Summer 2008 • Vol. 2, Issue 2

From the Desk of Congratulations Jack Arlene Feldman, President, NJAA

I recently had the pleasure of speaking at ’s Avia- tion Day, sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Coalition. This is an excerpt of that speech: Some of our decision makers still focus their attention on Teterboro, which is New Jersey’s busiest and the 10th busi- est general aviation airport in the United States. It’s understand- able, in light of the fact that Teterboro contributes 15,000 jobs and $1.8 billion in annual sales to New Jersey’s economy. It is one of New Jersey’s treasures. However we need to be doing a better job in educating our legislators and the general public to understand that the other New Jersey general aviation contribute an additional 55,000 jobs and $2.8 billion in annual sales. It is disturbing to know that some people still think of general aviation as recreational flying by only a few people who have the Congratulations to Jack Elliot, a founder of NJAA and current board financial ability to do so. The facts reflect otherwise. Surveys indi- member, on becoming a finalist in the “2008 Next Generation Indie cate that 86 percent of business aircraft passengers are marketing Book Awards.” This picture shows Jack signing his book “Adventures and sales personnel, technical experts, and other company repre- in Flying” for former airline captain Frank Shehered. ( sentatives and customers. Only 14 percent of passengers are top company managers. Nationally there are over 10,000 companies that utilize general aviation aircraft to help them compete in what FAA Reauthorization Bill Stalled has become a global marketplace. Despite the efforts of NJAA and the major aviation organiza- Business aviation operators encompass a broad section of in- tions, at this writing, the Senate has failed to act on a comprehen- terests from small, medium and large businesses to governments, sive, long term FAA authorization. schools, universities, churches, farms, foundations and charitable It was hoped that there would be passage of a long-term re- organizations. Eighty-five percent of these companies are small or authorization, but the bill that was brought up for consideration midsize companies that own and operate a single plane. contained a number of new provisions, some of which were not It is a well-known fact that general aviation is an integral part related to aviation. of the U.S. economy supporting 1.3 million jobs and over $102 bil- While Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) urged that lion of total economic activity. General aviation is a catalyst for eco- the bill be considered without the non-aviation amendments, the nomic growth. Its role in our economy is its ability to enhance the bill did not move forward. profitability and strength of U.S. businesses and industries. Compa- Senate Aviation Sub Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, nies that take advantage of the safety, speed and flexibility that they who made significant compromises in his stance on user fees, in an obtain with their corporate jets have proven, time and again, that they effort to get a long-term bill passed, expressed his frustration and will outperform businesses that rely solely on the airlines for their disappointment to describe the Senate’s inability to move forward. travel needs. However general aviation, and the New Jersey aviation He hoped that it would not take a crisis to move the bill forward. business community, in particular, have very serious challenges be- The House of Representatives passed its version of a long- cause the airports that they rely upon to conduct their businesses are term FAA reauthorization in September and it was hoped that the threatened and may disappear unless we take action now. Senate would work to bring the bill to the floor. New Jersey’s airport system is one of the most unique and The general aviation community is frustrated, as well. Phil complex in the United States. While the airports range in size, Boyer, AOPA’s President said that “after so much work to reach from large corporate facilities, such as Teterboro, Trenton-Mercer compromise on the financing, it was derailed by other issues.” and Morristown Airports to small privately owned airfields, each Ed Bolen, NBAA’s President said “Given the importance of air serves a particular market. We differ from other states where most transportation to our nation’s economy and citizens’ quality of of the airports are owned by a government agency, whether a life, we hope the Senate will recommit itself to passing an FAA continued on page 2 reauthorization bill this year.” 2 President’s Message Member Profile: continued from page 1

