The Heber City Council in Utah voted on April 2 to pass two resolutions, undoing previously approved minimum standards promoting competition at Heber Valley Airport, the most complained-about location in AOPA’s inquiry into fixed-base operator fees and airport access.

In Utah’s Wasatch Mountains sits Heber Valley Airport, offering pilots access to ski resorts, the Sundance Film Festival, and four seasons of outdoor sports. The airport’s lone fixed-base operation, OK3 Air, is also the most complained-about location in AOPA’s inquiry into egregious prices, and despite recent progress, the city may be on the verge of a major step backward.

Following the October 2018 launch of the “Know Before You Go” best practices guidelines, which call for fee transparency, fixed base operators across the country are rushing to get fees publicly posted online.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced the “2019-2020 Most Wanted List of Transportation and Safety Improvements” during a Feb. 4 press conference in Washington, D.C.

With lawmakers in Washington, D.C., unable to agree on funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, the federal government has been shut down since midnight, Dec. 22, 2018. And while many of the government offices that pilots rely on are deemed critical and will remain open, certain federal functions will slow or stop.

General aviation pilots gathered in the small fishing village on the mostly treeless Tangier Island, Virginia, in the lower Chesapeake Bay where aviators have been delivering holiday greens annually for the past 50 years.

AOPA joined five other major aviation associations to jointly release the “Know Before You Go” best business practices, a set of recommended communications practices to enhance fixed-base operation transparency including publishing an online list of prices, fees, and charges that pilots may face when landing at an airport.

Understanding the limits of your airplane in all flight regimes and your proficiency in getting the most out of your airplane were among the themes proffered by two experienced and well-known pilots who for decades have flown high-performance aircraft for personal and business missions.

The heads of five major general aviation groups, including AOPA, sent a letter to FAA Acting Administrator Daniel Elwell asking the agency to standardize the labeling of airport ramp space and ensure that airport diagrams are clearly and accurately marked so pilots are better informed about available parking options.

Wyoming Jet Center wants to open a second fixed-base operator (FBO) at Jackson Hole Airport. But according to a Part 13 complaint the company has filed with the FAA, steps taken by Jackson Hole Airport Board to purchase the sole FBO and oppose a second FBO at the airport constitute a violation of federal grant assurances.

Two of AOPA’s most complained-about airports, Heber City Municipal Airport in Utah and Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Colorado, are adding additional fixed-base operators with the hopes of driving down costs and improving general aviation services.

A diverse coalition of 16 general aviation groups issued a joint statement calling on the FAA to take action against “egregious, hidden fees and denial of affordable access to airport ramps.”

Aeronautix, a Missouri-based engineering firm that specializes in aircraft supplemental type certification, is offering a free supplemental type certificate for owners of certain Piper PA–32 and PA–34 airplanes to fly under BasicMed.

The FAA’s Southern Region Airports Division has decided against AOPA’s Part 13 complaint over egregious fixed-base operator fees and unreasonable access at Asheville Regional Airport in North Carolina. A June 7 letter clears the way for Signature, the sole FBO at Asheville, to continue to charge general aviation pilots for unnecessary and unwanted services. Although informal at this stage, AOPA believes the decision contradicts existing FAA policies, and could be the beginning of a dangerous precedent for many other airports across the country.

Despite a few raindrops, the third annual AOPA Wings ‘n Wheels on May 5 at Frederick Municipal Airport in Maryland was the biggest yet, drawing an estimated 6,500 people, an increase of more than 50 percent compared to the previous year.

In a 393-to-13 vote, the House of Representatives on April 27 passed H.R. 4, legislation authorizing funding for the FAA for five years. The bill did not include language calling for the removal of the air traffic control system from the FAA, often referred to as “ATC privatization.”

Calls for transparency were common among pilots reacting to AOPA’s recent publication of an Airport Access Watch List. Sun ’n Fun International Fly-In and Expo, the annual Florida gathering that kicks off the fly-in season, provided many pilots their first opportunity to weigh in.

As part of an ongoing initiative to ensure fee transparency, airport access, and competition for critical services at publicly funded airports, AOPA has announced an Airport Access Watch List of 10 locations where the organization believes fixed-base operators with monopoly positions may be preventing reasonable airport access with their pricing practices, potentially putting them in violation of FAA grant assurances.

With the final responses and replies submitted, the FAA must now consider AOPA’s two outstanding Part 13 complaints. AOPA believes that North Carolina’s Asheville Regional Airport and Florida’s Key West International Airport have failed to protect the fundamental right of aircraft operators to park at these federally funded, public-use airports without being forced to pay for additional services they do not need or want.

Why is it that some fixed-base operators believe it is OK to hide their fee information from pilots? That was among the questions debated at the second meeting of the AOPA Airport Access Advisory Panel on Feb. 15 in Naples, Florida. Made up of pilots, FBO owners, and airport managers, the panel provides feedback and guidance on AOPA’s continuing work to ensure airports are accessible and to fight egregious FBO fees at certain locations.

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), the leading proponent of legislation calling for the removal of air traffic control from the FAA, announced he would no longer pursue the controversial proposal.

According to a report in Axios, President Donald Trump is pushing for his personal pilot, John Dunkin, to be the next FAA administrator.

In August 2017, AOPA filed three Part 13 complaints with the FAA over egregious fixed-base operator fees at three airports, one of which was Waukegan National Airport just outside Chicago. But following recent improvements, AOPA has withdrawn the complaint against Waukegan, acknowledging the steps taken by the airport to make it more accessible and friendlier to pilots.

AOPA and five other general aviation groups sent a letter asking Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine L. Chao to reopen the FAA aircraft registry, which is closed because of the ongoing federal government shutdown.

At 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 20, the federal government officially shut down. And while a number of key Republican and Democratic leaders have expressed optimism about being close to a deal, there’s no telling when it will actually happen.

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) announced Jan. 2 that he will not seek reelection in 2018.

Following AOPA’s complaint with the FAA over fixed-base operator (FBO) pricing practices at Illinois’ Waukegan National Airport, local leaders have taken steps to make the field more accessible and friendlier for general aviation. In recent weeks, the airport has been advertising free tiedowns for transient aircraft, along with a pedestrian gate that will allow pilots and passengers direct access to their aircraft instead of having to walk through the FBO. The FBO also agreed to lower the price of self-service avgas from nearly $6 to a recently reported $4.81 a gallon.

Tax reform legislation passed by the House and Senate Dec. 20 includes several changes for aircraft owners and general aviation businesses.

A federal watchdog said a Twitter account operated by the Department of Transportation broke the law when it retweeted and liked a post from an airline front group.

Following AOPA’s initiative to ensure reasonable fixed-base operator pricing and transparency, the FAA issued guidance Dec. 7 for pilots, FBOs, and airport sponsors. "Q&As—FBO Industry Consolidation and Pricing Practices” lays out a series of questions and answers addressing how federally funded airports should facilitate competition and transparency, as well as promote reasonable access and pricing. As a condition of receiving federal funding for development projects, airports must agree to protect public access to the airport by ensuring each FBO’s prices and fees are reasonable and not unjustly discriminatory.