GMAs
09-13-02, 11:45 AM
You know the ones that sit up in their offices and make up new rules ... without reguards to what it causes... this one should not be allowed to get away without a note to the congressman... for question...
TSA Can Get You... Without Telling You When/Where
TSA Steps Up TFR Enforcement But Continues a "Catch 22" That Could Trap Pilots. As Skyking will probably say....1984 is here... 18 years behind schedule.
The hard working folks at AOPA reported that TSA told them on Sept. 10 that
there is "an enormous seriousness to TFRs" and warned pilots not to violate any
temporary flight restriction area. But at the same time, TSA is continuing a "Catch
22" that could lead to the prosecution of innocent pilots. The catch is this:
They won't tell you exactly where and when the TFR is in force, but they can
"violate" you if you happen to stumble through a "stealth" TFR. AOPA is continuing its
fight to eliminate this Catch 22.
The issue is NOTAM 1/3353, the infamous "blanket" sporting event(s) TFR
prohibiting general aviation from flying within three nautical miles and below 3,000
feet agl of all large open-air gatherings. That NOTAM effectively closes
nontowered airports near stadiums during events. But the FAA NOTAM system does not
alert pilots to the locations or times of these events.
"For months AOPA has been insisting that the TSA eliminate or revise
this NOTAM because the wording is vague, confusing, and virtually unenforceable," said
Andy Cebula, AOPA senior vice president for Government and Technical Affairs.
"Pilots cannot be reasonably expected to comply with a NOTAM that is absolutely
devoid of any information about the thousands of events presumably 'protected' by
this 'blanket' restriction."
For example, there are more than 22 nontowered GA airports within 3 nm of
Division 1A college football stadiums seating 50,000 or more people. And there are
literally thousands of minor league stadiums, high school athletic fields, and
fairgrounds within 3 miles of airports, and very few of them are marked on aeronautical
charts.
"Even worse, TSA cannot define what constitutes a 'large open air
gathering,'" said Cebula. "The NOTAM must be made specific; it must permit aircraft
to land and take off from nontowered airports using designated traffic
patterns, and the government must tell pilots of the specific events they must avoid."
Here is the Notam....
1/3353 - ... SPECIAL NOTICE ... FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY
UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. PURSUANT TO 14 CFR SECTION 99.7, SPECIAL SECURITY
INSTRUCTIONS. THIS IS A RESTATEMENT OF A PREVIOUS RESTRICTION. ALL AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS ARE
PROHIBITED WITHIN A THREE NAUTICAL MILE RADIUS/ 3000 FEET AGL AND BELOW OVER ANY MAJOR
PROFESSIONAL OR COLLEGIATE SPORTING EVENT OR ANY OTHER MAJOR OPEN AIR ASSEMBLY OF PEOPLE
UNLESS AUTHORIZED BY ATC. WIE (in Effect) UNTIL UFN (further notice)
Wow kinda vage huh.... how many do you pass over each flight... we have one right on the approch to LVK...a football statium... so does that mean we have to make a vertical notch so we don't viloate the 3000 ft rule... huh... GMAs
FMI: www.aopa.org, www.tsa.gov, www.faa.gov
TSA Can Get You... Without Telling You When/Where
TSA Steps Up TFR Enforcement But Continues a "Catch 22" That Could Trap Pilots. As Skyking will probably say....1984 is here... 18 years behind schedule.
The hard working folks at AOPA reported that TSA told them on Sept. 10 that
there is "an enormous seriousness to TFRs" and warned pilots not to violate any
temporary flight restriction area. But at the same time, TSA is continuing a "Catch
22" that could lead to the prosecution of innocent pilots. The catch is this:
They won't tell you exactly where and when the TFR is in force, but they can
"violate" you if you happen to stumble through a "stealth" TFR. AOPA is continuing its
fight to eliminate this Catch 22.
The issue is NOTAM 1/3353, the infamous "blanket" sporting event(s) TFR
prohibiting general aviation from flying within three nautical miles and below 3,000
feet agl of all large open-air gatherings. That NOTAM effectively closes
nontowered airports near stadiums during events. But the FAA NOTAM system does not
alert pilots to the locations or times of these events.
"For months AOPA has been insisting that the TSA eliminate or revise
this NOTAM because the wording is vague, confusing, and virtually unenforceable," said
Andy Cebula, AOPA senior vice president for Government and Technical Affairs.
"Pilots cannot be reasonably expected to comply with a NOTAM that is absolutely
devoid of any information about the thousands of events presumably 'protected' by
this 'blanket' restriction."
For example, there are more than 22 nontowered GA airports within 3 nm of
Division 1A college football stadiums seating 50,000 or more people. And there are
literally thousands of minor league stadiums, high school athletic fields, and
fairgrounds within 3 miles of airports, and very few of them are marked on aeronautical
charts.
"Even worse, TSA cannot define what constitutes a 'large open air
gathering,'" said Cebula. "The NOTAM must be made specific; it must permit aircraft
to land and take off from nontowered airports using designated traffic
patterns, and the government must tell pilots of the specific events they must avoid."
Here is the Notam....
1/3353 - ... SPECIAL NOTICE ... FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY
UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. PURSUANT TO 14 CFR SECTION 99.7, SPECIAL SECURITY
INSTRUCTIONS. THIS IS A RESTATEMENT OF A PREVIOUS RESTRICTION. ALL AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS ARE
PROHIBITED WITHIN A THREE NAUTICAL MILE RADIUS/ 3000 FEET AGL AND BELOW OVER ANY MAJOR
PROFESSIONAL OR COLLEGIATE SPORTING EVENT OR ANY OTHER MAJOR OPEN AIR ASSEMBLY OF PEOPLE
UNLESS AUTHORIZED BY ATC. WIE (in Effect) UNTIL UFN (further notice)
Wow kinda vage huh.... how many do you pass over each flight... we have one right on the approch to LVK...a football statium... so does that mean we have to make a vertical notch so we don't viloate the 3000 ft rule... huh... GMAs
FMI: www.aopa.org, www.tsa.gov, www.faa.gov