Dec. 26, 2019
NBAA and the business aviation community ended a busy 2019 with key achievements on flight privacy, workforce-development promotion and other priorities, association President and CEO Ed Bolen told members of the Teterboro Users Group (TUG) during their last quarterly meeting of the year, held Dec. 18.
On hand for the meeting were Bolen, along with NBAA Vice President of Government Affairs Christa Lucas, Director of Airports and Ground Infrastructure Alex Gertsen, Manager of Air Traffic Services Dean Snell and Northeast Regional Representative Brittany Davies.
Bolen started by commending the FAA for its recent introduction of new tools that will allow operators of aircraft equipped with ADS-B to continue to opt-out of real-time flight tracking.
“NBAA has long maintained that no one should be required to surrender their privacy, safety and security just because they board an airplane,” Bolen said. “We applaud the commitment of everyone who worked with the FAA to provide for a continued means of opting out from having a business flight tracked in real time, by anyone, anywhere in the world, who has an internet connection,” Bolen told some 50 people at the meeting, including leadership from the Morristown Aviation Association and Teterboro’s new Airport Manager Maria Sheridan.
Under the FAA’s two-phased Privacy ICAO Address (PIA) program, owners of U.S. registered, ADS-B-equipped aircraft flying in domestic airspace and authorized to use a third-party call sign can request an alternate, temporary ICAO address that will not be assigned to the owner in the Civil Aviation Registry.
Visit NBAA’s online resources regarding the PIA program.
The TUG meeting also offered an opportunity to discuss the recent introduction of the bipartisan Promoting Service in Transportation Act, by House of Representatives Aviation Subcommittee chair Rep. Rick Larsen (D-2-WA), Rep. Don Young (R-AK) and Rep. Angie Craig (D-2-MN). The bills introduction marks the culmination of a strong legislative effort by NBAA and the business aviation community to attract and retain the skilled and diverse professionals needed for the industry to succeed and grow, Lucas told the TUG meeting.
The bill – H.R.5118 – calls for the U.S. Department of Transportation to develop a major campaign of broadcast, print and digital public service announcements to showcase transportation – and aviation in particular – as a viable and rewarding career and to improve the diversity of the transportation industry’s workforce.
“We ask every NBAA member to reach out to their congressional representative and urge them to support this important bill. Aviation is vital to our economy and as a nation, we must be dedicated to maintaining and improving the most vibrant aviation sector in the world,” added Lucas.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.