Mon, Jan 20, 2003
Attack on Three DC-Area Airports Continues
We got a note from Lee Schiek,
the embattled Manager of the College Park Airport (CGS). He, along
with his brethren and fellow pilots at Hyde field and Potomac
Airport, continue to live under a state of aero-siege with only minimal respite from outrageous
restrictions that make little sense.
Lee notes that, "Three general aviation airports (the "DC-3") in
the vicinity of Washington DC have been in a state of virtual
lock-down since September 11, 2001. College Park Airport
(CGS), the world's oldest airport in continuous operation, Potomac
Airfield (VKX) and Washington Executive-Hyde Field (W32) remain
closed to all transient aircraft, and only local pilots that have
received an extensive background check may use them. As a
consequence, flight operations have decreased over
90%, resulting in devastating revenue losses and
jeopardizing the future existence of all three airports."
Lee adds that, "For decades, these airports have been the aerial
gateway to our nation's capital for tens of thousands of
citizen-pilots. We are convinced that current operating
restrictions can be relaxed and still be consistent with acceptable
security considerations."
AOPA recently petitioned the FAA to review the federally
mandated operating procedures of these facilities prior to a
planned two-year extension of the restrictions, slated to become
effective February 13, 2003.
ANN urges our readers to comment on this petition by going to:
http://dms.dot.gov and
entering Docket # 13623. The pilots and
staff of these these airports remain hostages of Osama Bin Ladin
and an overly-restrictive, unrealistic [and, dare we say,
paranoid?] federal bureaucracy. As citizens, aviators deserve
to be heard on this matter and to find relief from burdensome
restrictions that offer no more than "feel good" restrictions that
continue to harm those targeted by the terrorists of September
11th.
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