Glacier Park Scenic Air Tour Meeting
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Department of Transportation – Aeronautics Division Vol. 48 No. 11 November 1997 Glacier Park Scenic Air Tour Meeting Glacier National Park Superintendent Dave passengers are also en- Mihalic hosted a “Scenic Air-Tour Focus joying the park and, upon Group” meeting on October 14–15. The departing, erasing any purpose of this meeting was to address the evidence of having been many controversial issues surrounding sce- there—no trash/waste to nic air tour operations over Glacier National clean up, no roads and Park: if they should be allowed to continue, facilities to maintain, no and if so, how and who should regulate such fiscal impact —nothing! operations. The park desires public input Some feel the air- in formulating management alternatives space above the park to be considered in the park’s General should be “restricted.” Management Plan Environmental Impact There are those who feel Statement. that the National Park The focus group was made up of about Service should be the 20 individuals, most of whom were repre- controlling agency for senting special interest groups, including airspace above the parks the National Park Service, United States Air while others feel that this Jerry Mamuzich was presented a special citation for going Tour Association, Montana Wilderness jurisdiction should remain above and beyond the call of duty in a helicopter air Association, Glacier National Park with the Federal Aviation rescue effort under very adverse conditions. Presenting the Concessioners, Glacier Mountaineering Administration. award to Jerry are Dave Mihalic, Glacier Park Society, National Parks and Conservation continued on page 8 Superintendent and Steve Frye, Glacier Park Ranger. Association, Air National Guard, Federal Aviation Administration, Aeronautics Division and some interested individuals. Needless to say, these varied interests do not see eye to eye on many of the issues. However, most were willing to discuss their differences, and where they could reach common ground, they did. There will always be some who feel that anyone who cannot back-pack into the remote areas of the park don’t deserve to enjoy see- ing it. There are also those who feel that it’s perfectly OK to spend millions of tax dollars building a park infrastructure of roads, trails, lodges, chalets and rest facili- ties for visitors to enjoy the park while at the same time vehemently opposing an Steve Bassett, President of the United States Air Tour Association, listens to comments occasional sightseeing aircraft whose made during the meeting. 1 Administrator’s Column GPS Reliability Called Fantasy by its own ground-based navaids. If WAAS Former FAA Chief: Former FAA Admin- will not replace ILSs, and if the GPS sig- istrator Langhorne Bond addressed the Air nal is currently doing well for en route and Traffic Control Association at its annual terminal maneuvering, who needs WAAS? meeting and stated that reliance on the Glo- No one needs it, and it will therefore be bal Positioning System (GPS) “ has the abandoned.” There is a “growing awareness” potential for vastly increased delay or to- that GPS “cannot be relied upon as a sole tal shutdown of the ATC system” and system of aviation navigation,” Bond said. questioned the value of the Wide Area “Since virtually all aircraft are equipped to Augmentation System (WAAS). Bond use VOR/DME, this system will be retained. predicts that WAAS will be abandoned Loran C is also a secure ground based sys- because no one will need it and accused tem which can perform all the roles of VOR/ government officials of refusing to address DME.” ILS will continue “and its use will the vulnerability of the GPS. Bond stated expand because it is a developed, accurate, Montana and the Sky that “none of the principal weather delays secure system and the only one capable of Department of Transportation —thunderstorms, low ceilings and snow— low-minima approaches.” Bond said that the Marc Racicot, Governor will be reduced by a change in ATC U.S. military will not abandon its secure Marv Dye, Director technology.” Although the current system ground -based communication and surveil- has been described as expensive and lance systems and neither, in the end, will Official monthly publication obsolete he considers it “safe, invulnerable other countries. Nor will the U.S. of the and comforting.” It is “redundant, indepen- Aeronautics Division ✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈ dent and increasingly failure resistant.” Telephone 444-2506 “The notion that an ATC system ... chan- 2630 Airport Road AIP Available for Airport Maintenance: neled through a few unreachable satellites Helena, Montana 59604 can be less failure-prone than the current The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Michael D. Ferguson ground-based system is a fantasy.” Bond will, for the first time, be making Airport said that GPS is a “model of uncertainty” Improvement Program (AIP) grant funds Administrator compared with ground-based navigation available for routine airport maintenance. aids. The satellites can be neutralized or This will start out as a pilot program and Aeronautics Board destroyed by laser, “brilliant pebbles” anti- will cover ten projects through September Ron Mercer, Chairman satellite weapons or electromagnetic pulse. 