(August 10, 2004) - Operators at the Teterboro (TEB), Morristown (MMU) and White Plains (HPN) airports may benefit from a new FAA initiative to reduce radio congestion and delays in the New York area. Since 2003, NBAA has been working closely with TEB, MMU, and HPN-based operators, flight plan service providers, and FAA Traffic Flow Management personnel to reduce frequency congestion and thereby decrease departure delays at the New York satellite airports. Starting August 5, a 10-week test period will begin to allow participating operators to receive abbreviated departure clearances when Coded Departure Routes (CDRs) are in effect. Operators can participate independently or through participating flight plan service providers. If the test is successful, this procedure will be expanded to airports nationally.

While the FAA works on expediting GA operations in the Northeast, the debate over allowing business aviation access to Washington DC’s Reagan National Airport (DCA) continues to be raised. A bipartisan group of 16 key members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Tom Ridge, urging that he release security guidelines to the general aviation (GA) industry to prepare operators to become security qualified. The requested security guidelines are part of a larger security plan to permit GA aircraft to access DCA, submitted to the DHS for its consideration by the TSA and U.S. Secret Service. House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis (R-VA) and House Aviation Subcommittee Chairman John Mica (R-FL) and other signatories crafted the letter, which emphasizes the importance of restoring access to DCA for security-qualified general aviation flights that pose no national security risk. The letter explains that enabling operators to comply with the security plan when it is implemented.