Flight Training - October 2011 - 4

PRESIDENT'S PERSPECTIVE

By Craig Fuller

AOPA SERVICES
THE AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS ASSOCIATION is general aviation's advocate and the largest, most influential aviation association in the world.

PAYING AT THE PUMP
THE EXCISE TAX ON FUEL IS OUR CONTRIBUTION
hope your summer was spent, at least in part, enjoying clear skies, beautiful flying weather, and the camaraderie of your local airport and FBO. I hope you made progress toward your flying goals, whether you’re working on earning your very first certificate or searching for the perfect airplane for those family outings.
No doubt your summer was also affected by the bitter debate over the budget deficit and debt ceiling, and the wild swings in the stock market that had global investors running for cover. While the debt crisis was averted and the markets calmed, these issues will continue to affect us this fall— and they could directly affect your flying. If you’re relatively new to aviation, you may be unfamiliar with the idea of user fees—fees charged directly to pilots and aircraft operators for anything from weather reports to filing flight plans, from talking to air traffic controllers to landing. These fees abound in Europe and many other places, so they’re not a new idea. But they are a bad idea. fall as the “Super Committee” hashes out a longer term budget deal—one that is sure to include some type of “revenue reform.” The committee has until Thanksgiving to come up with a plan, which will be considered on an up or down vote. If they can’t reach an agreement or their proposal doesn’t pass Congress, spending cuts will take effect automatically. Here’s the thing: Without many of our friends in Congress serving on the committee and without the usual hearings, we won’t have many opportunities to weigh in against user fees. I think it would be naïve to imagine that we won’t be asked to pay a little more—us and just about everybody else, too. So the real fight may come down

INTERESTED IN LEARNING TO FLY? Visit AOPA’s engaging website for people who want to know more about what’s involved in learning to fly—and what it’s like. www.LetsGoFlying.com RESOURCES FOR STUDENT PILOTS Ask an AOPA CFI | ft.aopa.org/ask Flight Training article archive | ft.aopa.org/archive Aviation library | ft.aopa.org/library Supplemental training information | ft.aopa.org/student Virtual flight bag, including online weather and airport directory | ft.aopa.org/flightbag PILOT INFORMATION CENTER Members can receive answers to flight training and other aviation questions, and join or renew by telephone, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday | 800-USA-AOPA (872-2672) Via the Internet | ft.aopa.org/ask AOPA AIR SAFETY INSTITUTE ONLINE SAFETY CENTER Dedicated to providing general aviation pilot education and safety programs online. Via the Internet | www.airsafetyinstitute.org Call | 800-638-3101 AOPA MEMBER PRODUCTS AOPA Aircraft Financing Program | 800-62-PLANE AOPA Aircraft Insurance Program | 800-622-AOPA Non-owned aircraft and CFI policies available AOPA Credit Card Program | 800-523-7666 AOPA Legal Services Plan | 800-USA-AOPA AOPA Foundation | 800-955-9115 Other products | 800-USA-AOPA ONLINE GUIDE TO AOPA MEMBER SERVICES To join or renew, or for information about AOPA membership, e-mail inforequest@aopa.org or Visit the website | www.aopa.org/join NEW ADDRESS? Send your new address and membership number to AOPA, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701 Fax | 301-695-2375 Via the Internet | www.aopa.org/coa-form.html

USER FEES HAVE A NASTY WAY OF SPREADING AND GROWING.
Experience has shown us that user fees are expensive to collect, making them an inefficient way of paying for critical services such as air traffic control or weather reporting. They also have a nasty way of spreading and growing. What starts out as a landing fee for jets soon becomes a flight plan filing fee for everyone. They also can have a negative impact on safety. Why? Well, how many touch and goes are you going to do if you have to pay $20 every time your wheels meet the runway? For most, the answer is the minimum legal number and that’s just not as good as as many as I need to be safe and proficient in all kinds of weather and surface conditions. The reason I bring this up, especially after this summer’s debt battle, is that the idea of imposing user fees on GA came up during the course of those negotiations. And you can bet the idea will be back this to how we make that contribution to our national air transportation system. Historically, we’ve paid at the pump through an excise tax on aviation fuel. The system is in place, and it’s efficient. If we have to pay more, that’s how we want to do it. We need to make sure that our lawmakers know GA is valuable—not just to us but to the entire nation. Yes, we fly because we love it. We fly for fun. But we also fly for business, charity, firefighting, humanitarian relief, search and rescue, and many, many other reasons. Our flying creates jobs, brings resources to otherwise isolated communities, and generates billions in economic activity. Our story is a good one, and it’s one we need to tell if we’re going to stop user fees from becoming a reality.
Email AOPA President Craig Fuller at craig@aopa. org.

FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORG

http://www.LetsGoFlying.com http://ft.aopa.org/ask http://ft.aopa.org/archive http://ft.aopa.org/library http://ft.aopa.org/student http://ft.aopa.org/flightbag http://ft.aopa.org/ask http://www.airsafetyinstitute.org http://www.aopa.org/join http://www.aopa.org/coa-form.html http://FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORG

Flight Training - October 2011

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