StateAviationJournal-MarchApril2011

State aviation JournalPage 2 April/May 2011

Publisher’s Comment......................................Page 4Opinion - A Golden Opportunity.....................Page 5WaterSense, Makes Sense to DFW.................Page 6WRP Invites Airspace Discussion...................Page 8Aviation Critical in Wyoming.........................Page 10Art Contest Promotes Aviation/Aerospace.....Page 12Essential Air Service.......................................Page 14Upper Midwest Aviation Symposium.............Page 16

Contents

Art by Ismael Roman - Texas

State aviation Journal Page 3April/May 2011

Publisher/Editor/ Kim J. StevensGraphic Design/ Andrew StevensLayout Design/ Andrew StevensPhotography/ Kim Stevens Amy Taborksy

Contributing Gary NessWriters Lara Jackson

On The Cover

Art by: Emmanuel Ortiz - New Jersey

State aviation JournalPage 4 March/April 2011

From the PublisherAviation Art - A Reflection of our Passion

To those of us who have the aviation bug, looking at artwork that reflects our passion for airplanes, airports and rockets to the moon, brings great sat-isfaction. Regardless of the medium, regardless of the age of the artist, I think we all appreciate the thought and effort that goes into creating a piece of art. As a state aviation official over the years, one of the biggest joys was always my involvement with the International Aviation Art Contest. Both in Ne-braska and Arizona, we understood that there was great value and satisfaction in giving students the opportunity to create and at the same time allow the students to get some exposure to a fascinating mode

of transportation. I use to think that in this day and age because of technology, (video gaming and such) a child’s awe for things that fly was somewhat distilled when compared to the early days of flight. After looking at thousands of art entries over the years that have depicted everything from hot air balloons, helicopters, gliders and spaceships to airliners, biz jets and hang gliders, I believe there still exists a spark of interest. The art contest remains a good way to ignite that spark and gives us a chance to add fuel and fan the flame. Many of the states that have expended resources to administer the aviation art contest have come up with creative ways to promote the aviation/aerospace industry and have gone to great lengths to recog-nize and reward student participation, including airplane rides, schol-arships and savings bonds. The State Aviation Journal is pleased to add some additional expo-sure by including some of this year’s winning art work on the cover of this issue and on some of the interior pages. We hope you enjoy the art and if you haven’t been involved in the past, we encourage you to contact your state aviation office or the National Association of State Aviation Officials to see how you can become involved in the coming years.

State aviation Journal Page 5March/April 2011

trol System converting a ground air traffic control system to a satellite based system. To achieve its goal new air-ports must be built. Runways are where the rubber meets the road. Improving the movement of aircraft around this nation is absolutely necessary, however unless five new U.S. international airports are built, there will not be enough runways. California needs two new international airports - one in Southern California and one for the Bay Area. - The Bay Area’s three air carrier airports cannot meet the future growth expected by 2015-25. Can’t pour a gallon into a cup. Air and highway gridlock and congestion are not uncommon today. Travis AF Base should be an excellent, environmental friendly alternative as a joint civil-military international airport that would meet the growth demands of 2020. Further, Travis is well positioned for future su-personic and hypersonic transports. - Airline service must be monitored. Air service in North America, international and trans-global growth will triple by 2025. The Pacific Rim, Asia and yes, South America growth will exceed all forecasts. - The new board would promote and encourage venture capital for the resurrection of airliner manufacturing in CA. New aircraft could be build in Long Beach, Palmdale and other cities using the new quieter engines and com-posite plastics instead of aluminum and rivets! Resources and know-how is still available. This effort would return 25,000 of the world’s best aircraft workers back to work in California and the Golden State would regain its former world leadership in aviation manufacturing! Governor Jerry Brown is very familiar with the air transportation industry. He and the state legislature have a golden opportunity to restore California’s aviation future and even provide the model to save the U.S. Aviation industry!

Bill Shea is the former FAA Associate Administrator for Airports; Chief, CA Division of Aeronautics; Director of Aviation Port of Portland, OR, and founding director of the University of Nebraska-Omaha Aviation Institute.

