[JYO] AOPA continues efforts to restore Washington, D.C., GA operations

AOPA continues efforts to restore Washington, D.C., GA operations
Meets with pilots still "grounded" after 9/11 and with security officials
 
June 13 — AOPA is continuing its efforts to restore GA access at airports in 
the D.C. area. Yesterday, senior AOPA management hosted a meeting at College 
Park Airport to discuss the status of the restrictions and met with senior 
Department of Transportation officials.

 "AOPA has four vice presidents pushing on this issue, and we'll keep the 
pressure on FAA, TSA, DOT and Congress," Bill Dunn, AOPA vice president of 
Regional Affairs, told the College Park gathering. "But this has to be a 
partnership. You pilots must contact your representatives in Congress and let 
them know how these restrictions are affecting your personally."

 Transient operations are still prohibited at College Park Airport, 
Washington Executive/Hyde Field, and Potomac Airfield, and no general 
aviation is allowed at Reagan National Airport. Based aircraft operations at 
College Park Airport, Washington Executive/Hyde Field, and Potomac Airfield 
were restored on February 14, but Hyde Field was closed again May 17 because 
of breaches of security procedures. The issues at Hyde Field are close to 
being resolved.

 When based operations were permitted at the three airports, TSA said that 
the procedures would be reviewed after 60 days with the goal of expanding 
access to transient operations. That has not occurred. And while AOPA 
continues to push for that review, Department of Transportation officials 
indicate that there will be no changes in the near future.

 Senior AOPA staff and other industry officials also met yesterday with 
Deputy Secretary of Transportation Michael Jackson to review plans for 
restoring general aviation access to Reagan National Airport. Jackson said 
that there are still security concerns about general aviation aircraft. 
Although there is general agreement on a plan to restore some GA operations 
at Reagan National, Jackson told AOPA that the Department of Transportation 
is delaying implementation while it continues to assess security 
requirements. Jackson committed to meeting with industry representatives in 
approximately 30 days to discuss the next steps.

Ed Levine
AOPA JYO ASN

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