Boyer's Confirmation for FAA Management Advisory Council in Question
The confirmation of AOPA President Phil Boyer to the new FAA Management Advisory Council (MAC) was put in question in mid-June when Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) did not forward his name to the full Senate. The committee did forward the names of six other MAC nominees.
Committee staff asked Boyer for responses to an additional three pages of follow-up questions from McCain. This is the second set of questions McCain has required Boyer to answer since the May 4 confirmation hearing.
"From the key questions, it appears Sen. McCain's biggest concern is his belief that I have misrepresented his position on GA user fees," said Boyer. "This misunderstanding turns on the understanding of corporate aviation. AOPA opposes all aviation user fees — including GA user fees levied against any class of user — because they are inefficient, unnecessary, and a detriment to safety.
"Corporate aviation, whether piston or jet, is part of the GA community. I will never play a part in any strategy designed to 'divide and conquer' that community. And don't be fooled. Once user fees hit one segment of GA, the rest of us won't be far behind. One only needs to look at what happened in New Zealand to see how quickly a 'no GA user fees' pledge can be broken.
"Sen. McCain, as chairman, can effectively stop my confirmation to the MAC. However, I hope that we can continue a rational dialogue on the best way to improve our aviation infrastructure."
Excerpts from Boyer's answers to McCain's questions at the confirmation hearing are available on AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2000/000615questions.html).
Unprecedented Type Club Meeting at AOPA to Improve Ads, Protect Older Aircraft
Recommendations from an AOPA-organized conference held on July 10 are expected to help improve the airworthiness directive process. Attendees included the nation's major aircraft type clubs, the Experimental Aircraft Association, and the FAA.
The meeting focused on a new coordination process to give the FAA better information and user community input on resolving airworthiness concerns. "This new initiative follows a common-sense idea: If you have to look at aircraft airworthiness, talk to the people with firsthand experience," said AOPA President Phil Boyer.
This AD coordination process concludes several years of work behind the scenes among the FAA, AOPA, EAA, the Citabria Owners Group, and the American Champion Aircraft Corporation.
AOPA, working with major type clubs, will monitor the FAA's AD coordination process that develops. The association will give the FAA an initial "report card" during the AOPA Expo 2000 convention in October in Long Beach, California.
AOPA Successfully Opposes Airline-Pushed Commission on ATC 'Reform'
AOPA and other general aviation industry leaders told Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) in June that an airline proposal to create yet another commission on air traffic control reform is misguided. The proposal would have been added to the Senate version of the fiscal year 2001 FAA funding bill.
In a letter to Chairman Stevens, a fellow pilot, AOPA President Phil Boyer said that supporters of the so-called "Air Traffic Control Reform Commission" are inaccurately portraying GA's position, and that the proposal is really just another airline attempt to create a user-fee-funded ATC system.
The General Aviation Manufacturers Association and the National Business Aviation Association joined AOPA in the successful opposition.
FAA's National Park Overflight Draft Plan Protects GA
The first draft of an FAA plan implementing a new national park air tour overflight policy preserves the right of transient GA pilots to overfly national parks. AOPA had fought for that right both in congressional hearings and as a member of the National Park Overflights Working Group.
The plan will be used in conjunction with the new overflight rules. Those proposed rules, mandated by this year's National Park Overflights Act, will be published soon for public comment.
While commercial air tour operators will have to comply with rules for commercial operators, there is an exception for existing small Part 91 operators who conduct fewer than five tour flights per month over national parks.
OSHKOSH 2000: Meet 'Pilot Information Center' Advisors, 'Pilot Editors; See the 'Millennium Mooney'
The AOPA tent at Oshkosh will be open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. daily from July 26 through August 1 on the central midway between the main entrance gate and the west ramp theme area south of the control tower.
AOPA's expert technical services, member assistance, safety education, and special discounts on aviation-related products and services will be available. Live links to AOPA computers in Frederick, Maryland, will provide instant answers to membership inquiries.
Front and center will be the AOPA 2000 Sweepstakes grand-prize Millennium Mooney with its brand-new paint job and Mattituck Red Gold engine overhaul. In its refurbished instrument panel is the latest in UPS Aviation Technologies avionics, including the UPSAT MX20 multifunction display (see " Technicolor Dreamcoat").
AOPA Aviation Services staffers will be demonstrating the AOPA Web site and answering technical and regulatory questions. The editors of AOPA Pilot and AOPA Flight Training magazines will meet readers with free samples of the publications.
The AOPA Air Safety Foundation will feature a competitive skill game titled "Wheel of Misfortune," challenging pilots on a safety subject determined by a spin of a giant wheel of chance. Correct answers win prizes. ASF will also be offering special ASF "fortune cookies" containing special messages and reminders on aviation safety.
