NBAA Update Archive
NBAA Update #03-14
Monday, April 7, 2003
NBAA Update is the National Business Aviation Association's weekly e-mail newsletter, providing the latest operational, regulatory and political news for the business aviation community. Send your comments about NBAA Update to update@nbaa.org.
FRACTIONAL RULE APPROVED BY DOT, NOW UNDER OMB
REVIEW
On Friday, April 4, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) officially received
from the Department of Transportation (DOT) the final rule proposal that creates
Part 91, Subpart K and revises Part 135. Sources say that the OMB should take
no longer than 90 days to review the final rule. The OMB should have minimal
concern with the rule since initial economic analyses indicate a positive economic
impact on the community. The DOT expects a final decision from the OMB around
June 4, 2003.
www.nbaa.org/fractional
GA COMMUNITY VOICES SHOCK AND OUTRAGE
OVER MEIGS CLOSURE
On Thursday, April 3, NBAA and five other general aviation groups signed a letter
to President Bush expressing the community's "shock and outrage" over
the Mayor of Chicago's use of national security as an excuse to demolish the
runway at Meigs Field. The letter asks the President to "reaffirm Federal
authority over security matters affecting the nation's air transportation system."
Additionally, the letter asks the President to elevate the importance of our
national system of airports to that of our national system of highways. For
more information, and to download the text of the letter in PDF format, visit:
www.nbaa.org/public/news/pr/2003/20030403-012.php
NBAA MEMBERS HELPED REUNITE RESCUED SOLDIER AND HER FAMILY
Two NBAA Member Companies -- H.J. Heinz Company of Pittsburgh and Houston-based
Universal Weather & Aviation -- teamed up this past weekend to reunite a
recently rescued prisoner of war with her family. Jessica Lynch, a U.S. Army
soldier who was wounded and taken prisoner by Iraqi forces and then rescued
in a dramatic special-forces mission last week, had been airlifted to a military
hospital in Germany to receive medical treatment for multiple injuries. The
Heinz Gulfstream IV flew Lynch's parents, two siblings and a cousin to Germany
on Saturday so they could see her, and Universal Weather prepared the flight
plan and provided weather data and handling services for the trip free of charge.
TSA GRANTS EXTENSION FOR CRIMINAL
HISTORY RECORDS CHECK
Recognizing the difficulties in meeting the fingerprint-based Criminal History
Records Check (CHRC) as required by the Twelve-Five and Private Charter Standard
Security Programs, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) granted
a 15-day exemption to regulated operators. This will require that all CHRC submissions
be made by Wednesday, April 16, 2003. According to the TSA notice, this exemption
is to allow for processing and adjudication of the CHRC. The notice further
states that after May 1, 2003, operators not meeting the full requirements of
the rules will be considered to be in noncompliance. For more information, and
to download the April 1, 2003, TSA Notice in Word format, visit:
www.nbaa.org/ops/security/fingerprint.htm
NBAA SUGGESTS CHANGES TO PROPOSED RULE ON EFVSs
In a letter dated March 26, NBAA President Jack Olcott told the FAA that the
Association supports development and use of Enhanced Flight Vision Systems (EFVSs)
but believes that some aspects of the agency's notice of proposed rulemaking
need to be altered. For example, Olcott noted that the restrictions cited in
the proposed rule (such as altitude limits) are artificial and do not represent
the equipment's potential; operational limitations should be based on equipment
certification. In addition, NBAA believes that all operators should be able
to use EFVS, but if developing a rule that would apply to more than Part 91
operators causes a delay, the final rule should be restricted to Part 91, provided
there is ongoing consideration for use of such systems by Part 135 operators.
For more information, visit the web at:
www.nbaa.org/ops
NBAA EXPANDS COVERAGE AND SERVICE
AT GA DESK
NBAA has expanded its coverage and services at the NBAA General Aviation (GA)
Desk at the FAA Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) in Herndon,
VA. This expansion of services will provide for two-shift and overlapping coverage
as necessary seven days a week and allow for contingency 24-hour-a-day coverage
over extended durations as required. NBAA established the GA Desk in August
2001 to represent the tactical aviation interests of its Member Companies to
the FAA System Command Center staff and various ATC facilities throughout the
United States. The GA Desk is a Member service that provides representation
and participation in real-time national airspace flow control and decision-making.
For more information, contact NBAA's Jo Damato at jdamato@nbaa.org
or visit:
www.nbaa.org/public/news/pr/2003/20030407-014.php
NTSB TO
IMPROVE E-MAIL SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will convert to a new e-mail
subscription service for media releases and safety recommendations, effective
May 1, 2003. Subscribers to the current service should re-register their e-mail
address for the new system. Subscribers must re-register no later than April
30 in order to ensure continued service. New subscribers also are welcome to
take this opportunity to register up for the e-mail service. To register for
the new NTSB e-mail subscription service, visit:
www.ntsb.gov/registration/registration.htm
HOW IS THE $3.00 DOMESTIC-SEGMENT TAX COMPUTED?
The domestic-segment tax is one part of the tax on transportation of persons
by air that commercial operators are required to collect for charter flights
within the United States. For 2003, this tax is a flat dollar amount of $3 per
segment per person. A segment is a single takeoff and a single landing that
does not operate out of a rural airport (defined at www.bts.gov/oai/rural.html).