community or state. A privately owned facility, while it serves an important function often struggles for the funding it needs to up- grade its facilities for safety and efficiency. While the aviation industry is strong in New Jersey, some Deana Lykins companies are concerned about their ability to continue to operate since they have been witnessing a steady decline in the number of Principal Partner general aviation airports available for their use. Since the early 80s when there were 65 privately owned, public use airports, their of Insight Consulting numbers have dwindled to 43. Since these airports are the vital Services and NJAA link that connects New Jersey’s businesses and workers to oppor- Board Member tunities around the globe, we must not allow the loss of one more GA airport. We must insure that companies continue to have the opportunity to move their employees and products efficiently and safely. While the state has made substantial investments in some of Deana Lykins, Esq., a principal partner of Insight Con- the airports that were in danger of being sold, there is much work sulting Services and NJAA Board Member, has a strong policy to be done. Development and takeovers continue to threaten the background. She worked with the New Jersey Senate Majority viability of our airports. A tragic loss was outside of Office advising legislators on all areas of commerce including Atlantic City. We failed in our tremendous efforts to keep it open. insurance regulation, consumer affairs, regulated professions, Bader’s rich history has been lost forever. banking and telecommunications. At the New Jersey Office of We have been very disturbed by the recent court decision that Legislative Services, Deana served as Deputy Counsel staffing allows Readington Township to take, by eminent domain, part of the Senate Labor Committee and as Special Assistant to the Solberg Airport. NJAA has weighed in on that issue with letters to Executive Director. Most recently, she managed the national President Bush, Secretary of Transportation, Mary Peters and a legislative strategy for Schering Plough Pharmaceuticals and number of other high ranking officials to explain that we’re seeing helped her internal clients achieve significant legislative and the possibility of a dangerous precedent that would seriously affect regulatory victories. Deana began her career as a research as- the entire transportation system. sociate for the Council of State Governments. We must all work with our industry to build community sup- Deana holds a law degree from American University in port for aviation and educate citizens about the contributions that Washington, D.C., where she was an editor of one of the general aviation makes to the state to avoid what is a dangerous law reviews. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from trend. We cannot dismiss the concerns of communities about noise the University of Kentucky where she majored in Journal- and safety, but as Transportation Commissioner Kolluri has stated ism and Advertising. In 2005, Deana was named to the An- “we will work to reach consensus whenever possible, but we will nual HealthSense Listing of New Jersey’s 50 Most Influen- always be the voice for the growth and prosperity of the aviation tial Players in the Political Healthcare Arena. In 2006, industry.” It’s important that we work with the Commissioner, who Deana was named to Governor Corzine’s Transition Team, has been a strong supporter of aviation. sitting on the Budget and Reengineering Government Policy New Jersey was once considered to be the “Cradle of The Work Group. ( Golden Age of Aviation.” We led the way for all advances in avia- tion. It’s time to return to that leadership role. (

The Closing of An Important Program in Mercer County

New Jersey is facing a serious problem that could have a tion Accreditation Board International. MCCC has articulation negative impact on general aviation in our state for years to come. agreements with a number of four year universities with aviation At a time when the growth of general aviation is outstripping the programs, including Thomas Edison State College, Embry Riddle supply of pilots, Mercer County Community College is planning Aeronautical University, the Florida Institute of Technology, to close down its aviation program because of a funding issue. Southern Illinois University and Purdue University. While the nursing and law enforcement programs are facing simi- The New Jersey Aviation Association believes strongly that lar financial shortages, those programs are not being eliminated. the closing of the facility would constitute a significant blow to This points out the lack of understanding of the important role the aviation infrastructure of the state. We are dedicated to doing aviation plays in the economic welfare of New Jersey. everything in our power to prevent this from happening. We re- The MCCC aviation program was established 36 years ago gard this issue as one of the most critical and immediate problems and has graduated hundreds of students, many of whom are flying facing general aviation in New Jersey. for New Jersey based corporations, as well as airlines, charter op- The college appears to want to close the program as soon as erations, and the military. It is one of a handful of associate degree possible. It has determined that it would take an investment of aviation programs in the country which is accredited by the Avia- continued on page 4 3 Guest Editorial by Don Baldwin

As we all know, many general aviation airports are under A footnote here, which I think speaks volumes to the hostile great pressure from alternative land uses. That has taken a steep attitude of the local officials toward the airport, is the fact that toll on small airports in the Garden State. Simply put, it’s more for 24 years, the town defied the Airport Safety Zone Act lucrative to get out of the airport business than to be in it. (ASZA). Repeated efforts by the DOT to get Readington to com- Although many airports in NJ have had strained relations ply with the statute were blatantly ignored. This law was in- with their host municipalities, Readington Township, in eastern tended to protect pilots and also those residents living near air- Hunterdon County is unique, compared to most other communi- ports. Readington not only scoffed at the important law, it built ties. Nowhere have public officials been more obsessed with pre- an elementary school on the cusp of what should have been the venting improvements at a privately owned public use airport. safety zone near the departure end of 31. Also, ASZA Nowhere have they been more dedicated about executing that required that airports be classified as a conforming land use re- agenda, and nowhere has a small town government been so will- gardless of zoning and Readington was not about to give such ing to spend so many millions of taxpayer dollars to achieve it’s status to the facility. goals. Readington’s legal fees have averaged about $20,000 per So one might ask how can this happen and people not be week for several years and have at times been 9 times higher per more informed? capita than other towns of similar demographics. In order to discover what is going on behind the scenes and Solberg Airport, aka N51, was founded in 1939 by aviation how financial resources are being directed, one can turn to New pioneer, Thor Solberg Sr. who crossed the Atlantic to Norway and Jersey’s Open Public Records Act (OPRA) and although not per- provided information on the Nazis who were quietly venturing into fect, it is one of the best of its kind in the country and as a matter the region. He reported his observations personally to FDR. of fact, other states consider it a model statute. What OPRA does Later, Solberg’s flight school, which operated before our en- for the citizens is to provide a means to obtain public records, try into WWII, would become an incubator for young pilots who which it broadly defines, with only limited exceptions. It at- eventually flew missions in the European or Pacific Theatres. It tempts to create transparency in government. was closed during the war, for security reasons, but Mr. Solberg One thought I would like to leave you with today is that trained pilots for the U.S. Army in Massachusetts. The airport those of us who really care about the future of aviation need to continues today as a general aviation facility and remains an im- be vigilant. If a local government can abuse the eminent domain portant part of the civilian transportation system as well as the statute and seize airport lands with the blessing of a Superior site of the perennial “NJ Festival of Ballooning.” Due to its loca- Court, then any field in the state is vulnerable to such an attack. tion and land area, it is also one of the only facilities able to ac- Unfortunately it’s true. GA airports continue to be an endangered commodate transient blimps, which are often seen at the field. species and local officials are often a major part of the problem. But despite the airport’s public use and the fact that it pre- Like the spotted owl and the mountain gorilla, the number of dated most of the town, the Township Committee passed an ordi- small airports will continue to decline unless we proactively pro- nance to use the eminent domain statute as the tool to take away tect their habitat. ( most of the airport land.