Anyone who joins AOPA or renews AOPA membership at Oshkosh will take home this year's edition of the popular AOPA ball cap. An AOPA Ironman Watch will be awarded each day in drawings among registered visitors to the AOPA tent.
New FAA Overflight Fees Don't Affect U.S. GA Pilots...Yet
Foreign overflight user fees that begin August 1 will not affect most U.S. general aviation pilots, contrary to the impression given in some news reports. Aircraft landing or taking off in the United States will not be charged overflight fees.
"While this fee doesn't yet affect U.S. GA pilots, it is a frightening preview of what could happen if the Clinton administration ever succeeds in imposing user fees on all aviation," said AOPA President Phil Boyer.
Congress gave the FAA the right to charge overflight fees to aircraft that otherwise do not pay U.S. aviation taxes. Most of those aircraft are foreign airliners that fly through U.S. airspace without touching U.S. soil.
The new foreign overflight fee is $37.43 per 100 nautical miles flown over land and $20.16 per 100 nm over the ocean while under U.S. air traffic control.
An FAA news release explaining the fees is available on the Web ( www.faa.gov/apa/pr/pr.cfm?id=1071).
Bills to Save Back-Country Airstrips Advance
Legislation to preserve back-country airstrips used for emergency landings by GA pilots is advancing in both the House and Senate.
The AOPA-assisted House bill was recently renamed the Backcountry Airstrip Access Act (H.R.3661) by its author, Utah pilot and AOPA member Rep. Jim Hansen (R-Utah). It passed the House Resources Committee by voice vote in mid-June; floor action is expected soon.
In the Senate, Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) introduced the Backcountry Landing Strip Access Act (S.2707) in mid-June. The bill was developed by Crapo's staff in cooperation with AOPA and is now being considered by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Both bills provide for a 90-day comment period before proposed closure of an airstrip on federal lands.
Threat to GPS Approach Development Resolved After AOPA Intervention
AOPA intervention helped to settle a squabble between two government agencies earlier this year that nearly stopped development of new instrument approaches. The dispute concerned the FAA's nonpayment of a relatively small bill for surveying services.
The National Geodetic Survey, which supplies airport and obstruction data to the FAA that is used for instrument approach procedure development, stopped supplying that data on May 19 for nonpayment of $3.5 million. The FAA claimed it couldn't pay the bill unless it got a $77 million supplemental appropriation from Congress to augment this year's budget.
AOPA sent a letter to the FAA on May 22 urging the agency to be responsible for its bills. "The supplemental request is less than 1 percent of the FAA's total budget," pointed out AOPA President Phil Boyer. "It's absolutely incredible that the FAA can't find enough savings in a $10.6 billion budget to be able to pay its important bills."
NGS resumed shipment of data to the FAA on Monday, June 5.
AOPA-Assisted Cable TV Program Draws Double its Expected Viewership
The June 12 airing of "Private Planes" on cable TV's History Channel drew double the expected audience, according to California-based producer Martin Kent Productions. AOPA assisted to assure a balanced, comprehensive presentation.
Although beginning and ending with the current business jet boom, the program profiled Wichita institutions Cessna and Beechcraft (now owned by Raytheon) and acknowledged the pioneering roles of Piper, Mooney, and others.
AOPA had been concerned that the program would sensationalize GA as the province of "fat cats." The association suggested that Cessna, Piper, Beech, and others were more relevant to GA's history, and also steered the program to NASA's AGATE program and efforts to develop future concepts for "everyday" general aviation. AOPA provided extensive background information and resources, winning a listing in the credits as a consultant to the show.
Despite Protests, FAA Approves Phelps MOA
Despite the determined opposition of AOPA and area pilots, the FAA has approved the Phelps Military Operations Area near the North Carolina coast. The MOA, to be implemented on August 10, is located southwest of Manteo's Dare County Airport near the Outer Banks. It extends from the top of Restricted Area R-5314 (segments G, H, and J) to 17,999 feet msl.
The expanded Phelps MOA is designed to accommodate higher altitudes for Dare County Bombing Range practice runs.
The FAA has promised to publish military range-control radio frequencies on aeronautical charts and to monitor how well the military responds to civilian requests for airspace status.
Pilots who encounter problems accessing the Dare County Range special-use airspace (Phelps MOA and R-5314) should e-mail AOPA Director of Airspace Melissa Bailey ( [email protected]).
Action in the States
AOPA Airport Support Network volunteer activity is italicized. For information on how you can help AOPA's efforts to save your local airport, visit www.aopa.org/asn/ on AOPA Online.
