December 10, 2015 -- Aviators filed a class action lawsuit Monday against the City alleging that landing fees at Santa Monica Airport – which were doubled in 2013 – were illegally adopted by the City Council.

Bulletin Issued on Noise-Cancelling Headset UseOn November 20, 2015, the FAA issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB CE-16-08) that advises GA pilots and operators of concerns with the use of noise cancelling headsets. In many cases, pilots are using the noise cancelling headsets as supplementary equipment during operations. When wearing these headsets, the pilot may be unaware of environmental sounds and audible warning annunciations in the cockpit that do not come through the intercom system.

December 5, 2015

The fate of the Cloverdale Airport is up in the air as city officials grapple with whether to grant a developer’s demand to close it in order to accommodate a proposed $200 million resort next door.

Closing an airfield involves a lengthy federal application process with an uncertain outcome, but developers of the 254-acre Alexander Valley Resort say they are willing to foot the bill, as well as pay for more than $7 million in improvements to repurpose the airport into a sports park.

The Federal Aviation Administration ruled Friday that Santa Monica Airport must stay open at least until 2023 — a decision that could frustrate the city's efforts to reduce flight operations and then shut down the historic facility in the near future.

Biweekly FAA Safety Briefing News Update

Final Rule Issued to Remove Certain Instrument Approach Procedures

On November 10, 2015, the FAA issued a final rule that removes certain redundant or underutilized ground-based nondirectional radio beacon (NDB) and VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs). Removing these NDB and VOR SIAPs (334 in total) is an integral part of right-sizing the quantity and type of procedures in the NAS, especially as a growing number of area navigation (RNAV) instrument approach procedures are made available. The complexity and cost of maintaining the existing ground based navigational infrastructure while expanding RNAV capability is not sustainable. To view the rule and the list of affected SIAPs and their removal dates, go to www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-11-10/pdf/2015-28478.pdf.

 

"On the urging of 13 speakers, the Chico City Council unanimously rejected a proposal from Washington D.C.-based AvPORTS to manage the Chico Municipal Airport... despite a modified proposal for a smaller cost, shorter time span and less risk, which were among the objections cited when the Airport Commission recommended rejecting the proposal in October."

On October 2, 2015, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that proposes to amend the regulations governing the curriculum and operations of FAA-certificated Aviation Maintenance Technician Schools. These amendments would modernize and reorganize the required curriculum subjects in the appendices of the current regulations.

Marks Completion Of First Phase Of $10 Million ProjectClay Lacy Aviation has opened 2.5 acres of new ramp space at its Van Nuys Airport FBO providing additional space for arrivals and departures, accommodate overnight parking and reduce the frequency of aircraft towing.