Board Chairman, Justin Edwards and President, Arlene Feldman at the NJAA/MAAC display during Advocacy Week at the State House. NBAA and AOPA co-sponsored the event. ( 4 NJAA Asks for Law to Prevent the Obituary — Frank Piasecki Misappropriation of State Funds The aviation community was saddend recently at the death of aviation Pioneer Frank Piasecki. In 1943 Piasecki became the The New Jersey Aviation Association today called for a state second American to fly a helicopter, the first being Igor law to prevent funds collected for a specific purpose from being Sikorski. Piasecki invented the tandem-rotor that was developed diverted to other uses. The Association proposed this action after it into the Army Chinook and navy Sea Knight craft used to was revealed that approximately half the funds collected from an transport troops and fly land and sea rescues. The Piasecki increase of $3 in motor vehicle registration fees were being di- Aircraft Corporation became the Vertol Aircraft Corporation verted to uses other than that intended by the law. The funds were and was acquired by the Boeing Company. ( intended for state trooper training classes and the replacement of the state’s aging fleet of medevac helicopters. “This is a clear cut misappropriation of funds,” said Arlene The Closing of an Important Feldman, president of NJAA. “It is actually a violation of the in- tent of the law which created the increase in fees and stated the Program at MCCC specific uses for which those funds were to be used.” continued from page 2 “This has happened before,” Feldman said. “Millions of dollars for operations and salaries were paid over a long period of $6.7 million to earn enough in interest to offset the annual losses, years with monies intended for aviation safety projects.” That which have been caused in large measure by rising prices for fuel, practice was discontinued only a few weeks ago. NJAA proposes maintenance and insurance. legislation to insure that this does not happen again. Please contact your legislators and explain the seriousness of Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) told this matter. Explain that one of the major concerns of the industry, the press that when the bill was passed, Republicans demanded a currently, is the shortage of pilots, and how that will effect the fu- promise that the funds be used as originally intended. ture operations of New Jersey’s major corporations. The fee increase was approved in July 2006, shortly before We must work together to face this serious challenge and seek Governor Corzine assumed office. Since then, $30 million of the solutions to avoid it. If we don’t take action now, we will be fac- money that has been collected has gone to uses other than that ing a disastrous impact on the future of aviation in New Jersey. which the law intended. We appreciate your consideration to our request and look According to Attorney General Anne Milgram a medevac heli- forward to hearing from you. Should you have any questions, copter order is expected to be approved shortly. Milgram stated that would like to offer a pledge of funds, or otherwise assist in this the Department of the Treasury makes funding decisions. However, important effort, please feel free to contact Jack Elliott at 908- she pointed out that legislators can override existing laws in the 647-5680. Mr. Elliott is a founding member of NJAA, currently state budget. And they do that regularly. “That is exactly why we serves as one of the Board of Directors, and has graciously need a law to close this loophole,” said NJAA’s president. ( agreed to coordinate this effort. (

Maria Renner of DM Airports, LTD accepts the comminity service award from Mike Stoddard, President of MAPA The award was in recognition of DM’s scholarship program by the general aviation community organization. ( 5 Federal Funding for Three About NJAA: New Jersey Airports

