September 2005

UK Aviation Groups Join to Fight Fee Increases

AOPA-UK has joined with other general aviation groups and aviation services suppliers in the UK to fund an independent study to review existing and proposed fees and charges proposed by the UK CAA. Martin Robinson, AOPA-UK CEO, said, "This study is designed to put the issue of fees in perspective and to examine the fairness of the proposals." Earlier this year the UK CAA proposed significant fee increases for all phases of commercial and general aviation services. If enacted, these fees would have a serious negative effect on general aviation activity and growth.   

AOPA-Peru Granted Provisional Membership

IAOPA President Phil Boyer granted provisional membership to AOPA-Peru in August 2005. If the Board approves this application the Lima-based organization will become the 62nd affiliate of IAOPA.

Gaston Garreaud, president of the new organization, said, "We are forming the organization to help general aviation grow in Peru. Formally, our objectives are to promote, preserve and represent the interests of the members of the general aviation community and promote the use of general aviation aircraft for personal transport, business and recreational purposes. We intend to work with our CAA and other government organizations on the development of standards regulations favorable to general aviation. We will help our members to better use and enjoy their aircraft."   

Australia to Require Airport Security Identification Card

The Australian government currently requires a pilot license containing a photo of the license holder and a background check prior to issuance of the license. But, just recently they have also instituted a requirement for an Aviation Security ID Card (ASIC) that will permit the holder access to 150 named airports within Australia. AOPA-Australia opposed this new requirement, stating that the background investigation-based pilot license should be sufficient for airport access. They were overridden and now pilots desiring access to the most popular airports will need an ASIC, costing AU$150, by January 2006.

At press time it became apparent that the ASIC would be required for foreign pilots flying within Australia, as well. Few details are available regarding the procedure to obtain the new card by foreign pilots, but they too will need one by January. See AOPA online.   

ICAO ELT Task Force Hears IAOPA Position

Frank Hofmann, IAOPA Representative to ICAO, attended an ICAO Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) Task Force meeting in Washington, DC August 11-12 to present the IAOPA case for modifying existing ELT equipment requirements.

Airlines, IAOPA and State regulators have recognized problems with the 406 mHz ELT Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS) as promulgated by ICAO. All three users identified difficulties, largely with the cost of implementation. For the airlines it was an issue of having to carry out very expensive retrofits. Regulators understood that the level of compliance would be low. Aircraft owners saw yet another expensive requirement with as yet unsubstantiated benefits.

IAOPA sought proof that there would be fewer false alarms and an overall increase in SAR performance realized by installing the new units. Such assurance could not be provided for lack of data. In order to make the transition to 406 technology as acceptable as possible, IAOPA sought to put the required applicability date as far into the future as possible, keeping in mind that as of 2009 the 121.5 mHz system will essentially cease to function.

SAR and ICAO representatives were intent that all international flights be equipped as soon as possible with the new ELTs. Whereas the airlines and aircraft carrying more than 19 passengers will have to carry 2 ELTs, one of them fixed and the other automatic, IAOPA argued for a single 406 unit of undefined type. In other words, the device may be a portable locator beacon (PLB) type in the interim. All new production aircraft are to be equipped with fixed automatic ELTs with the view that by 2020 most GA aircraft flying internationally will all have the fixed automatic ELT installed.

IAOPA argued for and obtained agreement that performance standards criteria for the 406 ELTs be studied and defined so that the proponents' claim of increased efficiency may be substantiated. IAOPA insisted that the performance standard be established for the whole system -- including installation, overhaul times, maintenance, and cost benefit -- not just SAR efficacy. The problem is that gathering of such data takes time and money. Although the group agreed that new technology will be monitored continuously for a better system, at this time there is nothing available which equals the 406 technology.

The presence of GA at this meeting permitted the international GA viewpoint and problems to be aired to the group of 21 industry representatives who were all based on this continent where GA flights across international borders are not as big an issue as in Europe, and who did not have to pay for the decisions they reached. Although some of them believed that the cost of the current 406 ELTs was low, it was pointed out that installed costs easily amounted to five percent of the value of a Cessna 182, not an inconsiderable expense for an operator who must personally fund the installation.

IAOPA made the group understand that if the GA owners are going to convert to the new technology they will require time for that change and that in the interim they should be given a choice of which type of 406 unit they might install (fixed, automatic, or portable). Regulators present appreciated that viewpoint, agreed, and even offered, in an attempt to lower the costs of owning a new technology ELT, to permit owners/pilots to install batteries when required, obviating the need to send the unit to the shop.

Decisions stemming from this meeting will be promulgated by the ICAO Air Navigation Commission this fall.  

US GAO Evaluates Privatized ATS

The US Government Accountability Office report looked at five commercialized air traffic control systems in Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom -- air navigation service providers (ANSPs) and concluded, "The ANSPs have instituted or increased fees for general aviation operators, and some ANSPs have increased or plan to increase the costs of service to small or remote locations."

"Commercialized ANSPs must be prepared to mitigate the effects of an industry downturn through such measures as establishing a reserve fund, implementing a revenue-generating alternative to user fees, or cutting costs," the GAO said as part of the "lessons learned" in its study.

GAO did conclude that safety had not been compromised by commercialization. "But they only looked at direct measures such as loss of separation," said AOPA-USA Senior Vice President of Government and Technical Affairs Andy Cebula. "GAO did not consider indirect safety impacts, such as pilots declining to use services because of the extraordinary costs charged by some of these systems."

"The GAO's look at other countries' experience with privatizing air traffic control confirms much of what AOPA has been saying for years," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "GA would be hurt and user fees are not the panacea for financing ATC."

View the full GAO report at AOPA online."   

IAOPA World Assembly Toronto, Canada, 18-24 June 2006

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