|
 
December 22, 2014 – Volume 13 Issue 51
 Congress Adjourns Lame Duck Session
The lame-duck session of the 113th Congress concluded last Tuesday. Previously, Congress acted on legislation funding the FAA through the balance of the fiscal year ending September 30th. While publically it often appeared that nothing was happening, there were intense behind-the-scenes negotiations that were followed by bursts of floor activity on significant legislation. One of the final votes of session was Senate passage of a one-year extension of accelerated (bonus) depreciation and section 179 expensing for 2014, retroactive to January 1st. Commenting on the extension, NATA President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks noted the importance of these provisions, relating how bonus depreciation served for one member company as the tipping point toward the purchase of aircraft, which in turn led to the hiring of additional pilots and support staff. Hendricks concluded, “We look forward to working with Congress next year to extend the time period for these provisions in order to achieve the maximum impact they bring to investment and job creation.”
TSA Program Changes Expand and Enhance Known Crewmember® Access for Flight Crewmembers
TSA, at the recommendation of NATA, implemented changes to the Known Crewmember® Program (KCM) that will enhance usability and access for pilots and flight attendants of operators that hold a TSA approved Private Charter or Twelve-Five Security Program.
Through NATA’s efforts, on January 13, 2015, additional crewmembers may now participate in the Known Crewmember® Program.
In a news release on Thursday, NATA thanked TSA for working with NATA staff to expand this risk-based security initiative by making KCM available to additional crewmembers. NATA President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks commented, "With the inclusion of Private Charter and Twelve-Five operators in KCM, these changes have the potential to significantly improve the efficiency of airport checkpoint screening and enhance safety for all travelers."
Additional information on the program can be found at http://info.natacs.aero/known-crewmember/.
NATA is Moving - Please Note NATA’s New Address
Effective January 2, 2015, NATA’s address will be 818 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 900, Washington, D.C. 20006. Please make note of our new address and plan to visit when you are in the area.
NATA Offers Resource for Building Key Relationships and Facilitating Policy Outreach
NATA, in conjunction with the NATA Airport Business Committee, has developed an outreach program designed to help the association’s members more effectively communicate with and educate lawmakers and media on the challenges and opportunities faced at airports, FBOs, repair stations and charter operations. NATA’s Project Outreach plan provides tools to help member companies convey the value of business and general aviation through access to important industry issues and information on conducting facility tours which provide elected and media officials a different perspective of how their legislation and public interpretation directly affect the people and businesses they serve. Click here to visit the NATA Project Outreach plan overview.
Spring Committee Meetings Take Place February 2nd – Register Now
NATA’s Spring Committee Meetings are scheduled for February 2, 2015. The meetings will precede the NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference in San Jose, CA. Room registrations must be made through NBAA’s room block.
2015 FBO Success Seminar Has Even More To Offer
NATA’s FBO Success Seminar takes place March 9-10, 2015 in Las Vegas. The NATA FBO Success Seminar is for FBO owners, operators, general managers, new managers, finance personnel and other key FBO employees who are interested in building a more successful FBO. This popular industry seminar, now in its sixth year, will offer attendees new FBO management techniques, essential operational and service knowledge, and a networking forum for sharing experiences and best practices.
The FBO Success Seminar will be held in conjunction with the GSE Expo Worldwide and attendees will receive a complimentary registration to attend the Expo. In addition, attendees will also receive a free copy of the new book, FBO Survival. 10 Tips to Keep Your Operation Lean, Mean & Profitable – a $49.95 value. Register today!
Safety 1st Regional Advanced Line Service Workshop – Las Vegas, NV
NATA Safety 1st is pleased to bring its unique mix of technical and service training to Las Vegas on March 11-12, 2015. This two-day training event is designed to provide the knowledge and skills needed to make your line service team succeed and become new leaders within your company. Register now! Additional dates and locations for this workshop are available at www.nata.aero/events.
PlaneSense, Inc. Delivers to the NH Food Bank by PC-12 Aircraft
PlaneSense, Inc., a fractional aircraft ownership company based in Portsmouth, NH, filled a Pilatus PC-12 aircraft with over 700 lbs of food for the NH Food Bank. The food was flown to the Manchester Boston Regional Airport on Wednesday, December 17th, where NH Governor Maggie Hassan and Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas personally greeted the aircraft full of food. Read further.
2015 IS-BAH Workshop Dates Released
IBAC has released the IS-BAH schedule for the beginning of 2015. All facilities that wish to be IS-BAH registered must send at least one employee to a Fundamentals of IS-BAH workshop. The schedule includes workshops in Long Beach, CA; Mexico; Houston, TX; Canada and Washington, DC. NATA is pleased to host The Fundamentals of IS-BAH workshop in our new DC office in June preceding our annual conference.
For more information or for attendee registration, please visit http://www.nata.aero/safety1st.
Illegal Charter Hotline Update
The Air Charter Safety Foundation maintains a toll-free hotline to report suspected illegal commercial activity. The hotline had previously been administered by NATA. Any employee or agent of a Part 135 on-demand certificate holder can call the toll-free hotline, 888-759-3581 or 888-SKY-FLT1, to file a report of suspected illegal commercial flights, where an aircraft operator without a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 135 certificate is accepting compensation for transportation, in violation of both FAA and Department of Transportation regulations.
Listed below is a breakdown of the 60 reports called-in to the Hotline from January 2010 to October 2014:
• 23 – Determined to be legal flights
• 14 – Insufficient information to substantiate illegal charter
• 2 – No action (Legal but being monitored)
• 9 – Referred to the FAA Regional Office/FSDO (No action taken)
• 6 – Referred to the FAA Regional Office/FSDO (Enforcement action taken)*
• 2 – Pending (Under investigation)
• 3 – Pending (Awaiting investigation)
• 1 – Pending (On hold by outside agency)
*Note: In one enforcement action, the FAA fined the company $39,000 for operating as a commercial operator without having an air carrier certificate.
NATA Holiday Schedule
NATA’s offices will close on Wednesday, December 24th, at noon and reopen Monday, December 29th, in observance of Christmas. We wish you and your families a wonderful holiday season.
ACSF News
Registration is now open for next year’s Air Charter Safety Foundation Safety Symposium. The symposium is scheduled for March 10-11, 2015. This year’s theme is “How do you know you’re safe?” ACSF also announced the dates for its ACSF Auditor Workshop (March 11-12, 2015, immediately following the symposium). Visit http://www.acsf.aero/ for Air Charter Safety Foundation News. Please note the website is back online and accepting symposium registrations.
|