U.S. Representative Frank LoBiondo, A good friend of The New Jersey Aviation Association (NJAA) is dedicated to general aviation, expressed his pleasure at the awarding of federal the promotion and protection of the state’s aviation industry. grants to Hammonton, Atlantic City International Airport and the Woodbine Port Authority for its municipal airport. NJAA Mission Statement The Hammonton Municipal Airport will receive $315,445, which will be used to finance a variety of projects at this 40 year f Promote aviation as a key component of the State’s old facility. intermodal transportation system. Atlantic City will receive $2,378.600 for ongoing improve- f Increase awareness of the positive economic ments. Woodbine will receive $111,153 that will assist in the contributions of the state’s aviation industry. expansion of the transient apron which will connect the access f Influence public policy to protect and promote aviation. road to the existing airfield facilities. ( f Work to balance the interests of local communities and Five New Jersey Airports the aviation industry. f Promote the New Jersey airport system which drives to Receive Federal Grants commerce and economic growth.

Senators Lautenberg and Menendez have announced that Our state airport system and corporate and general Lakewood, Linden, Morristown, Ocean City and Toms River aviation industries contribute close to $2 billion Airports will share in $1.9 million in federal grants. annually to the economy of New Jersey. Linden will receive the largest grant, nearly $700,000 to Thousands of jobs are tied directly to our airports, aviation repair taxiways and improve its aircraft parking apron. product manufacturers and a multitude of aviation and airport Airports in Morristown and Toms River will use their grants service companies located throughout the state. Companies that to remove runway obstructions. locate and want to grow in New Jersey rely on our aviation Ocean City Municipal Airport was awarded $445,000 to infrastructure to move employees and products efficiently and improve its drainage system. Lakewood Airport will use its safely to facilities and markets throughout the world. Airports $103,000 grant to install perimeter fencing and to monitor wet- are the vital links that connect New Jersey businesses and lands preservation ( workers to opportunities around the globe. Many companies associated with the aviation industry are NJDEP Update concerned that the continuing loss of the state’s airports will have a negative effect on their ability to continue to grow and As was reported earlier, NJAA met with the New Jersey Depart- prosper. Our airports face many challenges. They must update ment of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) officials in an attempt equipment and facilities to increase the margin of safety for to improve the department’s approval process for airport projects. A both the passengers and communities they serve, and they follow-up meeting was in the process of being organized by NJAA must deal with development trends that continue to threaten with Governor Corzine’s office, the DEP and the Department of their viability. We at NJAA believe that, by working with Transportation. It appears that the FAA met with DEP alone. aviation related businesses, New Jersey’s communities, and NJAA has expressed its disappointment with the FAA at being regulatory agencies, we can ensure the health of general excluded from that meeting. The FAA has committed that it will aviation and the vital role it plays in the state’s intermodal hold a meeting in the near future, with NJAA, MAAC, airport own- transportation system. ers and managers and other interested parties. The intent is to share information on what decisions were made at the meeting. We will provide you with more Information when it’s received. You can be assured that we will stay close to this issue. ( Air Taxi Regulations

Aviation Week reports that the FAA is working towards the publication of the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would establish operational regulations for Very Light Jets in air Release of Grants taxi operations. The NPRM stems from the two year old recom- mendation of the part 135/125 Aviation Rulemaking Committee. NJAA’s persistence working with the NJDOT Officials has It is expected to cover equipment, training and dispatch require- resulted in the release of the State’s 2008 Spending Plan. This ments. While it was hoped that the NPRM would be ready for plan provides grants from a dedicated trust fund to airports for review by the end of 2006, it is now anticipated that it would go the completion of safety and security projects. NJAA was to DOT In July and be ready for publication and public comment anxious to ensure that projects could be accomplished during the in November. ( summer construction season. ( 6 NTJh Aavnikast ito nO Iunr Sthpeo nNsoerw!s continued NJAA Membership Application Name NJAA greatly appreciates the continued support Title of Bill Barkhauer, A.A.E. and D.M. Airport Company Name Developers who have sponsored this edition Address of The Aviator.

City State Zip E-mail Address Web Site Annual Dues Individual Membership — $25 Corporate Members with turbine aircraft: 1 A/C — $250 2 to 5 A/C — $500 6 to 9 A/C — $750 10 or more — $1,000 Corporate Members w/o aircraft, including FBOs & airport owners: Annual gross revenue Up to $3M - $250 Arlene Feldman, Editor 856-234-2552 Greater than $3M to $10M- $500 Over $10M - $750 fax 856-234-9155 • email: [email protected] www.NJAviation.org Corporate Sponsorship: Sponsor — $2,500 Angel — $5,000 Aviator Advertising Opportunities:

Small display ads to newsletter sponsorship are available. Please make check payable to NJAA and mail with application to: 2008 NJ Aviation Association, P.O. Box 7407, West Trenton, NJ 08628

Summer

New Jersey Aviation Association P.O. Box 7407 West Trenton, NJ 08628