Alphabets May Band Together…
EAA is demanding a full rewrite of proposed rules that would govern air tour operators. AVweb originally told you about the rules in our premiere Business AVflash issue and now Earl Lawrence, the vice president of government affairs, told AVweb the more he and his staff look at the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the National Air Tour Safety Standards, the more he believes the FAA should just start with a clean sheet of paper. He said other industry groups are rapidly reaching the same conclusion. “There seems to be agreement across the board that this wasn’t well done and needs to go back for a rewrite,” he said. He said EAA hopes to work with other groups in trying to force major amendments and AOPA wants all pilots to have a crack at commenting. In a release last Wednesday, AOPA called on the FAA to hold public meetings on the NPRM, rather than rely on the normal written comment process. Written comments will be accepted until Jan. 20. “It’s urgent that the FAA act quickly on our request,” said AOPA VP Melissa Bailey. “The FAA needs to hear directly from the people this rule is going to affect and there’s not a lot of time left to set up and hold public meetings.” The 62-page NPRM came out, without fanfare, in late October.
