In an April 1 letter to the Federal Aviation Administration\n(FAA), the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) and seven other\nindustry groups urged the agency to support the multibillion-dollar general\naviation (GA) industry through extensions to examinations, certifications,\nmaintenance, and filings. GA has stepped up in many ways to help the nation\ndeal with the COVID-19 crisis through its more than 5,000 public airports\nacross the country, providing transportation and logistical support for needed\nsupplies and personnel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGeneral aviation has long been vital to the nation\u2019s\ntransportation and economic infrastructure,\u201d said Christopher Cooper, AOPA\ndirector of regulatory affairs. \u201cFrom providing medical resources to remote\nlocations to supporting millions of jobs and economic activity across the\nUnited States, the benefit general aviation provides to the public, especially in\ntimes of national crisis, is enormous. Having these exemptions and deviations\napproved by the FAA will ensure general aviation has limited delay in\noperations to help the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the letter to FAA Associate Administrator for Aviation\nSafety Ali Bahrami, the groups also cited a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP\nstudy showing that GA contributes 1.2 million jobs and $247 billion in economic\nactivity to the United States. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security\nAgency (CISA), which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has\ndesignated transportation, which includes GA, as a critical infrastructure\nsector. Air medical is specifically named by CISA as a critical workforce, and\nair medical aircraft continue to provide lifesaving missions for those in need\nwhether stricken by COVID-19 or other health emergencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis letter builds upon an earlier request sent to the FAA\non March 17, further explaining why these extensions are justified since\ngeneral aviation is, indeed, a public good. Regulations and exemptions must be\nfound to be for the public good, and this is the rationale the FAA used to\nprovide exemptions for air carriers and commercial operations. We believe\ngeneral aviation should also be provided exemptions based on the same\nrationale,\u201d said Cooper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Similar regulatory activity has already been enacted by the\nEuropean Union Aviation Safety Agency in Europe and the Civil Aviation\nAuthority in the United Kingdom, where comparable exemptions have been granted\nto both commercial and noncommercial operations in their respective countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Along with AOPA, the Air Medical Operators Association, the\nExperimental Aircraft Association, the General Aviation Manufacturers\nAssociation, Helicopter Association International, the National Agricultural\nAviation Association, the National Air Transportation Association, and the\nNational Business Aviation Association signed the April 1 letter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Requested exemptions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extension of FAR Part 61 pilot currency requirements, including\nthe flight review and instrument proficiency check.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Guidance that 709 reexaminations or paperwork inspections in\nperson (such as logbook inspections under FAR 61.51, or maintenance record\ninspections under FAR 91.417) be deferred or at least be conducted\nelectronically during the current social distancing safety protocols and\ndirectives regarding nonessential activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extensions for certificated flight instructor certificate\nrenewal, expiration, and endorsement periods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extension of knowledge exam expiration period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extensions for applicants on the ability to complete\npractical examinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extension for filing documents under FAR Part 13 (Subparts\nC, D, and G).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Extensions for aircraft maintenance and continuing\nairworthiness requirements with necessary mitigation procedures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AOPA\u2019s Pilot Information Center staff are standing by to\nanswer questions that are likely to arise in light of the FAA policy decision,\nbased on each member\u2019s individual circumstances. Members can reach AOPA staff\nonline, or by phone at 800-USA-AOPA (872-2672) Monday through Friday from 8:30\na.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AOPA is continuously updating its coverage of the\ncoronavirus pandemic\u2019s impact on general aviation. For more information please\nvisit this page.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In an April 1 letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) and seven other industry groups urged the agency to support the multibillion-dollar general aviation (GA) industry through extensions to examinations, certifications, maintenance, and filings. GA has stepped up in many ways to help the nation deal with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-national-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15180"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15181,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180\/revisions\/15181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}