AOPA News

The rules for filing notices through eAPIS when traveling to or from foreign countries have been in effect for almost a year. Now, Customs is reminding noncompliant pilots that they could face thousands of dollars in penalties.

Frederick, MD – The U.S. Senate on Monday evening unanimously approved a reauthorization bill for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), setting the stage for the next-to-last step before it can go to President Obama to be signed into law. The bill contains a slight increase in the fuel excise tax that general aviation pilots and operators will pay into the aviation trust fund, but like its House counterpart, contains no user fees.

The Senate on March 22 unanimously approved an FAA reauthorization bill, setting the stage for the next-to-last step before it can go to President Barack Obama to be signed into law. The bill contains a slight increase in the fuel excise tax but no user fees.

As the Senate considered a bill that would set the course for the FAA over the next two years, general aviation supporters in the Senate worked to ensure that the final bill would include benefits for GA.

Vista Field in Kennewick, Wash., will remain an airport after the Port of Kennewick Commission voted unanimously to support the embattled facility.

John Lee Baker, AOPA’s president from 1977 through 1990, passed away early March 11 at his home in Angier, N.C. Baker navigated GA through the increasing airspace challenges of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

The FAA is moving forward with its plans to expand the Class B airspace surrounding North Carolina’s Charlotte/Douglas International Airport and has published a notice of proposed rulemaking outlining the proposed airspace modifications.

Kalispell City Airport in Montana will remain open and in its current location, according to latest discussions between the city and AOPA officials. In Three Forks, AOPA is working with local pilots to establish protections for the airport.

AOPA and California pilots are speaking out against a developer's unsolicited plan to close the Oceano County Airport in Grover Beach so that it could be converted into residential and commercial uses.

King County, Wash., plans to raise land lease rental rates for tenants at Boeing Field. AOPA has emphasized that the increase does not reflect the economic hardships imposed by the recession.

Barrington Irving, who in 2007 became the first African-American to fly around the world, received additional recognition of his achievements in February, which is designated Black History Month.

The White House will nominate Robert A. Harding, a retired major general with 33 years of Army experience, as head of the Transportation Security Administration, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced March 8.