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HomeMy Public PortalAboutAAC Minutes 1988 04/06Attending: Bill Dorris Mike Dorris Kirk Braun AIRPORT COMMITTEE MEETING APRIL 6, 1988 Lorri Vierra Lyn Clark Jim Sproat Bill Williams Bud Schmidt Staff gave status reports on the following projects: 1. N.D.B.: Final installation is scheduled for April 20 & 21. Discussion of FAA certification, altimeter and weather information. Services to make this fully useful were also discussed. 2. Fencing: This work must be undertaken this month. USFS personnel could assist with repairs if they could be delayed until June 1, however, Mr. DeBoer plans to have stock in here by May 1. 3. Ron Delp`s letter to the Bureau of Aeronautics (attached). 4. Lewiston Air Show: Flyers were distributed. 5. Smokejumper Base: Bill Williams advised the committee of the dedication plans for the new base. An airshow will re- quire a brief airport closure. Major discussion focused on plowing the taxiways. The parallel taxi- way is required for use by ski planes which deliver mail to the back - country. Determining a date or other arbitrary criteria for plowing is not workable due to the variety of spring weather conditions. This matter will be considered year to year with the decision related to snow conditions both locally and in Warren, Idaho. /714- //7. Arthur J.Schmidt Airport M nager INTERMOUNTAIN AIR SERVICES P.O. onx 1621 'mucALL, mx*00000 - contract Flight Services - Professional Flight instruction - Aerial Photography March 23, 1988 John J. Allen, Jr., Mayor City of McCall P.O. Box 1065 McCall, ID 83638 Dear Mr. Mayor: Thank you very mucrt for your letter of March 14th and the kind comments regarding my service on the Airport Advisory Committee. While I had not even thought about leaving the Committee, a recent. problem area, subsequently resolved, caused me to suddenly consider the value to the City of introducing new or different viewpoints through a change in membership. Five years had passed more quickly than I had realized! Much has been accomplished in those years, and in no small way is a credit to the City Administrator's capable leadership and willingness to resolve airport issues. Also to the City Council who, properly, I believe, relies on the recommendations of the Committee and the Administrator to accomplish needed items. Still, much still needs to be done. To assist in this I will be providing a brief list of items to Bud that I feel should be reviewed with the other Committee members. Other than that, the attached copy of a letter to the State should be enlightening as well as to re-emphasize the NDB issue. Like the State, however, the City also needs to embark on a concerted program of out -of -area promotion to aviation interests. The development of the airport industrial park should be high in any such effort. Incentives, even if limited to our unique "quality of life", should be offered and made known to industry leaders who would have a need for a quality, instrument capable, airport in such a beautiful area as ours. Thank you, and my. associates, for sharirfg in our mutuzil enthusiasm of aviation in Idaho. Sincerely, � � ~___&^ RO 0^ELP, CH � ^ v ^ wr~~� ^ March 23, 1988 William C. Miller, Chief Idaho Bureau of Aeronautics 3483 Rickenbacker St., Boise, ID 83705 Dear Mr. Miller: Welcome to gu.- world of aviation! Thank you for the invitation for opinions as expressed in. your recent letter to Idaho pilots. In just completing my five year term as an active member of the Airport Advisory Committee for the City of McCall, I wanted to be among the first to respond. Unfortunately however, you were out when I personally visited your office the day following receipt of your letter. So, until another time, this letter must suffice. Perhaps the best way to appreciate the value of a serious State Aeronautics effort is to describe what brought me here in the first place. My wife and I, like so many other working urban dwellers, were fortunate enough to have a steady income, with enough extra spendable, to share our lives with a personal airplane. This is [o[L wealth; only a dedicated area of interest (Others put it into golf, boating, new cars, trips to Europe, beer orinking, or what ever). Our scheduled vacation trips were flying ones. But since we were fond of mountain regions, our trips were somewhat limited since the Southwest has very few "mountain" airports (we were based in San Diego at the time). Speculating on more flying possibilities in northern regions, principally Idaho (expecting it to have similar aviation needs and interests as in Alaska), I wrote to the Bureau of Aeronautics. In return I received a personal letter of invitation from the then Chief, Chet Moulton, along with a beautiful State aeronautical chart, a spiral bound set of airport diagrams with local information, and advice on mountain flying. So, although knowing little about the region and never having been to Idaho before, we took off in our plane (a Cherokee 180C at the time) and landed in Johnson Creek just prior to dusk. The almost overwhelming aroma of the pines and the green turf airstrip, as well as the shear beauty of the area, are impressions we will never forget` And the facilities were unbelievable with fire wood the availability of a courtesy car, ' ' axe and That was in 1969. We have been coming back every year since sometimes on multiple visits. Then after relocating to north ' of San Francisco a few years later, to be closer to Idaho e finally decided to