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GPS reception may be unavailable or unreliable over a large portion of the southeastern states and the Caribbean during offshore military exercises scheduled between January 16 and 24. The FAA has posted a flight advisory for the exercises that will require jamming of GPS signals for periods of several hours each day of the event. Navigation guidance, ADS-B, and other services associated with GPS could be affected for up to 400 nautical miles at Flight Level 400, down to a radius of 180 nm at 50 feet above the ground. The flight advisory encourages pilots to report any GPS anomalies...

While the vision of whisking passengers between rooftops in aircraft capable of vertical takeoff has largely solidified in the general shape of multiple rotors, some with airfoils and others without, the question of how to power this new kind of aircraft is less so. Some envision pure electric with lots of high-capacity batteries; others believe batteries alone will never be ready to produce the power required, and pitch hybrid designs—with a fossil-fueled engine producing electricity to assist the motors during some or all phases of flight. However, one recent entrant in the field of some 150 such aircraft being...

Members of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) are reporting that they are being "stopped, questioned, and searched" without cause by armed agents from the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection agency and "other law enforcement agencies". An email went out to members detailing the searches and a request for donations. The letter does not address the legality of such serarches or the expansion of intrusion into Americans lives. Below is the text of the letter Dear _________, Over the past few months, AOPA has received more and more reports of pilots like you being stopped, questioned,...

After CBS News aired its “Follow the Money” story about federal stimulus money being spent on general aviation airports, AOPA weighed its response options and decided to take its concerns to the highest levels at CBS News. In a letter to the most senior managers at CBS News and the CBS Evening News, AOPA Executive Vice President of Communications Karen Gebhart pointed out several of the inaccuracies in the CBS story. In the letter, Gebhart pointed out factual errors and errors of omission. Regarding, for instance, a taxiway safety lighting system at Los Angeles International Airport for which the report...

Sen. John McCain’s surprise choice of running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, has a positive association with general aviation. Considering that GA is the primary form of long-distance transportation in the forty-ninth state, it’s not surprising that Gov. Palin has taken a stand on the user fee issue. In May 2007, she signed a resolution in opposition to the FAA’s plan to increase avgas taxes, impose user fees, and slash airport funding. AOPA and the Alaska Airmen’s Association had worked together to move the resolution through the Alaska legislature. There is a family connection as well. Palin’s husband, Todd,...

McCain VP nominee has GA connections By AOPA ePublishing staff Sen. John McCain’s surprise choice of running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, has a positive association with general aviation. Considering that GA is the primary form of long-distance transportation in the forty-ninth state, it’s not surprising that Gov. Palin has taken a stand on the user fee issue. In May 2007, she signed a resolution in opposition to the FAA’s plan to increase avgas taxes, impose user fees, and slash airport funding. AOPA and the Alaska Airmen’s Association had worked together to move the resolution through the Alaska legislature....

This Flying FReeper (Catchy - should have used that as a sign-up name!), and other pilots here, need your help! While congressional and grassroot wars have been raging around Illegal immigration, border security, and conduct of the War On Terror, another quieter, but important, battle is being waged which pits supporters of General Aviation (GA) against the airlines. In a nutshell, the airlines want to take over the FAA function and funding. They want to do this by creating an Airline Transport Association-sponsored program named "Smart Skies". The resulting "panel of experts", comprised of airline executives, would result in...

To finance the nation's aviation system through 2017, the FAA is proposing swooping changes in its funding structure, including more than tripling taxes on fuel for small planes. The uproar among the general aviation community -- which includes all planes outside commercial and military use -- has been loud and constant, according to the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association, which represents more than 411,000 pilots. "We surveyed our members before the FAA's proposal came out," said Chris Dancy, spokesman. "At the level the FAA is proposing, 88 percent said they would dramatically reduce or even cease flying." General aviation, which...

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is considering filing a lawsuit against New York to block legislation signed by Governor Pataki that would require flight training schools to force its student applicants to undergo background checks before they start instruction. The Maryland-based association, which had lobbied aggressively against the legislation, is claiming that the state lacks jurisdiction over aviation security requirements for student pilots. It also is warning that the checks would drive away business from New York flight schools by making it more difficult and time-consuming for aspiring pilots to enter into training. "If New York is putting restrictions...

Since 1992, AOPA President Phil Boyer has held Pilot Town Meetings across America, reviewing national developments in General Aviation and engaging pilots on local GA issues. In more than 330 such meetings, Boyer has set the pace for direct communication with the nation's pilots. AOPA's Pilot Town Meetings offer pilots and aircraft owners a lively forum in which to discuss matters that are important to them, exploring issues and concerns with AOPA's president and with each other.

