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FAA Unveil Sport Pilot Ruling |
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FAA Administrator Marion Blakey on Tuesday released the Sport Pilot and Light-Sport Aircraft rule in an effort to enhance the fun of aviation, help shatter cost barriers, and allow already certificated pilots to fly once again using a driver's license in lieu of a medical certificate. When it goes into effect on September 1, it will introduce a new level of pilot certificate and category of low-performance aircraft with takeoff weights of up to 1,320 pounds and maximum airspeeds of 120 knots. While it could take some time for the industry to fully gear up to produce new airplanes and the FAA to train pilot examiners and draft written tests, the really good news for many AOPA members is that they can be back in the air in a matter of weeks, thanks in large part to AOPA's efforts. "It was important to AOPA that our members who love and support general aviation, but no longer have a current medical, be able to fly again," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "That's why we asked the FAA to make the rule effective quickly, and they responded." For more information and to read a story about an 83-year-old pilot who will be taking full advantage of the initiative, see AOPA Online for full story.
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Posted by Caroline on Tuesday, July 27 @ 16:56:42 EDT (16738 reads)
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Indiana Jones and the Incursion Prevention - Revisited |
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Mr. Harrison Ford talks Runway Safety - Updated
Wow! ... He can talk to me about whatever he wants :-) Check out the FAA's special website for runway safety at http://www.faa.gov/runwaysafety/.
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Posted by Caroline on Sunday, April 11 @ 18:28:50 EDT (17173 reads)
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Sport Pilot rule within 90 days of final action |
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Dec. 29 Over the holidays, the FAA sent the proposed rule to establish the Sport Pilot certificate to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) the last step before the FAA can issue the rule. Within 90 days, OMB has to rule whether or not the new rule has any negative economic impacts.
"The single greatest benefit for AOPA members in this proposed rule is the driver's license medical requirement," said AOPA Senior Vice President of Government and Technical Affairs Andy Cebula. "It means that pilots who are otherwise healthy but unable to obtain an FAA medical certificate will be able to continue flying."
[See also AOPA's
regulatory brief.]
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Posted by Caroline on Saturday, January 03 @ 14:35:12 EST (2296 reads)
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AOPA speaks out for GA pilots and owners |
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caroline writes :- First-ever meeting with FBI and Secret Service
Mar. 28 After months of insisting on a dialogue with all federal agencies that make decisions about airport and airspace security, AOPA and other industry organizations finally had the opportunity to sit down with government representatives during a meeting Friday at FAA headquarters.
Today's meeting was the first between AOPA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Secret Service. Five other government agencies also took part. Six industry organizations, representing every aspect of general aviation from helicopters to charter operators, presented the positions to the government's Interagency Group, which is tasked with coordinating airspace control measures.
AOPA President Phil Boyer presented
a very candid picture of the typical GA pilot and the impact the airspace rules were imposing on the pilot and owner directly.
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Posted by Caroline on Friday, March 28 @ 21:10:50 EST (2028 reads)
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FAA denies AOPA driver's license medical petition for exemption |
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caroline writes :-
Mar. 7 — The FAA has denied AOPA's
petition for exemption from the current medical certification rules to allow AOPA member pilots to use a driver's license to meet the minimum medical requirement, provided those pilots limit themselves to recreational pilot privileges. The FAA told AOPA that it only wanted to evaluate the operations of sport pilots using a valid driver's license in lieu of a medical, and that it is premature to consider including recreational pilot operations. In its denial, the FAA indicated that there is still some question about whether it will even allow the use of a driver's license to meet the third class medical requirement for Sport Pilot.
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Posted by Caroline on Monday, March 10 @ 00:23:27 EST (5867 reads)
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: AOPA announces Airport Watch program to national audience in Washington, D.C. |
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caroline writes :- This from AOPA today :-
Mar. 4 AOPA formally unveiled its
Airport Watch program today during a Washington, D.C., press conference attended by the major national news media. The joint press conference featured AOPA President Phil Boyer and Adm. James M. Loy, administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Also speaking was Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), the ranking minority member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Designed to enhance security at general aviation airports, AOPA's Airport Watch is patterned after the highly successful neighborhood watch anti-crime programs, which call on community members to note and report suspicious activity. Some 700,000 pilots and airport workers are being asked to participate in Airport Watch programs at 5,000 GA airports.