chance leaving the big city life and moved here permanently in 19829 having previously purchased property and started home construction. My wife quit her job and is now the Business Office Manager at theMcCall Memorial Hospital. I took a welcome early retirement from my Position as a Radio Systems Engineering Manager for a large corporation, and am now 100% (but at my own choosing) znvolved in aviation. (This includes being a charter pilot for McCall Air Taxi and an aviation author for several publications). Despite the fact that we undertook such a drastic change without even knowing if we could handle it financially, we have never regretted it. The point in this personal story is that we first arrived in Idaho by personal aircraft, would never have sought out this area without having been involved in aviation, and probably would never have flown here without the courtesy and facilities extended to us by the State and all that Mr Moulton had so wisely accomplished. Subsequently, our ^ enthusiasm has helped to bring several other permanent residents to Idaho, and as is typical of aviators, a couple Of "fly -ins". One, with the International Comanche Society' brought 55 airplanes and 135 people to McCall. The importance of such events is demonstrated in their opinion that over $10,000 was left in the community over that 3-day period which, through "ripple effect" is effectively several times that. Consider also the "word" spread by such participants. The sad part is that little (in comparison) appears to have been accomplished since the "Moulton" era. Yes, many airports have been maintained and some have been improved. But I'm not aware of any new ones having been added. In fact, a comparison check between older and current State airport directories would seem to indicate that several airports have actually been dropped from the active list. Personally, I'm grateful for State assistance in any airport improvement projects, such as here at McCall, but more recognition of the need, in the context as described above, is what is required. Idaho needs to think bigger. The whole economy suffers because the State has been relatively unsuccessful in attracting people and new business from out -of -area In visiting urban areas in California and other states, it is readily apparent that there is a lot of money being 'plowed into those economies, i.e., there is a lot of money available or there is a lot of people with a lot of money! There is no reason why Idaho cannot or should not share in it. But t know about Idaho and what it has to offer, outsiders, have o first. The natural resources and outdoor attractions combine d through first class with all the a�«antages of aviation' Idaho distinctly State aeronautical system support, makes n unique i the "quality of life" it can offer. So'in response to your request, I offer the following specific items for your aviation consideration: 1,.... Join with "commerce" or "tourist" organizations to aly promote Idaho aviation to out-of-stateinterests. t �tunity in my writings to promoteibut � ^ I use every oppor in aviation publications^ takes more than occasional articlesnal campaign ' Regular meaningful, advertising and a personal directedto industry leaders may �e fruitful. state aeronautical chart, with 2 Publish an up-to-datei t�rest through ^t with major visitor n , emphasis on airports available free of charge to anyone side notations. Make this a»a f LORAN for VFR t it Recognize the wide spread use o ti in who wants ^ geographical coordinate information navigation and provide geograp the format used by such equipment. 3^ Revise' and keep up-to-date, the State furnished airport Out-of-state pilots don't generally have this b�/` directory. - detailed publication for typically do have a much more Flight Guide". Thus, our general flight Purposes' such as "Flight the many special di rectory should concentrate on providingpublications r rational details and localoperational advise that other puf this used to be included in don't normally include. (Some o li i ated as has many the directory but has now been mostly eliminated, , mn' From a of the private or low use "back country fields)ll. used local safety standpoint alone, recommended or typically operational procedures would assist most out -of -area pilots, o well as some of those locals who otherwise maybe prone - as we ^ think they know it all There is plenty of knowledge f available from among the Idaho professionals to create a really meaningful directory. 4 Continue to emphasize the need for Idaho pilots to totake ^ t training every year. The FAA "Wings' program is a d recurren d c'n be especially productive when combine ne good minimum an � pil t Award Program". But a with the State's unique "Safe o t and local better means of acquiring and keeping interest considered involvement in such safety programs needs to e,Instructor.s, The "Rudder Flutter" publication, including myt more direct column, is a good medium for communication. uui major co ' t would help Any accident prevented s a involvement w ^ ` accomplishment and wel.l worth the effort! or ! 