GA banned from Washington, D.C., for inauguration D.C.'s mayor and AOPA's Boyer incensed over closures For eight hours on Inauguration Day, Washington, D.C., and the skies for miles around it, will be completely off-limits to general aviation. Similarly, the streets of the nation's capital will be closed to vehicular traffic. Security officials have declared that President Bush's inauguration on January 20 is a "national security event," and the FAA, responding to orders from the Defense and Homeland Security departments, has issued a flight advisory prohibiting all general aviation VFR flight within or above the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Air Defense Identification...

TSA's Rear Admiral Stone, Meet GA's Major Concerns... Chief of the Transportation Security Administration, Rear Adm. David Stone, spoke to a full house at AOPA Expo 2004 in Long Beach Friday morning in what was a sometimes optimism-inspiring, sometimes contentious interaction with some of the people most directly affected by his agency's actions -- us, the pilots. Appearing as both the gentleman and politician (insofar as that is possible) Stone was in the end sent on his way by a standing ovation. The act seemed either a reflection of patriotism, respect for a good man in a difficult job ......

Please read the article via the link, it is copyrighted. It looks like NBC tried to pull a GM Side-Saddle Gas Tank type set-up and got caught and the story will not run. This is awful. They tried it with fake bag-guys and tried to rent a Helicopter. The local airport folks called the athorities and they (NBC fake bad guys) had some explaining to do, to say the least.

AIRPORT WATCH CONCEPT HELPS NAB 'BAD GUYS' Here's proof that GA airports really are small communities and that the "residents" know when something is amiss. On Wednesday, this led to the nabbing of some suspicious characters at St. Louis Downtown Airport. It all started when a man telephoned an FBO not far from the Gateway Arch and asked about chartering a helicopter. About an hour later, two men walked into the FBO, pulled out cash to pay for the flight, and presented driver's licenses from two different states as ID. Office staff noticed their car was registered in a third...

Here's the proof that GA airports really are small communities and that the "residents" know when something is amiss. Yesterday, alert folks at a general aviation airport contacted authorities who nabbed two suspicious characters before they could cause trouble. "This incident demonstrates the validity of the Airport Watch concept," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "Vigilant pilots and airport workers make the best security force because they know who does and doesn't belong at the airport. They can easily spot the things that just don't seem right." But there's more to this story, including a twist worthy of Paul Harvey. The...

AIRPORT WATCH CONCEPT HELPS NAB 'BAD GUYS' Here's proof that GA airports really are small communities and that the "residents" know when something is amiss. On Wednesday, this led to the nabbing of some suspicious characters at St. Louis Downtown Airport. It all started when a man telephoned an FBO not far from the Gateway Arch and asked about chartering a helicopter. About an hour later, two men walked into the FBO, pulled out cash to pay for the flight, and presented driver's licenses from two different states as ID. Office staff noticed their car was registered in a third...

The other shoe dropsNavy wants "permanent TFR" turned into prohibited area Feb. 26 — At the U.S. Navy's insistence, the FAA on Thursday formally proposed turning the Department of Defense (DoD) temporary flight restriction (TFR) over the Kings Bay Naval Base in Georgia into prohibited airspace. "This is a general aviation pilot's worst nightmare and has questionable security benefits," said AOPA President Phil Boyer. "The Pentagon is dictating national airspace policy. And it could get worse. AOPA has learned that the DoD has already submitted requests to turn the remaining permanent TFRs into prohibited areas." The existing TFR has severely...

Feb. 11 — AOPA's claim that the city of Chicago violated federal law and aviation regulations when it shut down Meigs Field last March has merit, says the FAA, and will be investigated. AOPA filed a formal complaint following the destruction of Meigs's runway on Mayor Richard M. Daley's order, claiming the city failed to provide adequate notice, as required by the FARs. The complaint will not result in the airport's reopening but can lead to the mayor and the city being punished for their actions. "AOPA intends to push for the appropriate penalty to be imposed on the city,"...

Andrew Heyward President, CBS News 524 W 57th St. New York, NY 10019 Dear Mr. Heyward: On behalf of more than 400,000 members of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association AOPA), the world's largest aviation organization, I am writing you to express our utter shock and dismay regarding the story about general aviation that ran on your evening news on January 14, 2004. It is disgraceful that "the news organization of Edward R. Murrow" would produce — and aggressively promote in a tabloid headline form — a segment on the prestigious CBS Evening News that was so obviously slanted, incomplete,...

11 days and counting. Check here, http://www.airventure.org/, for NOTAMS.