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CURRENT EVENTS & NOTICES
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01/16/09 - Montana Pilots Association Board
Meeting, Helena MT, Vetters Hangar 11:00a.m.
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01/16/09 - 01/18/09 - Montana Winter Survival
Clinic - Helena MT
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02/13/09 - 02/14/09 - MDT Aeronautics Division Flight
Instructor Refresher Course - Helena MT
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03/05/09 - 03/07/09 - Montana Aviation
Conference - Billings MT
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ARTICLES
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New Plan would
close roads in Breaks, Schweitzer asked for more roads,
airstrip to be closed (from Billings
Gazette) |
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By
MATTHEW
BROWN
Associated
Press
Federal
officials
have
approved
a new
management
regime
for the
vast
Missouri
River
Breaks
National
Monument,
closing
some
roads
and
backcountry
airstrips
but
still
not
satisfying
conservation
groups
that
sought
more
sweeping
restrictions.
The
590-square-mile
monument,
created
in 2001
by
President
Bill
Clinton,
cuts
through
the
remote
and
rugged
middle
of
Montana,
along a
route
explored
by Lewis
and
Clark in
the
early
1800s.
The new
rules
govern
river
and
vehicle
access,
grazing,
oil and
gas
drilling
and
other
uses
within
the
monument.
They are
laid out
in a
resource
management
plan
that
took
more
than six
years to
complete
and
prompted
more
than
65,000
public
comments.
The
rules
will go
into
effect
after a
30-day
appeal
period,
said
Monument
Manager
Gary
Slagel
with the
Bureau
of Land
Management.
"This
provides
opportunities
for the
public
to enjoy
the
monument,
while
protecting
the
resources
within
the
monument,"
Slagel
said.
Of
approximately
600
miles of
roads,
201
miles
will be
closed
and 111
miles
will
open
only
seasonally.
Four
backcountry
airstrips
will
close,
leaving
six, and
motorized
watercraft
will be
restricted
to just
three
days a
week on
a
57-mile
stretch
of the
Missouri.
But
conservation
groups
said the
BLM had
missed a
chance
to
preserve
the
unique
natural
beauty
of a
sprawling,
virtually
uninhabited
corridor
along
the
Missouri
River.
They
wanted
more
roads
closed
and
airstrips
eliminated
and
fewer
motorized
watercraft
on the
Missouri.
"This
plan
treats
the
monument
no
differently
than any
other
piece of
ground
that the
BLM
manages,"
Dennis
Tighe, a
Great
Falls
attorney
and
president
of
Friends
of the
Upper
Missouri
River
National
Monument,
wrote in
a
statement.
Montana
Gov.
Brian
Schweitzer
had also
weighed
in
against
the
plan.
In a
March
letter
to BLM
State
Director
Gene
Terland,
Schweitzer
highlighted
additional
roads
and one
airstrip
that the
state
wanted
closed.
He wrote
that the
BLM was
not
meeting
the goal
of
balancing
public
access
with
preserving
"some of
the
wildest
country
on all
the
Great
Plains."
Schweitzer
called
on the
agency
to set a
"higher
standard"
for the
monument
and
asked
for a
five-year
interim
plan to
address
travel
issues.
The BLM
said in
response
that the
state's
concerns
had been
considered
in the
development
of the
new
rules.
During
the
crafting
of those
rules
over the
past
several
years,
livestock
interests
successfully
pushed
to
maintain
grazing
leases
for
ranchers.
Approximately
125
square
miles of
private
land is
interspersed
within
the
monument,
including
ranches
whose
owners
run
their
livestock
on both
public
and
private
parcels.
Slagel
pointed
out that
Clinton's
2001
proclamation
establishing
the
monument
said
"grazing
permits
and all
other
land
laws ...
shall
continue
to
apply"
after
its
creation.
Under
the
rules
announced
Tuesday,
the BLM
has
authority
to
modify
grazing
permits
by
closing
areas or
altering
the
dates
when
they can
be used
if
livestock
are
causing
environmental
damage.
The new
rules
also
preserve
oil and
gas
leases
that
predated
the
monument's
creation.
Slagel
estimated
that
companies
hold
leases
on
43,000
acres
for
energy
development,
but said
there
has been
little
push to
date to
develop
those
tracts.
