BAKER ON THE NEWS
“These pivotal changes will bring new and safer technologies into the cockpit and reduce costs for pilots and operators. The entire general aviation industry worked hard to bring about these reforms and we applaud Congress and the FAA for enacting smart regulations that preserve safety and promote innovation.” —AOPA President Mark Baker
ACTION IN THE STATES
AOPA urges support for Minnesota zoning bill
AOPA is urging Minnesota legislators to support an airport zoning bill that could soon come up for a floor vote in the state’s House of Representatives. Minnesota House File 1933, introduced by Rep. Duane Quam, would replace the state’s current “one size fits all” zoning requirements with custom zoning applications tailored to local needs, and provide state funding resources for airports that do not meet current zoning criteria.
Web: www.aopa.org/pilot/minnesota
GA raises advocacy profile in Rhode Island
AOPA helped organize and participated in the first Rhode Island Advocacy Day event at the state Capitol on April 26, where Eastern Regional Manager Sean Collins was joined by members of the Rhode Island Pilots Association and the Rhode Island GA Business Owners Association in highlighting the economic and transportation-system contributions of the state’s GA airports. AOPA and others also voiced opposition to a bill to establish a 7-percent excise tax on jet fuel.
Aircraft-manufacturing reform welcomed by AOPA
Acceptance of new standards is ‘pivotal’
The FAA has taken a “pivotal” step in reforming the rules for certifying general aviation aircraft—long an advocacy goal of AOPA and other organizations.
The FAA announced in May that it has formally accepted standards of the nonprofit consensus standards organization ASTM International as a means of complying with the overhauled certification procedures for Normal-category aircraft.
Revisions to the certification rules, known as Part 23 regulations, opened opportunities aircraft manufacturers said would allow them to quickly implement new and cost-saving technologies and production methods. This important follow-up gives them more—and more modern, less prescriptive—options to show they’ve complied with the regulations. The new compliance options should accelerate development across a range of innovations, said David Oord, AOPA senior director of regulatory affairs.
AOPA has been an active supporter of the effort to overhaul Part 23, led by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, and participated in the FAA aviation rulemaking committee that paved the way for the rule change. The association has been an active member of ASTM’s Committee F44 on general aviation since its inception, and currently serves as the membership secretary of its executive committee.
AOPA’s advocacy also included strongly supporting the Small Airplane Revitalization Act—a law that bolstered the Part 23 reform effort by setting a deadline for the FAA to draft the new rules.
Web: www.aopa.org/pilot/aircraftregs
FAA drops complex aircraft requirement for some flight tests
AOPA advocated for money-saving step
The FAA announced in April it had set aside the requirement for commercial pilot or flight instructor applicants with a single-engine airplane rating to provide a complex airplane for the practical test. AOPA has long urged the FAA to drop the complex-airplane requirement for the two practical tests.
Complex aircraft—which have retractable landing gear, flaps, and a controllable-pitch propeller—aren’t just often more expensive than their fixed-gear counterparts, they’re becoming more difficult to find on school flight lines. Training providers had also raised the issue of the scarcity of single-engine complex airplanes, the FAA said in a notice of the policy update, adding that “complex airplanes that are available are older airplanes that are expensive to maintain.”
The policy change does not eliminate the complex airplane training and endorsement requirements of FAR 61.31(e), or existing aeronautical experience requirements.
The FAA has updated the Commercial Pilot Airman Certification Standards and the Flight Instructor Practical Test Standards to reflect the new policy.
Web: www.aopa.org/pilot/complex
CBP to test pilot program for remote seaplane arrivals
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has launched a pilot program allowing seaplane pilots to clear U.S. Customs remotely at two locations in Minnesota, using an app downloaded to a cellphone or tablet.
Pilots can use the Reporting Offsite Arrival-Mobile (ROAM) app to clear U.S. Customs by video conference at Scott’s Seaplane Base on Crane Lake, and at the Shagawa Lake Seaplane base in Ely. Pilots must file a flight plan using the electronic Advance Passenger Information System (eAPIS), but the ROAM app can be used to close the flight plan, said Area Port Director Jason Schmelz.
The app, downloadable from the Apple and Android stores under CBP ROAM, is newly available to seaplane pilots as CBP expands a program already in use for small boat operators in the region, which is a popular tourism destination.
AOPA President Mark Baker applauded CBP’s innovative approach, adding, “We believe a risk-based program that streamlines the process will benefit local economies and general aviation.”
As the program gets going for seaplanes, CBP will have an officer available at the two approved locations to provide assistance to pilots. The two bases also will have a tablet available in case a pilot does not have an internet-capable device. CBP also will seek feedback from users of the app, for possible future upgrades.
“This is one step closer to a general aviation trusted-operator program that AOPA has been advocating for,” said Nobuyo Sakata, AOPA director of aviation security.
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