Once again this year, AOPA worked in Congress to protect vintage military aircraft from being cut up or "demilitarized." AOPA's Capitol Hill staff worked with both the Senate and House Armed Services committees to ensure that the perennial "warbird provision" proposed by the Bush administration did not surface in the Department of Defense reauthorization bills now in conference committee.
As it does every year, the administration had a demilitarization bill introduced on its behalf, this time as S.747. However, due to ongoing conversations with AOPA and other members of the aviation community, neither the Senate nor the House included that bill's language in their respective DoD reauthorization bills, S.1050 and H.R.1588. That means a demilitarization bill is not likely to resurface in this session of Congress.
AOPA has secured an invitation from the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss ways to protect these historic aircraft. "I'm gratified by the respect of Congress for these important pieces of military history," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "And I'm pleased that members of Congress continue to respect and carefully consider AOPA's representations."
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