Enhanced System Capacity And IFR Capabilities On The
Horizon
By Maxine Scheer
As reported by ANN in
'Aviation Associations Discuss Priorities in Government
Affairs', Matthew Zuccaro, President of Helicopter
Association International (HAI) sat on a panel with other industry
association leaders at EAA AirVenture 2009 to discuss challenges
and opportunities in aviation-related government relations. In a
follow up interview with ANN, Matt described the unique issues and
opportunities facing the commercial application of
rotorcraft.
“The Rotorcraft industry is truly international,”
says Zuccaro. As demonstrated on HAI’s website, with a simple
click, the content of the site can be translated into 15
languages. HAI has evolved over the years to affiliate with
over 400 U.S. and international organizations that include
operators using rotorcraft to provide emergency medical services,
sightseeing, aerial photography, transport, and news
gathering.
Matt described a number of major initiatives that were under
development that could have a major impact on the US commercial
rotorcraft industry. For example, the crucial role that
helicopter transport provides to the 5,000+ offshore oil and gas
platforms in the US Gulf Coast where the grounding of 700
helicopters per day (serving an estimated 2.6 million annual
passengers in the 250 by 500 mile range) can curtail Gulf oil
production by 95%.
Matt Zuccaro
“The Gulf of Mexico has not been part of the National
Airspace System (NAS)”, says Matt. “I sit on the
Executive Committee for NextGen and with the cooperation and
support of FAA and leaders in the oil and gas industry, the
implementation of ADS-B in the Gulf is underway.”
According to Matt, oil producers are providing in-kind
contributions valued at approximately $100 million. FAA is
overseeing the project and currently expects to test specific
quadrants of the Gulf during the first quarter of 2010.
A second initiative is expected to follow in the continental
U.S. that provides rotorcraft operators a dedicated low level IFR
point and space approach via GPS, enhanced with WAAS. The
system is currently being tested in New York City in cooperation
with the Eastern Region Helicopter Council.
“There are tremendous safety and economic impacts
associated with these improvements”, says Zuccaro.
While improvements on the airspace infrastructure look positive,
the HAI President expressed concerned about federal legislative
proposals which could result in more State control over Heliports.
He is also concerned about federal initiatives to limit rotorcraft
industry participation in the Notice to Proposed Rule Making (NPRM)
process. “We are behind anything that enhances
safety,” says Zuccaro, “but we need to participate in
the legislative process.”
HAI is advocating for the development of a National Heliport
System that could provide a plan for locating helicopter landing
areas along surface transportation corridors such as passenger
rail, highways and downtown intermodal centers.
“Most helicopters don’t want to go to an
airport,” says Zuccaro. “Rotorcraft have a
door-to-door advantage that is not facilitated by concentrating
operations at airports, even if they are general aviation
facilities,” says Matt. He asserted that accommodating
rotorcraft activity in more locations where they are useful for
emergency response, passenger transport, and medical transport will
maximize their benefits to the public and relieve capacity at
congested commercial airports where rotorcraft activity is
inefficient.