Thanks for the responses.
As you may now be aware, the FAA has issued an updated NOTAM prohibiting all
part 91 operations (GA IFR/VFR) until further notice. Check out www.aopa.org.
The only exception is for emergency relief operations, and then only with an
assigned
transponder code.
Shaun
----- Original Message -----
From: Shaun Simpkins
Subject: General Aviation post WTC
All:
This may not be appropriate for this forum, but perhaps some of our UK friends
can help answer this question.
This morning the US secretary of transportation reopened the US air system.
Commercial and Cargo flights are resuming. However, General Aviation is still
grounded, and there will be further info on its status later today.
I thought briefly about this and realized that a good fraction of General
Aviation,
particularly sport pilots, operate largely outside of the Air Traffic Control
System.
VFR pilots are not even
required to file a flight plan. In the aftermath of the WTC/Pentagon attack,
it would seem prudent that only those flights that can be positively tracked
by ATC
will be allowed. For now, this is of course appropriate, but as we look
farther
into the future,
I wonder if the era of largely uncontrolled sport flying in the US may be
over.
At
least some form of prior notification could be required for all aircraft
operation,
and
significant improvements to the aircraft tracking system - notably advanced
datalink
transponders - may become required equipment on all aircraft. One could
speculate
wildly. A positive outcome may be that the FAA finally gets the funding and
directives
it needs to modernize the ATC system.
I then remembered that on the Continent, at least, sport aviation operates in
a much
more controlled environment. There is very little uncontrolled airspace and
flight
plans
are de rigeur. Are my recollections accurate?
Again, my apologies for a tangential topic.
Shaun
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