AOPA Pilot Magazine - May 2018 - 12

AOPA ACTION

'A scary precedent'
AOPA ensures Part 13 complaints are moving forward
THE FAA is considering AOPA's two outstanding Part 13 complaints regarding
egregious FBO pricing practices, now that final responses and replies have been
submitted. AOPA believes that North Carolina's Asheville Regional Airport and
Florida's Key West International Airport have failed to protect the fundamental
right of aircraft operators to park at these federally funded, public-use airports
without being forced to pay for additional services they do not need or want.
AOPA, along with seven affected pilots, filed three FAA Part 13 complaints in
2017 over FBO pricing practices at Illinois' Waukegan National Airport, Asheville,
and Key West. At each airport, a single FBO controls all transient ramp space and
fuel services, meaning the FBOs have a monopoly position and significant power
over access to a public airport. AOPA believes those airports and FBOs have failed to
fulfill federal grant obligations to protect the airport for public use-the FBOs have
instead engaged in egregious pricing practices under minimal oversight. AOPA is
working with airports such as Waukegan to help them understand FAA grant obligations as well as available options to make their airport friendlier to users.
In late January, AOPA withdrew the complaint against Waukegan after airport management took steps to address pricing and access. Waukegan now offers
alternative public-use ramp space for transients at no charge, allowing visitors to
bypass the FBO if they do not want or need additional services.
The two remaining airports as well as Signature Flight Support, the sole FBO
at both Asheville and Key West, submitted responses to the FAA disputing AOPA's
remaining complaints. Signature argued that the two FBOs hold an exclusive lease
for the entire transient general aviation parking ramp and are not bound by FAA
standards designed to protect reasonable access to public ramp space. According
to Signature, only the runway and taxiway are considered protected public assets,
not any portion of the transient parking area.
"This would be a scary precedent," said Ken Mead, AOPA general counsel.
"Airports would effectively be permitted to hand over the entire parking ramp to a
single FBO without competition or other restrictions to ensure reasonable access for

ACTION IN THE STATES

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AOPA URGES MARYLAND PILOTS TO SUPPORT
TAX-AND-JOBS BILL
AOPA is urging members in Maryland to contact their members
of the General Assembly to advocate passage of Senate Bill 212,
a bill that would exempt materials, parts, or equipment used to
repair, maintain, or upgrade aircraft or aircraft avionics systems
from sales and use tax-creating jobs and helping the state's aircraft
maintenance companies compete with rivals in other states. AOPA
surveyed Maryland aircraft maintenance businesses, and estimated
12 | AOPA PILOT May 2018

BAKER ON
THE NEWS
"Our preference is that airport
sponsors and FBOs themselves
seek ways to give pilots choices
when an FBO has a monopoly.
We hope other locations can see
Waukegan as a model. We will
continue to press other locations
to be more transparent with their
fee structures and to provide
pilots with choices when it comes
to which services they choose to
use at an airport."
-AOPA President Mark Baker

users. Aside from active runways or taxiways,
there would be no other public assets available
for transient operators despite millions of federal and local dollars invested in these airports."
www.aopa.org/FBOpricing

that the bill's benefits in business and jobs growth would more than
justify forgoing $200,000 in applicable sales tax revenue.
www.aopa.org/pilot/maryland
AOPA SUPPORTS WEATHER PROGRAM IN ALASKA
A phased program to bring automated plain-language weather forecasts to 157 Alaska airports not covered by National Weather Service
terminal aerodrome forecasts (TAFs) is entering testing. The program will launch with 67 sites, expanding to more locations by early
2019. AOPA will work with the FAA and the NWS on outreach and
http://www.aopa.org/FBOpricing http://www.aopa.org/pilot/maryland
AOPA Pilot Magazine - May 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - May 2018
