[JYO] Boyer asks Congress to help free the GA 41,000

— AOPA President Phil Boyer this afternoon asked 
Congress to help free the GA 41,000, the aircraft currently trapped in 30 
enhanced Class B airspace areas and the two no-fly zones around Washington, 
D.C., and New York. Testifying before the House aviation subcommittee, Boyer 
said, "In 28 of those Class B areas, no VFR flying is allowed, and 85% of 
general aviation pilots can only fly VFR. Yet in those 28 cities, dual flight 
instruction is allowed. So a pilot like Mr. Hayes (a member of the aviation 
subcommittee from North Carolina) can't fly out of Charlotte. That doesn't 
make sense. And in New York and Washington, general aviation is shut down 
completely. Montgomery County Airport, for example was the third busiest 
airport in Maryland, contributing $15 million a year to the economy, and it's 
stopped dead in its tracks." [Listen to audio of AOPA President Phil Boyer's 
testimony (<A 
HREF="http://www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2001/010925phil.wav";>9.3 Mb WAV 
file</A> | <A 
HREF="http://www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2001/010925phil.ra";>1 Mb RealAudio 
file</A>; a broadband connection is 
recommended).]

Boyer told Congress that other important aviation business, such as crop 
dusting, news and traffic reporting, aerial photography and survey, and 
pipeline patrols, remain grounded. He argued for economic relief for all 
small aviation businesses that have been hurt. "This has been like a natural 
disaster for these businesses. They haven't lost buildings, but the airspace 
has been taken away."

He noted that in this national tragedy, it was airline security that was 
breached, and airline transport category equipment used as weapons. However, 
general aviation was the last allowed to return to the sky, and not all GA is 
yet flying. "We're not talking about big airplanes," Boyer told Congress. 
"We're talking about 4-place, single-engine aircraft that are on average 30 
years old, cost the same as a car, and have the same weight and kinetic 
energy of a car."

Boyer praised FAA, saying that the agency was doing a "wonderful job in 
trying to get airplanes back in the air," but noting that the agency had to 
— the National Security Council. "Part of the 
problem in getting back in the air is not being told what the threats are. If 
we just knew what some of the threats were, we could offer creative solutions 
on how to safely move aircraft."

Aviation subcommittee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) promised that his committee 
would try to get some answers from the NSC and the Department of Defense.

"We have to walk a fine line and balance between getting our members back in 
the air with national security concerns," Boyer said. "But please forgive me 
if I become zealous in advocating a return of flying privileges for all of 
general aviation."

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