Arizona. Phoenix: AOPA Regional Representative Stacy Howard is serving on the advisory committee for Arizona's State Aviation Needs Study. The study is expected to help convince Gov. Jane Dee Hull of the need for increased GA airport funding. Willcox: AOPA member Marsha Arzberger, AOPA 421899, has declared her candidacy for the Arizona State Senate.
Florida. Tallahassee: Florida legislators appropriated more than $131 million for Florida airport improvements this year, a new state record. Among the airports to benefit are Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport; Cecil Field, Jacksonville; Airglades Airport, Hendry County; Southwest Regional Airport, Lee County; Zephyrhills Municipal Airport; Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, Lakeland; Orlando Sanford Airport; Melbourne International Airport; and Panama City/Bay County International Airport. About $39 million of the total is special airport funding under Gov. Jeb Bush's fast-track economic development transportation program.
Illinois. Volunteers are still needed for the AOPA Airport Support Network at the following target airports: Joliet Park District Airport; Lansing Municipal Airport, Chicago; Waukegan Regional Airport, Waukegan; and St. Louis Regional Airport, Alton.
Indiana. Valparaiso: A proposed cellular telephone tower directly under the traffic pattern at Porter County Municipal Airport has been nixed by the local board of zoning appeals. AOPA ASN volunteer David Garfin organized a letter-writing campaign by local pilots to help airport management fight the proposal.
Massachusetts. Newburyport: Representatives of The Society for Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA) heard from AOPA ASN volunteer Bob Walton and other supporters at a closed hearing May 20 on saving the Plum Island Airport. Since that hearing, a support group called Plum Island Community Airfield Associates has been formed. SPNEA had planned to close the airport, which dates from 1910.
Minnesota. Minneapolis: Passage of the Omnibus Tax Bill should result in a substantial reduction in personal property taxes for owners of aircraft housed in hangars built on land owned by, and leased from, the Metropolitan Airports Commission. Local pilots had fought long and hard for this AOPA-supported change.
Nevada. Carson City: Legislation to reduce property tax on vintage aircraft is expected to be sponsored by Sen. William O'Donnell of Las Vegas in the 2001 legislative session. The senator is a GA pilot who has seen firsthand the deterioration of rural Nevada airports. He promises to work with AOPA on measures to reverse that trend.
New Hampshire. Wolfeboro:. Gov. Jeanne Shaheen has signed legislation to create the Wolfeboro Airport Authority for Lakes Region Airport. The bill was supported by The Committee to Preserve Lakes Region Airport, the New Hampshire Aviation Association, and AOPA.
North Carolina. Wilson: AOPA ASN volunteer Donnie Boyette provided copies of AOPA's Guide to Land Use and Airport Noise to commissioners for the Wilson Industrial Air Center.
Texas. Wichita Falls: AOPA ASN volunteer Roy Caligan led a successful educational effort that resulted in a 5-2 city council vote in May to purchase the Kickapoo Downtown Airport, saving it from probable closure. The success came despite the recent election of a new city councilor and a mayor, both antiairport.
Utah. Ogden: Robert Foxley, AOPA 631170, has declared his candidacy for the Utah House of Representatives. Also, AOPA is working with Utah Airport Operators Association President Jerry Taylor on a grass-roots campaign promoting funding for Utah's rural GA airports. Five air rallies, with short ceremonies at 18 airports, will be conducted this summer.
Washington. Pullman: A local panel discussion in late April, highlighting the value of the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport, was moderated by AOPA ASN volunteer W. Robb Parish. News of the forum was carried in the local newspaper and on cable TV outlets. The airport also serves northwestern Idaho.
Wisconsin. Baraboo: AOPA ASN volunteer Joe Canepa is launching an 11-point program to promote the Baraboo Wisconsin Dells Airport. It includes a promotional video, an aviation fact card, fly-in events, open houses, and establishment of an airport support group. AOPA is providing resource materials for the effort. Middleton: AOPA ASN volunteer Diane Ballweg has convinced a local high school to start a space and aviation class and helped to raise about $6,000 in start-up funding. Two other area high schools are planning similar classes next year. In addition, Ballweg hosted a June "Transportation Transformation Information Education Celebration" for neighbors of the Morey Airport.
Democratic Convention TFR A 'Reasonable' Compromise
The temporary flight restriction (TFR) area over the Democratic National Convention site in Los Angeles from August 14 through 17 will not be unnecessarily restrictive for GA pilots thanks to efforts of the Southern California Airspace Users Working Group and local FAA planners.