5^ Revise the state aircraft registration fee system. Airport improvement/development projects, even when limited to only impro»em till involves potentially huge sums of 5% matching funds' s th State,s It is in my opinion, e obliqation to manage money. , in's resources in a manner that will allow it to participate in a financially sound way in any federally funded project, on well as to maintain airports when federal funds are not available. No one likes to see taxes increased but, in the very least, the system should be revised to make the fee based on M2oss, weight, an easily documentable figure and one more representative of aircraft type, than on useful load as at present, as this is not documentable and is subject to frequent change. A small fee increase (through an increase in rate) may also be acceptable, grgyidgl the funds are dedicated to specific and timely achievable programs, and not to bureaucratic overhead. Locals who don`t get out-of-state much may often not realize the value of Idaho's airport system, and object to any fee increase. An outside tie -down fee of $12 per month may seem excessive to the local pilot, but should not when a similar fee at a suburban California field may be $45, and in some areas, over $100. Similarly, my own aircraft, a 1959 Piper Comanche with a gross weight of 2800 lbs., would be charged $250 per year tax based on their universal 1% of market value limit (assumed $25,000 in this example), yet is only charged $'r7.38 per year in Idaho based on it`s useful load. I would strongly resist California concepts and such high taxes, but l would think that any reasonable owner would understand the need for a limited revision. Tnere is little point in having a Bureau of Aeronautics if it can't accomplish much because of internal inefficiency or lack of funds at the state level. 6. Work toward separation of the Bureau from the Transportation Department. Aviation interests must be governed by a group dedicated to aviation with no political ties to other, more predominant or forceful, interests. 7. As to my local area, one of the most potentially strong tourist/recreational growth areas in the entire state, the State should do what ever is necessary to install and put in ' service the McCall NOB and subsequent Instrument Approach Procedure ASAP! I cannot imagine any one thing more productive toward aviation usefulness and potential community growth than this. Aviation money will simply continue to limit its use of McCall without it. This obviously includes any scheduled commuter service, as well as corporate aircraft. Such effort must` include the following phases: a) Complete physical site construction (fencing, hut door locks, electrical service, etc.). b) Install new radio equipment (available in McCall since last December). c) Telt and turn -up station for VFR-only service (FCC license has been on hand since last October). d) Notify all major chart and flight guide publishers of NDB particulars for VFR-only service. e) Arrange for FAA development, flight certification and publishing of an approved NDB Instrument Approach Procedure for the McCall airport. Keep pressure on � Thank you. Sincerely, Ron Delp City of McCall. /- to accomplish this ASAP. In the meantime, if an Ins�rument Procedure can be separately developed and authorized, then such should also be accomplished ASAP. The mere inclusion of a written procedure as "McCall" in the Jeppesen or federal instrument procedures manual will get this valuable Idaho airport known to many out -of -area operators/ f) Arrange for automatic altimeter setting information to be remotely sent to the USNWS or FAA FSS, as appropriate, so as to enable any instrument procedure for MYL to be continuously in service and to eliminate the need for the City's UNICOM station to transmit such information. (Until such remote service is available, an instrument approach via the NDB, even gftgn FAA certification, could only be FAA authorized when a local altimeter setting was available through the UNICOM operator, normally only during typical business hours. In addition, such a locally provided service must be based on a calibrated pair of altimeters, which the City does not currently nave). Local altimeter setting capability is a pre -requisite to FAA authorization of @ny instrument procedure, even part time. Longer term effort in this regard should include replacement of the existing, and limited, AWOS installation with one that will include other data in addition to altimeter setting. As you can see, there is more involved in this NDB project and more potentially riding on it, than may be casually ' appreciated. To the pilot members of our Committee, it was We priority project when I first became involved five years ago. And it was the most priority project during that time It is still the most priority project (in terms of need), ^ and will continue to be so until totally IFR approved for 24 hour service. The long delays in fully accomplishing this project delays without much apparent rationale, have also been the ' most fru"rating to all of us whose advise and expertise should have meant something. The City has some shared responsibilities toward implementation, of course, but we have been repeatedly told from the beginning that the NOS was a "State" project. It needs to be concluded, pronto! Although it has taken several hours, my word processor has simplified the task. I hope the above comments will be of use to you. Comments on specific airport items, in addition to those involving McCall, may be obtained from any of us. Please feel free to ask at any time, or to vist us. As a last Committee member item however, I would appreciate a written response from you indicating your plans for completion of the MYL NDB project, considering each of the Phase items I have described above. A copy to the City . Administrator, P.O. Box 1065, would be appropriate also.