional fuel sales in the state.

Washington

Land Use Planning Law: After years of intense effort on the part of the aviation community, H.B.6422, which would protect airports from incompatible land uses, has been signed into law. Washington now joins California and Oregon with comprehensive land-use planning laws on the books.

In July the following conferences will be held on AOPA Online on CompuServe:

• Tuesday, July 2: Ed Carlson, veteran trans-Atlantic ferry pilot, answers your questions about flying light airplanes across the big pond.
• Tuesday, July 9: Kate Dally, Diamond Aircraft, maker of the unique new Katana, tells why she thinks general aviation flight training is about to be reborn.
• Tuesday, July 16: William Kershner, world-famous aviation author and educator, tells why "the good old days" weren't really.
• Tuesday, July 23: Mike Collins, managing editor of AOPA Pilot magazine, answers your questions about how to break into the magazine writing business.
• Tuesday, July 30: No conference, because of Oshkosh.

All conferences are in Conference Room 1 of AOPA Online on CompuServe, 9 to 10 p.m. Eastern Time.

1996 Nall Report on GA Accident Trends Now Available

The AOPA Air Safety Foundation has released its 1996 Nall Report, the industry's most extensive analysis of general aviation accident trends and factors. The report is the first available examination of all 1995 accidents involving fixed-wing general aviation aircraft.

Bruce Landsberg, ASF executive director, noted that patterns established in previous years are repeated in the analysis of 1995 general aviation accident trends. "The majority of accidents, some 65 percent, were still pilot-related," he said. "Weather and maneuvering flight continue to be the primary causes of fatal accidents."

According to the Nall Report, 19 percent of all fatal accidents are weather related. One fourth of fatal accidents in multiengine airplanes and one fifth of all fatal accidents in single-engine retractable aircraft are attributable to weather.

For single-engine fixed-gear aircraft, maneuvering flight accounted for 36 percent of fatal pilot-related accidents. "Unfortunately, the majority of these accidents involved unauthorized low-level flight," Landsberg said.

The 1996 Nall Report is published in a new format that makes the safety information easier to digest.

For a free copy of the report, write: Nall Report, AOPA Air Safety Foundation, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701. Enclose a large (9" 2 12") self-addressed envelope with $1.25 postage affixed.

'Blueprint 182' Heralds Sweepstakes, Symbolizes Spirit of Revitalization

The symbol of AOPA's 1996 membership sweepstakes, AOPA's "Blueprint 182," is airborne and on its way to a hundred or more airport events during 1996, reminding pilots that this is the year in which they can win the first new 182 off Cessna's rejuvenated single-engine production line.

Dubbed The Spirit of Revitalization, this attention-getting aircraft is not the airplane for the lucky winner of AOPA's 1996 membership sweepstakes. Instead, it stands in for the grand prize First New 182 that will be awarded in February 1997. Its blueprint design represents both the new 182 being built for the winner and the rebuilding of light aircraft production during the revitalization of general aviation.

Anyone who joins AOPA, renews membership, or brings in a new member during 1996 earns one entry in the sweepstakes for the grand prize First New 182 or for a first prize Bendix/King avionics suite valued at $10,000. Four second prize GPS handheld receivers will also be awarded. Winners will be drawn at random during January 1997. Project Pilot Instructor Program CFIs get an extra entry for every student name registered in the AOPA Project Pilot program. (To enter AOPA's Sweepstakes '96 without joining or renewing your AOPA membership, send a self-addressed, stamped business-size [#10] envelope to AOPA Sweeps '96, Post Office Box 972, Frederick, Maryland 21705-0972. Vermont and Wisconsin residents need not affix postage to the return envelope.)

The AOPA Sweeps '96 promotional aircraft, a 1982 Cessna 182, will be on display at selected fly-ins and airshows through mid-November following its debut at Sun 'n Fun in Lakeland, Florida, during April. Members can see this unusual Cessna at Oshkosh August 1 through 7 and at AOPA Expo '96 October 17 through 19 in San Jose, California. No one will be neutral in his opinions about this one-of- a-kind airplane, but he's sure to remember that a 1996 membership in AOPA can be the ticket to a brand-new 182 — and part of the revitalization of American general aviation.

The Blueprint Develops

The aircraft's unique blueprint paint scheme, representing the importance of a strong and growing AOPA membership to industry revitalization, arose from AOPA Communications Division concepts and design consultation with Rioux Aeromarine Design of Lavallette, New Jersey. Lancaster Aero Refinishers of Smoketown, Pennsylvania, turned out the complicated paint scheme in time for Sun 'n Fun (see before and after views, below), while Aerographics of Sterling, Colorado, supplied distinctive decals and logos.