30, 1998. The new funds will cover clean- Byron Bayers, Member He said, “sunspots can degrade the signal ing, filling and sealing pavement cracks; Fred Booth, Member or even wipe out the satellite.” Bond said patching distressed areas; and cleaning JoAnn Eisenzimer, Member that at the recent Moscow Air Show, a drainage structures of runways, taxiways and Leland Ford, Member “booth was selling handheld GPS jammers aprons. FAA Associate Administrator for Douglas Freeman, Member with an effective range of 100 miles.” Airports Susan Kurland stated “We believe Robert Hector, Member There is a “likelihood that GPS and that by conducting routine pavement main- Arnie Lindberg, Member Glonass jammers are now installed in ex- tenance, major rehabilitation costs, funded Will Metz, Member isting satellites, ready for activation when with AIP funds, can be deferred.” the owner chooses. The havoc this could ✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈ Montana and the Sky is published monthly cause when the secure systems are removed in the interest of aviation in the and the satnav signal is jammed on a night State of Montana. when the East coast of the U.S. is blan- Turbine Fuel Faces New Tax: The National Third Class postage paid at keted with low ceilings, is unimaginable. Air Transportation Association (NATA) has Helena, Montana 59604 Perhaps GPS jammers should be added to cautioned its members who operate turbine the list of weapons of mass destruction.” powered aircraft that there is a provision in Subscription: $5 per year The U.S. military is already wary of the the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 which, un- vulnerability of GPS signals, and it is “now der certain circumstances, will increase jet Editor: Debbie Alke clear that America’s defense will never rest fuel tax as much as 24.4 cents per gallon Editorial Assistance: solely on satellites. If the civilian navaids effective July 1, 1998. This is actually a Q Communications Group are cut off, the DOD will put inertial sys- highway tax. The Taxpayers Relief Act is tems in its planes and will never turn off continued on page 3 2 Remember to Register Calendar Your Aircraft November 9—MPA Rendezvous, 10am, Colstrip. In preparation for the 1998 aircraft registration season, the Aeronautics Division will mail aircraft registration invoices in mid-December. November 12—Fixed-Base Operator The Division is mandated by Montana law to account for all Montana aircraft not Conference. Tel-8 Satellite Site, later than March 1 of each calendar year. Aircraft not registered by the March 1 deadline, DOT Building, Helena. according to statue, must pay a penalty of five times the fee plus the fee. Montana law November 15–16—Oregon Air Fair, also states that, “A person who owns or causes or authorizes an aircraft to be operated or Portland. who operates an aircraft without a registration decal displayed on the aircraft, commits a November 22—Montana Antique misdemeanor.” A newly-purchased aircraft must be registered within 30 days of entering Aircraft Association (MAAA) the state. Aircraft coming to the state for commercial purposes must be registered and in Meeting, Yogo Inn, Lewistown. compliance with the insurance regulations prior to commencing operation. December 6—Montana Pilots It is important to note that unflyable, uncompleted homebuilts, damaged or destroyed Association (MPA) State Board aircraft must also be accounted for each year. Upon carefully reading the bill you receive, you Meeting, Yogo Inn, Lewistown. will note that there is no fee charged for an “unflyable” aircraft, sold aircraft or dealer inven- December 6—Lewistown MPA tory aircraft. You must, however, indicate the status of each aircraft and certify that the described Hangar Christmas Party, Beacon aircraft information is true and correct and return the mailer to the Division each year. Star, Lewistown. If you do not receive your aircraft registration or have any questions, please feel free February 13–14—Flight Instructor to call the Division at (406) 444-2506. Refresher Clinic, Aladdin Motor Inn, Helena. February 26–28—Montana Aviation Search and Rescue Training Conference, Holiday Inn, Billings. On October 20 in Kalispell, MT, Ray Sanders of Montana Aeronautics Search District #2 along with John Campbell, Lee Tower and Will Mavis of Clancy, MT, trained with an emergency locator flying session. Using John’s Cessna 182, Ray’s airstrip and the prac- Sporty’s to tice ELT along with the aircraft ELT direction finding antennae strut mounts, the group shared turns at tracking the ELT’s signal. Award This type of training is very useful—it was not long ago that Ray Sanders was up all night looking for an ELT distress signal that turned up an ELT in a local pilot’s home.