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posted 12/31/08 |
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Pilots Can
Start Now To File Border-Crossing Info Online
(from AVWEB) |
| By Mary Grady, Contributing Editor Under new rules recently enacted by the federal Customs and Border Protection agency, general aviation pilots who fly across an international border will have to file passenger manifests online before each flight. The rules take effect this month, and the system is up and running, but compliance is voluntary until May 18, 2009. Pilots must register for an online account and then wait for approval, which can take about a week. Pilots can file the manifests anytime up to one hour before their flight, so they can submit the info for both the outgoing and return legs before leaving home. "We were pleased that security officials acted on many of the concerns we raised about this rule, including the fact that Internet access isn't always available, especially at remote destinations in other countries," said Craig Spence, AOPA vice president of security. "Now we will be working closely with CBP during the implementation process to ensure that no undue burden is placed on GA and the process becomes transparent to the user." Pilots who fail to file, or file incomplete or late manifests, can be fined $5,000 for the first violation and $10,000 for each subsequent violation. Information about each passenger which must be filed includes full name, date of birth, citizenship, details about their travel documents, U.S. address, and country of residence.
For more information about the CBP online reporting system, including the full text of the rule and an online tutorial for GA pilots, click here. To read AOPA's issue brief about how the rules will affect GA, click here |
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posted 12/31/08 |
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GA Hit With Flurry of Burdensome Security
Regulations (from EAA) |
November 20, 2008
—Acting on only a
handful of
the concerns put
forth in late 2007
by EAA and other
organizations, the
U.S. Department of
Homeland Security
announced The
Advance Information
on Private Aircraft
Arriving and
Departing the United
States final
rule on Monday,
November 17, with an
effective date of
December 18, 2008,
and a compliance
date of May 18,
2009.
Along with the
Washington D.C. Air
Defense
Identification Zone
(ADIZ), which is
reportedly about to
be made permanent,
and the
Transportation
Security
Administration’s
Large Aircraft
Security Program (LASP)
looming large on the
horizon, it appears
that much of general
aviation will have
new and troublesome
federal regulations
promulgated in the
final days of the
outgoing
administration.
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More
posted 11/25/08 |
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Flying into the wild - Remote airstrip gives
pilots Montana’s only wilderness runway |
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By BRETT FRENCH/Photographed by LARRY
MAYER/Billings Gazette
Deep in
Montana’s 285,000-acre Great Bear
Wilderness, right next door to the wild
and scenic Middle Fork of the Flathead
River, it’s not uncommon for summer
visitors to hear the drone of an
airplane engine.
Schafer Meadows airstrip, managed
jointly by the U.S. Forest Service and
Montana Aeronautics Division, carves a
thin, orderly, east-to-west stripe
across the ragged and remote country. It
is the only wilderness airstrip in
Montana.
“It’s such a pristine hideaway
notched into a Montana wilderness area,”
said Kalispell pilot Chuck Manning.
“We’re very fortunate to have the
ability to go into an interior
trailhead.”
“In Montana, I’d say it’s our crown
jewel,” said Debbie Alke, administrator
of the state Aeronautics Division.
More
posted 11/14/08 |
| New airstrip coming to the Lewis and Clark National Forest |
Four
years spent cooperating with the U.S. Forest
Service, planning, building trust and credibility has
resulted in a new site for a recreational airstrip in
the beautiful Russian Flat of central Montana, a short
walk from the south fork of the Judith River
where anglers enjoy catch-and-release fishing.
Dan Prill of Sand Coulee took the lead for
the non-profit Recreational Aviation Foundation
throughout the comprehensive planning process, which
included the requisite public comment input, an EIS and
public appeals period. The Forest Service, responding to
the wide-ranging concerns of the public, has authorized
the establishment of the airstrip at Russian Flat in
their Record of Decision. |
Photo courtesy
Dan Prill—Flying southeast towards Russian Flat. The
approximate location for the airstrip is shown in
dark brown and the
blue line is the proposed taxiway to the existing
campground. Pig Eye
Rd. is this side of the proposed taxiway and
following it east leads to Utica.
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The site, located near the east end of the Little Belt
Mountains, 38 nautical miles on the 202 degree radial
from the LWT VOR, was selected by the Forest Service
because it met environmental, wildlife and
aesthetic criteria with minimum disturbance to the
landscape.
