FAA Metroplex and Santa Monica

Joseph Schmitz, PhD

City of Santa Monica Airport Commission Member

August 24, 2015

General Aviation Aircraft Late 50’s 2015

SMO with Runway Protection Zones

Reason’s Swiss Cheese Accident Prevention Model

Aircraft accident systemic defenses: Identify, reduce hazards, and increase safety barriers to accidents! SMO: No Runway Protection Zones, C & D Safety Waivers, Dense

urban location, More IFR jet flights, Night and weather operations, Minimal City staff SMO oversight, No real FAA safety demands on SMO IFR or VFR operations…

SMO Jet Operations Historical jet trends

FAA Metroplex Goals

Goals: Optimize and make efficient - the SoCal aircraft operations; cope with airspace & airport saturation Use SatNav (and data interlinks) to add climb/descent routes,

separate arrivals and departures to cope with increased air traffic De-conflict arrival and departure procedures – Mostly SMO & LAX

Save fuel and flight time for airliners Keep them high as long as practical – then slow, configure, & land More (multiple) direct routes to LAX final approaches Minimize delays caused by converging GA jet traffic

FAA Metroplex Stakeholders

Stakeholders: Local (FAA) facilities, industry, and “other” DOD, airlines, business and general aviation, airports, and others

such as FBO’s, aircraft SatNav manufacturers, etc. SMO: Invited to the November 19, 2014 – LA regional area FAA

planning meeting that was open to airport representatives but not to the public (Pico Union Library) Topics included: Redistribution of noise, air quality, and other impacts among

communities Anticipating citizen ire within impacted communities

Note: Congress excluded the EPA from analyzing any FAA Metroplex Plan impacts on specific communities

FAA Congressional Mission(s) Promote aviation safety

Generally well done for airliners with notable lapses due to FAA systemic controller mis-management (e.g. Lexington, KY)

General Aviation safety record is deficient, some say negligent due to industry co-optation (Mary Scheivo, DOT Inspector General)

Promote aviation commerce Now expunged from FAA mission statement Metroplex (and NextGen stakeholders):

FAA, DOD, Other Govt. Corporate: Airlines, NBAA members, airports, FBOs etc. No EPA, other representatives of impacted populaces

General Aviation Pressures on FAA for a National Bizjet Airport Network

2014 GA sales: $24.5 billion dollars $22 Billion for business jets

722 New jets delivered in 2014 55% Delivered to North America

Active US General Aviation - jets 11,637 Business jets

6,500 Bizjets (with aircrew); 720 without crew 1,330 Personal (often leased-back for shared use) Average cost: $9.5 million $1.2 million in operating costs/year

SMO: Present Commercial Operations FAA Safety Waivers for Class C & D jets

Approach airspeeds exceeding 157 MPH

Intensive IFR (instrument flight) operations: Piston, turboprop, & jet SMO IFR departures delay LAX airline departures SMO IFR approaches impact LAX IFR approaches

SMO now provides some instrument weather landing capabilities to aircraft on IFR flight plans Actual instrument weather use is unknown but instrument

practice approaches regularly occur and go unreported to Santa Monica (250 heading after flying over SMO)

SoCal IFR Arrivals This chart captures the FAA central problem – LAX

is the 800 pound gorilla that drives the airspace!

SMO and LAX Approach and Departure Conflicts

Problem SMO inbound traffic: Biggest

airport delay for LAX airliners

SMO IFR departures delay LAX departures 60% of SMO IFR departures

force two LAX airliners to wait 1-3 minutes; while one SMO departure waits 5 minutes

Solution(s) Rework (SatNav) multiple en-

route approach paths Segregate low altitude piston

aircraft More, flexible, predictable, and

segregated jet approaches

Turn SMO IFR traffic away from LAX over Santa Monica instead of straight-out over the beach

FAA (SMO) Metroplex New and Changed Procedures

FAA goals: Predictability, Flexibility (SatNav), Segregation STAR=Standard Terminal Arrival Route SID=Standard Instrument Departure (route)

New SMO Instrument Departure

The FAA de-conflicted SMO departure (expedites LAX airline operations)

New SMO Instrument Approaches

All-weather LPV Instrument Approaches LPV: High end SatNav approaches that permit decent (in the fog

or clouds) down to 200-250 feet above the ground

Real “weather” landings (or practice approaches) for Cat D aircraft with 300 feet ceilings and 1 mile visibility

SMO: Will have all weather 24/7/365 jetport capabilities

SMO with SoCal Metroplex The FAA Metroplex plan presumes that the FAA maintains

operational control of the Western Parcel (the non-aviation parcel) for the foreseeable future

The overarching FAA driver: “feed” airliners to & from LAX Or: Santa Monica can take its proprietor’s control of our

Western Parcel (non-aviation), reduce SMO to 3,000 feet and preclude all SMO and LAX jet/turboprop conflicts

Otherwise, SMO (now de-conflicted with LAX) approaches and departures, makes SMO bizjet ops more: Desirable, available, predictable, and now segregated from LAX

Santa Monica Voters’ Views Map Displays Precinct-level Data

City Council Recommendation Re-Assert our ownership of the Western Parcel now; the

FAA Metroplex plan regarding SMO would become moot Object to all SMO portions of the SoCal Metroplex – they

presume ongoing FAA control of the Western Parcel Supports Congressional Representatives Lieu and Bass - July 30,

2015 letter to the FAA Administrator Consistent with Mayor McKeown and City Councilwoman

Himmelrich statements to the FAA and to local residents Consistent with each sitting City Councilmember’s expressed

support of Measure LC before the 2014 election

Airport Commission Recommendations City Council Direct, in a letter to FAA that: 1. Santa Monica re-asserts its control of the (non-

aviation) Western Parcel, effective June 30, 2015 2. Objects to continued use of SMO other than as

an FAA-compliant 3,000 foot aircraft runway 1. With adequate Runway Protection Zones, and 2. Minimal lead particle or turbine particulate exhaust

3. The City Council direct Staff to explore the full extent and dimensions of City liability and risks inherent in present/future SMO operations.