…Comment On ADIZ Permanence By Tuesday

Mooneyham told AVweb it was a lucky thing he decided to fly to Tucson that day because it provided irrefutable evidence of his airplane’s whereabouts. “What if I hadn’t flown that day? How would I have proven that the airplane didn’t leave Arizona?” he wondered. Those questions may be pertinent for all pilots as the future of GA access to the airspace around Washington, D.C., faces its toughest test. On Nov. 2, the comment period closes on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would make the D.C. ADIZ permanent. Making a comment (docket number 17005) on the proposed rule is straightforward and takes only a few minutes but could have a lasting impact on the right to fly in that area … and perhaps others. By Wednesday afternoon, more than 12,000 people had commented on the ADIZ NPRM and if there are any in support we couldn’t find them. In fact, the very first person to comment, identified as Rob Fricke, set the tone. “I find it silly for FAA to propose making Wash D.C. special airspace permanent,” he wrote. “[It’s] absolutely ‘Chicken Little’ by [the] FAA to think of such nonsense and to propose criminal fines and other ‘serious penalties’ for anyone who accidentally flies into ADIZ airspace.” Fricke adds that the financially strapped FAA is ill-equipped to handle the workload and suggests that all Americans are entitled to as much “protection” as “federal government workers in D.C.”