Charles Spence is GAN’s Washington, D.C., correspondent. Some Washington aviation groups are expressing cautious optimism over the President Obama’s proposed $50 billion stimulus plan, hoping that including aviation in the proposal could mean an indication of the administration’s greater recognition of the value of flight. The proposal would provide funds for roads, rail, and runways. […]
TTF gets Capitol Hill hearing
The huge divide between proponents and opponents to “through-the-fence” agreements at federally-funded airports boiled to the top at a hearing held by the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee of the House Wednesday, Sept. 22. Access to the airport, property values, limits or access to the airport for businesses and residents, value of property with access, local […]
Working together pays off
WASHINGTON, D.C. — After years of operating in the shadows, general aviation is gaining, at last, some of the recognition it deserves through a new spirit of cooperation among many groups, organizations, businesses, elected officials, and charitable organizations. For years some GA leaders focused more on their own particular issues than on the common good. […]
New terminology from air traffic controllers coming Sept. 30
Pilots will hear new terminology from air traffic controllers as they wait for takeoff clearance beginning Sept. 30. Instead of “position and hold,” pilots will hear “line up and wait.” The new instructions were recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board and conforms to international terminology. The phrase “traffic holding in position” will continue to […]
How government SNAFU detained Kings at gunpoint and in handcuffs
If you find yourself in a situation similar to that of John and Martha King, with police officers pointing guns at you as you exit your aircraft, just follow their instructions. That is the advice of John King after he and his wife, Martha, were held at gunpoint for about a half-hour Aug. 28 when […]
Will Congress ever agree on an FAA reauthorization bill?
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Since Sept. 30, 2007, the FAA has been operating under short-term reauthorization bills — and the Congress just rushed through a 15th temporary funding bill on the final day before starting its August recess. This latest extension runs until Sept. 30. The last time the House and Senate agreed on long-term reauthorization […]
Yet another FAA extension
Congress is giving the FAA another short extension, this time until Sept. 30. The FAA has been operating without extended authority since the last authorization expired in 2007. That authority was passed in 2003 and Congress has been unable to agree since that time, passing extension after extension to keep the FAA funded. Included in […]
User fees redux?
Another indication that communications in the nation’s capital should be improved is the Department of Transportation’s proposed five-year plan in which the agency sets out its goals through 2015. General aviation is all but forgotten, except for pushing again the idea that the current funding of the FAA should be something other than fuel taxes. […]
NBAA gets Aviation Hall of Fame award
National Business Aircraft Association received the Aviation Hall of Fame Milton Caniff ‘Spirit of Flight’ award in recognition of the group’s “significant contribution to America’s aviation heritage.” The award was presented at the annual induction ceremonies held at Dayton, Ohio. The award has been given annually since 1981. Ed Bolen, president and CEO of NBAA, […]