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In an article posted on this blog on September 2, 2010, Chevalier, Allen & Lichman, LLP (CA&L) reported that the California Department of Transportation (Department) had announced that the Draft 2010 California Airport Land Use Planning Handbook (Handbook) would be available for review and comment from September 7 through October 4, 2010. CA&L has learned…

The California Department of Transportation (Department) has announced that the Draft 2010 Airport Land Use Planning Handbook (Handbook) will be available for review and comment from September 7 through October 4, 2010. The Department’s Division of Aeronautics has been working with Environmental Science Associates to update the January 2002 version of the Handbook.

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Section 21670 of the California State Aeronautics Act requires that every county in which there is an airport that is served by a scheduled airline establish an Airport Land Use Commission (ALUC) “to protect public health, safety, and welfare by ensuring the orderly expansion of airports and the adoption of land use measures that minimize the public’s exposure to excessive noise and safety hazards within areas around public airports to the extent that these areas are not already devoted to incompatible uses.” One of the duties of the ALUC is to adopt an Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan (ALUCP). In formulating an ALUCP, an ALUC has the power to develop height restrictions on buildings, specify use of land and determine building standards within the Airport Influence Area (AIA) designated by the ALUC.

Continue Reading Land Use Planning Near California Airports Could Change Your Development Plans

Historically, General Aviation (GA) airports have not been subject to Federal rules governing airport security. Prior to September 11, 2001, the Federal government’s role in airport security focused exclusively on airports serving scheduled operations. Following 9/11, Congress enacted the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA), which created the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The TSA was established to develop, regulate and enforce security standards for all modes of transportation. In the ATSA, Congress transferred most of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) civil aviation security responsibilities to the TSA.

In May 2004, TSA published Information Publication A-001, Security Guidelines for General Aviation Airports (“Guidelines”). The Guidelines provide GA airport owners, sponsors and operators a set of security best practices and a method for determining when and where security enhancements would be appropriate. The Guidelines do not contain regulatory language, and do not require that GA airports meet the same security requirements as commercial airports. The Guidelines are not mandatory, and do not establish any criteria that must be met in order to qualify for Federal funds. (TSA does require GA facilities located within the Washington D.C. Airspace Defense Identification Zone Flight Restricted Zone to implement security measures.)

Continue Reading General Aviation Airport Security

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has accepted the preliminary application by Gwinnett County Airport Briscoe Field (Airport) to participate in the FAA Airport Privatization Program. The airport sponsor, Gwinnett County, may now negotiate an agreement with a private company to operate the Airport. Gwinnett County may then submit a final application to the FAA for…

Many in the aviation community have been monitoring the progress of Chicago’s efforts to privatize Midway International Airport (MDW) under the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Airport Privatization Pilot Program. The City faces a July 31, 2010 deadline to either select a private operator for MDW or seek an extension of the City’s slot in the Program from the FAA. Chicago is the only approved applicant for the Program’s only large-hub slot. If the application is approved, MDW would be the first privatized large-hub airport in the U.S. 

The Airport Privatization Pilot Program was established in 1996 by Section 149 of the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, which added a new Section 47134 to Title 49 of the U.S. Code. Section 47134 authorizes the Secretary of Transportation and, through delegation, the FAA Administrator, to exempt a sponsor of a public use airport that has received Federal assistance from certain Federal requirements in connection with the privatization of the airport by sale or lease to a private party.Continue Reading Update on the Federal Aviation Administration Airport Privatization Pilot Program

Under the 1985 John Wayne Airport Stipulated Settlement Agreement, as amended in 2003, regularly scheduled commercial users operating at JWA shall not serve more than 10.3 million annual passengers in any year beginning on January 1, 2003 through December 31, 2010, and not more than 10.8 MAP beginning on January 1, 2011 through December 15, 2015. To maintain passenger traffic within those limits, and to balance the needs of the Orange County community for adequate commercial air transportation facilities and the desire of the local community for environmentally responsible air transportation operations at JWA, the County, in its capacity as proprietor and operator of JWA, imposed noise restrictions; implemented Permitted Commercial Operations Hours (commonly referred to as a “curfew”); and adopted limits on the noise levels of aircraft operating at JWA, and the number of passengers those aircraft could accommodate in any year.

Continue Reading Summary of the John Wayne Airport Phase 2 Access Plan

The Federal Aviation Administration’s most recent forecast of future airline passengers at the region’s airports is an eye opener. In the forecast year 2030, FAA is projecting 49.3 million enplanements (98.6 million total passengers) at Los Angeles International Airport; 3 million enplanements (6 million total passengers) at Ontario International Airport; and 6.6 million enplanements (13.2 million air passengers) for John Wayne Airport. This compares to current figures for LAX of approximately 58 million air passengers a year; Ontario, 4.5 million air passengers a year; and John Wayne Airport, 9.8 million air passengers a year.

Of course, 2030 is 20 years away and much can happen between now and then. Therefore, the real eye opener is the comparatively low projected growth of Ontario. Despite the fact that Ontario has new terminals, runways thousands of feet longer than those at John Wayne Airport, and convenient freeway access to all of the Inland Empire as well as northeast Orange County, FAA does not expect it to grow more than 33%, compared to John Wayne Airport’s 38% and LAX’s whopping approximately 60%.Continue Reading FAA’s Most Recent Forecast Sees Massive Increase in Passengers at Region’s Airports

On June 2, 2010, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a proposed rule that calls for a new level of protection for airline passengers, including compensation for involuntary “bumping;” permission to cancel reservations within 24 hours without penalty; and prohibition on airline ticket price increases after purchase.

This most recent proposal is in addition to…