It is ideal for recreational purposes, because it is
adjacent to an established campground with picnic
tables, a vault toilet and an existing unpaved road.
The plan is to construct a
4,000-foot long grass airstrip, plus a 1000-foot taxiway
to the existing campground in the 6,300-foot
elevation meadow located at: Latitude 46 43.3 'N;
Longitude 110 24.3' W.
Prill commented, “This decision is significant
because until this location was selected at Russian
Flat, there were no public airstrips on Forest Service
lands east of the Rocky Mountain Front.”
The RAF approved an $8,000 grant to be awarded to the
Montana Pilots' Association Recreational Airstrip
Committee for grounds preparation and rolling of the
landing surface. To allow for adequate revegetation, it
is anticipated that the public will not be allowed to
use the airstrip for landing and takeoffs until fall
2009. |
posted 04/11/08 |
| Tailwheel airplanes qualify for hefty load |
The race is on to see which tailwheel aircraft can carry the most. CubCrafters in Yakima, Wash., has received an FAA supplemental type certificate (STC) for a modification that will increase the weight of any PA-18 Super Cub series of aircraft to 2,300 pounds. And Aviat Aircraft in Afton, Wyo., has rolled out its Husky A-1C, which features a 200-pound useful load increase to 2,200 pounds.
Previously the Super Cub was limited to 1,500 pounds or 1,750 pounds maximum gross weight, depending on the certification limitations. (An existing STC allows modification for a 2,000-pound gross weight.) When modified, the new STC allows for a useful load of 1,100 pounds, or 800 pounds on Super Cubs equipped with Wipline 2100 amphibious floats.
The Husky useful load upgrade applies to those models with the 180- and 200-horsepower engines. The upgrade was accomplished by beefing up the two main and tailwheel gear components.
AOPAePilot 12/7
posted 12/07/07 |
RAF continues efforts to create and enhance recreational destinations
News Release |
The non-profit Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF), headquartered in Bozeman with national membership, has had a very productive year. The totally-volunteer group was integral to the completion of the beautiful and full-service pilot camping facility at the Bozeman airport (BZN). RAF President John McKenna commented, “It couldn’t have happened without a lot of cooperation between the RAF and the Bozeman Airport Authority, but it took the RAF with its mission to expand recreational opportunities to get it done.”
Columbus also boasts of an attractive, comfortable pilot shelter, done by RAF supporters led by Alan Drain of Columbus.
Near West Glacier, a small group of area RAF volunteers is turning a lot of sweat, many picnic lunches and some chain saw gas into a rustic pilot shelter in the beautiful setting at Ryan Field. Completion of this facility is expected in the spring. Marv Hessler, RAF supporter from Great Falls, donated a 1992 Grand Voyager van for a courtesy car and Mr. Hessler donated architectural services for the concrete foundation. By 2009 the RAF expects to open Ryan Field to public use pending the resolution of a safety issue on adjoining Forest Service property.
RAF support was instrumental in securing approval for the Russian Flats airstrip on the Lewis & Clark National Forest travel plan. “There is much more to be done there,” stated McKenna, “but with approval, we look forward to cooperating with the appropriate folks to make it a feasible recreational destination.”
An essential project that was completed was the 49-page “Recreational Airstrips on Public Lands”, a comprehensive reference guide for land managers. Montana Director Chuck Jarecki researched the history, issues and solutions and included examples, photos and precedent-setting agreements that will be a valuable aid in future decisions regarding the feasibility of recreational airstrips.
Part of the necessary research in producing this Guide was provided by the Wolf Aviation Fund grant, which enabled the RAF to contract with legal aide Burt Hurwitz of Missoula. His task was to research the recreational-use statues in 12 western states. The primary outcome of this comprehensive research was the drafting and eventual passage of Montana Senate Bill 318, during the 2007 session, clarifying the limits of the liability of private land owners with airstrips on their property. This landmark statute, favorable to land owners, should provide important precedent to the remaining states with no aviation use in their current recreational use statues.
RAF is working with the folks in New Mexico and Maine on recreational aviation projects in their respective states.
If you are concerned about the increasing pressures that reduce recreational aviation opportunities around the country, we encourage your membership in this dynamic non-profit organization. See www.recreationalaviationfoundation.org for details and contact information. |
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posted 11/1/07 |
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