AOPA Requests Formal Airspace Study for Brown Field
Concerns over plans to convert San Diego's Brown Field Airport from a general aviation airport to an air cargo facility have prompted AOPA to request that the FAA initiate a formal airspace study. The study would consider the airspace and air traffic ramifications of the proposed development.
The San Diego City Council recently renewed a memorandum of understanding between the development company and the city over the objections of AOPA, which had asked the council to defer action on the memorandum.
The memorandum outlined terms for the exclusive right to develop Brown Field, but AOPA has expressed concern that the planned development does not adequately address the needs of general aviation and could create air traffic and airspace conflicts.
In a letter to San Diego Mayor Susan Golding, Bill Dunn, AOPA vice president of regional affairs, asked the city council to defer action on the memorandum of understanding until a number of variables have been defined. Those variables include monthly amounts to be paid to the city, base rent amounts, and environmental impacts.
In the meantime, officials in San Diego County are making preliminary inquiries into privatizing eight public-use airports now operated by the county.
The county has contacted several firms that contract to run airports, but local pilots oppose the idea of privatizing the fields because the county has a record of operating the airports well. In the past, the county has used revenues from the two largest airports to help support smaller, more rural airports.
The airports being considered for privatization are Agua Caliente Springs Airport, Borrego Valley Airport, Fallbrook Community Airpark, Gillespie Field, Jacumba Airport, McClellan-Palomar Airport, Ocotillo Airport, and Ramona Airport.
Expansion Plans for San Mateo County Airports Under Fire
Homeowner groups around San Carlos Airport and Half Moon Bay Airport continue to oppose expansion plans for the two fields. Homeowners fear that the proposed expansions, which are part of the updated master plans for the San Mateo County airports, would bring larger aircraft and more operations to the fields.
The planned expansion for San Carlos includes extending the runway by 400 feet for a total length of 3,000 feet, making improvements to the terminal building, and adding hangar space for 60 more aircraft.
At Half Moon Bay, expansion plans would create 30 new hangars, enlarge the terminal, and restore 1,000 feet of runway that has fallen into disuse in recent years.
Airport opponents have argued that the changes at the airports would make it possible to land jets carrying up to 29 passengers. But scheduled passenger service has never been considered for either airport, and the county board of supervisors has adopted a 12,500-pound weight limit for aircraft at both airports.
Aviation Coalition Considers Tax Issues
The California Aviation Coalition, which includes AOPA, hopes to introduce new legislation regarding the use of aviation-related tax revenue and airport land use laws during this year's state legislative session.
The coalition, whose members are committed to working together to benefit aviation in California, is studying the state's current airport land use laws and aviation taxes. Currently, most aviation tax revenue is deposited into state or local general funds. The coalition hopes to find ways to redirect some of that money into the state aeronautics fund, which supports a variety of aviation needs in California.
The coalition also includes the California Aviation Business Association, the California Pilots Association, the National Business Aviation Association, and the Southwest Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives.
Battle Continues Over Tower Near Reid-Hillview
The fight over plans to construct a broadcasting tower near San Jose's Reid-Hillview Airport is returning to the Airport Land Use Commission.
The commission agreed to place the subject on the agenda for a late March meeting after pilots complained that they didn't get enough notice about an earlier workshop concerning the tower.
The 498-foot tower, which would be built by American Towers Systems, would be located about eight miles south of the airport, atop a ridge nearly 1,500 feet above mean sea level. The original proposal for the tower included painting the structure gray and shielding any lighting so that it could not be seen from below.
But a number of pilot groups, including AOPA, argued for high-intensity lighting to include the tower's guy wires and for a more easily visible paint scheme. AOPA and other groups also have objected to the proposed location of the tower, which would reach nearly 2,000 feet msl and force traffic into a narrow corridor between mountains to the east and airliners approaching San Jose International Airport to the west. Pilot groups also have expressed concern about potential electrical interference from the tower's broadcast signal.
The Santa Clara County Airport Authority voted unanimously to oppose the proposed tower, but the FAA made no objections to the plan.
Another Development Proposed for Torrance
Just weeks after plans to build a car dealership in the runway protection zone at Torrance's Zamperini Field were scrapped, another development was proposed for the airport.
The plan to build 46 three-story condos on three acres slightly more than one-half mile from the end of Runway 11R was dismissed by the city planning commission. Local pilots, including Airport Support Network volunteer Jim Gates, voiced their opposition to the plan, but the decision to scrap the development proposal was prompted primarily by objections from the owners of nearby single-family homes. These homeowners were more concerned about the dense condo development than noise or safety issues.
Pilots Working to Reopen Dunsmuir Airport
The AOPA Airport Support Network volunteer for Dunsmuir Municipal-Mott Airport is working with local pilots to get the field reopened.
The state suspended the airport's permit and ordered the airport closed after the city of Dunsmuir failed to remove trees that had been identified as a hazard to the approach and transition to Runway 14/32. The city was ordered to remove the trees several years ago and requested a waiver from the FAA in 1995. That waiver was denied because the trees were determined to be a hazard to air navigation.
Now Ken Pool, the airport's ASN volunteer, and local pilots are working with the city to have the trees removed. Caltrans Aeronautics has agreed to provide financial assistance in removing the trees.
Santa Monica Considers Landing Fees
Santa Monica city officials are considering imposing landing fees at the city's busy Southern California municipal airport.
Officials at the airport refuse to accept federal funding derived from taxes on fuel sales but are considering imposing weight-based landing fees at Santa Monica Municipal Airport. The fees would apply to transient aircraft weighing more than 12,500 pounds and would be used to improve the runway and taxiways.
Airports officials are gathering information from other general aviation airports that have implemented similar landing fees.
Potential Home Buyers to Learn of Proximity to Livermore Municipal
Individuals considering buying homes in a new development near Livermore Municipal Airport will now learn of the site's proximity to the airport, thanks to the efforts of Kevin Ryan, AOPA's Airport Support Network volunteer at Livermore Municipal.
Ryan and Bill Dunn, AOPA vice president of regional affairs, provided the developers with suggested disclosure information, which they agreed to include in the sales packages for prospective buyers.
The new development is being built under the downwind leg of the airport's traffic pattern.
Noise Restriction Study Planned at Burbank-Pasadena-Glendale Airport
A Cincinnati consulting firm has been hired to conduct an FAR Part 161 study of potential noise restrictions at Burbank-Pasadena-Glendale Airport.
The study, which was ordered by the airport commission in February, will be conducted by the firm of Landrum & Brown and will consider options for reducing aircraft noise at the airport. Among the options to be considered are operations limitations, curfews, and bans on certain types of business jets.
As part of the study, the Cambridge, Massachusetts, firm of Simat Hellieson & Eichner, Inc. will conduct a cost-benefit analysis comparing the potential benefits of noise restrictions to the potential costs in terms of lost business.
Airport authority officials have said that they hope the study will help to remove legal challenges brought to a planned new terminal building by Burbank city officials. The existing terminal, which was built in 1930, is positioned 313 feet from the runway centerline. New terminal buildings must be located at least 750 feet from the nearest runway centerline.
The study and cost-benefit analysis could take two years or longer to complete.
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