The area covers a 5-nautical mile radius of the downtown Staples Center (LAX 036-degree radial at 10.4 DME) from the surface to 10,000 feet msl. It will be in effect from noon to midnight. Many pilots had feared a much more restrictive design in the wake of last year's World Trade Organization riots in Seattle.
"AOPA has been encouraging the FAA to work with local pilots in designing airspace," said Dennis Roberts, AOPA vice president of Government and Technical Affairs. "This TFR is an example of reasonable compromise among people who know and use the airspace, not a directive handed down by Washington bureaucrats."
LA-area news organizations, however, have expressed their concerns to AOPA that TFR restrictions could affect their traffic-watch services and other news-gathering operations.
Information and an illustration of the TFR for the Democratic National Convention are available on the AOPA Web site ( www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2000/00-2-088.html).
AOPA Aircraft Financing Now Offers No-Fee Option or Lower Interest Rate
AOPA's Aircraft Financing Program now offers aircraft buyers the option of no "up front" fees, preserving cash during the busy early months of aircraft ownership.
The aircraft buyer pays no transaction fees or extra costs to the lender, MBNA America Bank. The buyer's first expense for financing will be the first monthly payment.
MBNA completes a title search at no charge through the AOPA Title and Escrow Service. Aircraft registration is filed with the FAA's Oklahoma City registry at no cost to the buyer.
Alternatively, aircraft buyers can opt to receive an interest rate that is up to one-half of a percent lower than the already low AOPA member-only rate by selecting a "fee option" plan, with only $250 due at closing.
Participation in these programs helps keep AOPA dues low and GA strong. AOPA earns a royalty from this and other AOPA Certified programs that is reinvested in efforts to promote and defend GA — programs such as AOPA Project Pilot and the AOPA Airport Support Network.
International AOPAs to Meet in Scotland
The twentieth World Assembly of the International Council of Aircraft Owner and Pilot Associations will take place from September 24 through 29 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Issues to be discussed will include access to airports and airspace, the impact of user fees and taxes, environmental concerns, safety, and accident prevention programs. Detailed information is available on the IAOPA Web site ( www.iaopa.org/info/assembly20/).
IAOPA is a nonprofit federation of 53 national AOPA organizations worldwide and has represented GA in the international arena for more than 35 years. AOPA-U.S. President Phil Boyer is the current president of IAOPA.
AOPA Air Safety Foundation
Project V, Part II: Midairs
A third safety seminar on home video under the popular ASF Project V program will help teach pilots how to avoid midair collisions. It is expected to be available regionally in early 2001.
"Every pilot is taught from day one to watch for other traffic," said ASF Executive Director Bruce Landsberg. "But this program will add value by pointing out ways to make that lifesaving scan much more effective."
Project V — for video — was launched late last year with Lost and Crossed, which explained the value of positional awareness and proper crosswind technique, two concerns rated highest by newly minted private pilots. A companion effort, Weather Decision-Making, targeted freshly rated instrument pilots. The videos were mailed to some 30,000 new private and new instrument pilots who had not attended a live ASF safety seminar. Both videos will remain available through 2000.
The exact release date for the next installment of Project V will depend on finding funding for the project, according to ASF Vice President of Development Robert Milanchus. ASF safety programs are funded largely by the contributions of individual pilots and companies interested in improving GA safety.
Avidyne Presents Vheck to ASF
Avidyne Corporation's Tom Harper presented AOPA President Phil Boyer with a $1,000 donation to the Air Safety Foundation during AOPA's tenth annual Fly-In and Open House on June 3. Avidyne makes the FlightMax Flight Situation Display (FSD) which can help improve pilot situational awareness. The funding will be used to develop and present safety programs for GA pilots.
ASF Silent Auction Winners Get Two for One
For aviation gifts for the hard-to-buy-for pilot, see the ASF "Silent Auction 2000" Web site. All come with a special feature: a second free gift of incalculable value.
"Silent Auction items are mostly high-value items you'd never find in a store, and they make wonderful birthday or anniversary gifts for the pilot who has everything," said ASF Executive Director Bruce Landsberg. "But the 'free' prize that comes with each is worth more than any amount of money: a gift of better GA safety for all of us."
ASF's Silent Auction 2000, which runs from February 1 to November 30 this year, allows pilots and others to bid on high-value items donated by individuals and companies interested in promoting GA safety. The proceeds, which last year totaled almost $50,000, help ASF develop and present hundreds of safety seminars and video programs nationwide. Last year, more than 62,000 pilots benefited from ASF programs.
aBids for any of the hundreds of items available on the ASF Silent Auction may be made on the Web site. The current ASF aviation safety seminar schedule is available on the Web site ( www.aopa.org/asf/seminars/).Related Articles