Rep. James Oberstar (left) and Adm. James M. Loy, TSA administrator, praise the Airport Watch program during a Washington, D.C., press conference.
National media attended the Airport Watch press conference, including the major TV networks.
Full story available
here
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Posted by Caroline on Tuesday, March 04 @ 21:07:59 EST (2200 reads)
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AOPA formally asks TSA to suspend enforcement of "pilot insecurity" rules |
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This from the AOPA
Website :- Feb. 20 — AOPA has put its objections to the "pilot insecurity" rules in a
formal letter to Transportation Security Administration chief Adm. James M. Loy. Following up on a phone call between AOPA President Phil Boyer and Adm. Loy, Boyer wrote February 19, "While AOPA fully supports the goal of combating terrorism and has worked closely with the TSA in this effort, we oppose the Agency's recent final rule. We believe it undermines one of the most foundational elements of the nation by suspending the rights of U.S. citizens who hold pilot certificates to 'due process.'"
AOPA asked TSA to suspend enforcement of the new rules to allow for public comment. The association noted that FAA has always had the authority to revoke an airman's certificate on issues of national security, but that prior to the new TSA rules, that process had included specific procedural rights and an appeal to an impartial adjudicator.
[See also
AOPA's regulatory brief and the final rules: Ineligibility for an Airman Certificate Based on Security Grounds (text |
PDF); Threat Assessments Regarding Alien Holders of, and Applicants for, FAA Certificates (text |
PDF); and Threat Assessments Regarding Citizens of the United States Who Hold or Apply for FAA Certificates (text |
PDF).]
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Posted by Caroline on Thursday, February 20 @ 23:07:44 EST (2238 reads)
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AOPA launches new effort to gain driver's license medical for recreational pilot |
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Jan. 16 AOPA today hand-delivered to FAA
a request for an exemption that would permit AOPA members exercising student or recreational pilot privileges to use a valid driver's license in lieu of an FAA medical certificate. The exemption would be valid for two years, and during that period AOPA and FAA would collect new data to validate previous AOPA studies showing that a "driver's license medical" would not affect safety.
"AOPA has been working since 1985 to reduce the medical requirements for pilots," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "Our ultimate goal is still no medical certificate for recreational pilots. This exemption would be an interim step towards that goal. And AOPA has the resources to collect and analyze an irrefutable mountain of data to prove that a driver's license medical is the right thing to do."
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Posted by Caroline on Sunday, January 19 @ 16:28:15 EST (2349 reads)
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AOPA's Airport Watch TSA anti-terrorism hotline goes online Monday |
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Call 1-866-GA-SECURE to report suspicious activity
Nov. 26 The toll-free number to report suspicious activity at an airport 1-866-GA-SECURE (1-866-427-3287) goes online Monday, December. 2. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which is funding and operating the 24/7 hotline, has partnered with AOPA in providing an easy-to-remember national number as part of AOPA's Airport Watch program to help protect national security at our nations general aviation airports.
Airport Watch is designed to work like the highly successful neighborhood watch programs used in communities across the country, said AOPA President Phil Boyer. Who better to know-what's normal and what's suspicious at a local airport than the people who spend a lot of time there? We encourage all pilots to watch for unusual or suspicious activities and report them.
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Posted by Caroline on Wednesday, November 27 @ 10:25:43 EST (2643 reads)
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Senate passes security bill |
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TSA to move to new Homeland Security Department
Nov. 20 The Senate late last night passed a bill creating the Department of Homeland Security. The new 170,000-employee department will include the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) that is currently in the Department of Transportation. It creates a cabinet-level department with a Senate-confirmed secretary and a $37 billion budget. Tom Ridge, who currently heads the Office of Homeland Security for the White House, is expected to be nominated as the first secretary for the new department.
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Posted by Caroline on Wednesday, November 20 @ 23:51:11 EST (2362 reads)
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