For example, a charter service flies seven passengers from Washington to Detroit
with an intermediate stop in Pittsburgh. This flight comprises two segments,
so the domestic-segment tax would be $42 [(2 segments) x ($3) x (7 passengers)].
More information about air transportation taxes can be found in IRS Publication
510, available in PDF format at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p510.pdf , and
in the NBAA Federal Excise Tax Handbook at:
www.nbaa.org/fet
ATLANTA ARTC CENTER LETTER
TO AIRMEN RELEASED
The Atlanta Enroute Center has released an Atlanta ARTC Center Letter to Airmen,
Number 03-1, titled En Route Flight Advisory Service. This letter addresses
frequency congestion in the upcoming severe weather season and asks pilots to
consider the use of the FAA's En Route Flight Advisory Service (EFAS) as an
alternative or supplement to the information normally asked of en route controllers.
Download the letter in PDF format at:
www.nbaa.org/airspace/efas_lettertoairmen.pdf
DULLES BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION TO
HOST HAR BRIEFING
On Monday, April 28, the Dulles Business Aviation Association (DBAA) will host
a High Altitude Redesign (HAR) Program briefing at Dulles International Airport
(IAD), in the ExxonMobil Hangar, 44760 Cockpit Court, Dulles, VA. A buffet lunch
will begin at 11:00 a.m. and the HAR Program briefing will begin at 12:00 noon.
Seating is limited so please RSVP with NBAA's Harry Houckes at hhouckes@nbaa.org
or DBAA's Andrew Battleson at abattleson@adelphia.net.
For more information about the HAR Program and a schedule of future briefing
dates, visit:
www.nbaa.org/airspace/har.htm
NBAA FORUMS CONTINUE TO GROW IN
POPULARITY
NBAA's Business Aviation Forum & Static Display, held at Long Beach Airport
in California on March 28, 2003, drew more than 1,500 people, including 55 indoor
exhibitors and 37 airplanes. The Southern California Forum was the third such
NBAA event; each Forum has successively grown in interest and popularity since
the event's inception in June 2002. NBAA's next Forum, the fourth in the series,
will be held on June 5 in the New York area at Republic Airport (FRG) in Farmingdale,
NY. For more information, to exhibit, or to register, visit:
www.nbaa.org/public/news/pr/2003/20030407-013.php
NBAA MAINTENANCE EVENT TO FEATURE
HIGHLY INFORMATIVE SESSIONS
This spring NBAA will celebrate 100 years of aviation maintenance at its Maintenance
Management Conference, May 17 to 20, in Charlotte, NC by paying tribute to aircraft
maintenance technicians of the past and present. Highly informative Conference
sessions will cover topics such as human factors in aircraft maintenance, FAA
Part 145 repair station regulations, environmental health and safety, high-performance
team building, fatigue management, financial advantages and emerging technologies.
In addition, exhibits showcasing products and services of interest to the aviation
maintenance community will be on display between May 18 and 20. For more information,
to register, or to exhibit, visit:
www.nbaa.org/public/news/pr/2003/20030402-011.php
2003 NBAA BUSINESS AVIATION FACT BOOK IS NOW AVAILABLE
ONLINE
The NBAA Business Aviation Fact Book is a compilation of statistics directly
related to the business aviation community. Information for this publication
is gathered from NBAA surveys, the FAA, AvData and other sources. The printed
version of this publication has recently mailed to the NBAA Membership, and
additional copies are available to both Members and non-Members free upon request.
This publication also may be viewed online or downloaded in PDF format by visiting
the NBAA web site at:
www.nbaa.org/factbook
FSF/NBAA CORPORATE AVIATION SAFETY
SEMINAR, CALL FOR EXHIBITORS
Presented jointly by the Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) and NBAA since 1998,
the annual Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar (CASS) provides a forum for discussion
and review of safety matters that are the focus of the business aviation community.
This annual event attracts individuals from around the world who are directly
involved in corporate flight operational safety. NBAA Associate Members are
invited to exhibit at this event. Exhibitors displaying their products or services
during this seminar are given the opportunity to interact with flight department
managers and corporate safety officers, international and regional airline managers,
insurance executives, flightcrews and anyone else involved in flight safety.
For more information, visit:
www.nbaa.org/seminars/cass/cass_48.htm
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS: UPDATE OF INTERNATIONAL
FLIGHT OPERATIONS CD
In the early 1990s, NBAA developed the Oceanic Flying, Operations and Procedures
publication, a compendium of United States, International Civil Aviation Organization
and other documents, both regulatory and advisory, intended to provide basic
guidance for those performing international flight operations. This publication
was last revised in 1999, when it was converted to CD-ROM format. NBAA requests
proposals from qualified applicants to update the contents and format of this
CD-ROM publication. Proposals are due no later than Friday, April 18. Additional
information about this RFP is now available online at:
www.nbaa.org/intl/rfp_oceanic.htm
CORPORATE
ANGEL NETWORK LOGS RECORD-BREAKING MONTH
March was the best month ever for Corporate Angel Network (CAN), the national
public charity that provides free air transportation for cancer patients traveling
to treatment by using the empty seats on corporate jets. Cooperating with its
500 corporate partners, the volunteer organization was able to arrange 180 patient
flights during the month of March, up almost 12 percent from the previous record
high of 159, set last year. Your company can get involved in CAN's mission too.
To review a current list of cancer patient "rides needed," including
city-to-city destinations and date range, visit:
www.corpangelnetwork.org/corporate/seats.html
