DC3 Restrictions Eased … But Not For Most

Earlier this year, the FAA allowed pilots based at College Park Airpark (CGS), Potomac Airfield (VKS) and Washington Executive/Hyde Field (W32) to fly in and out of their home fields after passing a battery of security tests. Last week, the feds allowed those vetted pilots to also fly to the other two airports. That makes it two down and two more to go in AOPA’s lobbying efforts to restore some semblance of normal operations to the so-called DC-3 GA airports smothered by the Washington security blanket. What AOPA hopes is coming is the restoration ofpilots’ ability to partake in pattern work and, ultimately, the return of transient air traffic to the fields. “It’s clear that unless transient operations are restored, the ‘DC3’ airports cannot survive,” said Andy Cebula, AOPA’s government affairs expert.