A Golden Opportunity to Save California AviationGuest Opinion

If it were a separate nation, California would be one of the largest economies in the world. The Golden State con-tinues to grow with a 36 million population now and 60 million expected by 2040. Aviation is critical to the future of the Golden State. Air travel demand will increase dra-matically. Because of the enormous size of California and the growth of aviation both here and around the world, there is a need for a stand-alone office like a new Califor-nia Aviation Board to ensure CA has a meaningful avia-tion policy, strategic plan and vision for the future. The new board will monitor all aviation activity for example, safety, airports, airline passenger and cargo growth, pro-motion of California aviation around the globe, environ-mental response, etc. A new five-member California Aeronautics Board should be appointed to report to the Governor with the appropri-ate legislative oversight. Funding for the new board would be minimal. A reformed CA Division of Aeronautics, already operating and funded within Caltrans, could be removed from CADOT and report to the new board. Avia-tion operates in a different dimension - in the sky. Unlike surface modes, air travel has changed significantly and is national and truly global in scope. Oregon’s Aeronautics office was removed from the Or-egon DOT and it now reports to the Governor. Statewide aviation is better off. The same can happen in California. If California established the new board it would serve as a model for the nation. A reformed FAA could be removed from the U.S. Department of Transportation (too busy with surface modal issues) providing staff to the new board that would report to the White House with Congres-sional oversight. Back to the Golden State. A few examples of other needed aviation activities would be: - Planning. In 2007 the TRB issued an RFP: (ACRP 03-10) entitled: Innovative Approaches to Addressing Capacity Issues in Coastal Mega-Regions, (CA, AZ, NV and Northeast Corridor) noting “new and innovative pro-cesses/methodologies are needed if the aviation capacity issues in the congested mega-regions, are going to be suc-cessfully addressed...” The FAA study entitled , Capac-ity Needs in the National Airspace System 2007-2025, noted a concern regarding capacity in the West Coast and Northeast corridor as well. New approaches to aviation planning are needed. - The FAA’s NextGen (Next Generation) Air Traffic Con-

Shea

By Bill Shea


partnership with DFW will be an effective approach to educate people about water efficiency. DFW is one of the world’s busiest airports, so it will play an integral role in educating its travel-ers on water efficiency. DFW has begun its Ter-minal Renewal and Im-provement program, which includes the renovation of four of its terminals – Terminals A, B, C and D, which opened in 1974. The improvement program, which is expected to last about seven years, includes energy and water efficiency plans. In fact, the renovation of the bathrooms in the four terminals was just completed. The bathrooms now have approximately 230 WaterSense labeled urinals and about 750 water-efficient closets and sinks. According to Hodapp, “With the renovation of the bathrooms completed we have seen a savings of approxi-mately four million gallons of water per month in just two terminals. We project to save between 65 and 75 million gallons of water annually due to the renovation.”Since DFW’s WaterSense partnership is only months old, DFW is still developing approaches to promote the program and educate the thousands of people who pass through the airport daily.

“We may post signage, perhaps plaques, which would serve as educational ads,” explains Hodapp, “Also, we may have a graphic display in our environmental af-fairs office, which shows our en-vironmental and water efficiency achievements.” There have been no major chal-lenges to the renovation project or its conservation efforts. When the project was first planned, the reno-vation was originally conceived as just a facelift. Hodapp explains that the conservation aspect was added as an extra requirement with cost concerns. But, once all of the bids

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced that the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Interna-tional Airport has become a WaterSense® partner and “the first promotional partner under the national WaterSense program.” States throughout the United States, especially the west-ern and southern US, have started experiencing challenges regarding water supply and water infrastructure. With the population of the country continuously growing, water has become a real concern for many states and their residents.“WaterSense will help protect the future of our nation’s water supply by promoting water efficiency and enhanc-ing the market for water-efficient products, programs and practices,” said WaterSense Implementation Lead, Tara O’Hare. According to the EPA Web site, “Since the program’s inception in 2006, WaterSense has helped consumers save a cumulative 46 billion gallons of water and $343 million in water and sewer bills.” “We [the EPA] are excited to become regional partners with DFW and having the airport promote WaterSense,” states O’Hare. “Because of the growth population in Region C [Dal-las Fort Worth area] water has become a huge issue in this area and there are more conservation and water reuse efforts,” said Rusty Hodapp, vice president of energy and transportation at DFW. Since the Southern region of the US has been greatly affected by recent water concerns, the EPA hopes this new

DFW Realizes Savings with WaterSense ProgramBy Lara Jackson

Tara O’Hare

DFW’s Skylink highspeed train


cation process. There are two steps in obtaining a Water-Sense label: 1. The product manufac-turer enters into a WaterSense partnership agreement with the EPA. Under this partner-ship agreement, manufactur-ers have 12 months to obtain certification that conforms to a pertinent WaterSense applica-tion. 2. Have the product certified for conformance to the Water-Sense specification by an EPA licensed certifying body. In addition to installing more water efficient products, WaterSense partners also help promote the program. Besides the toolkit on the EPA’s WaterSense Web site, the EPA has also prepared press releases, brochures and public service announcements for its partners to use when promoting the program. San Diego International Airport has also signed up to be a partner in the WaterSense program.

were received, Hodapp notes that the cost difference was actually quite minor and it was decided to go ahead with conservation efforts because they were going to achieve water reduction results. The partnership with the EPA’s WaterSense program is just another part of DFW’s environmental stewardship. Currently, the airport is a partner with the EPA’S Green Power Partnership and is one of the leading corporate buyers of wind power. Twenty percent of the airport’s power is generated from a green source of energy. In ad-dition to its green power efforts, DFW has changed all of its lighting to incandescent lighting and dimmers which has been a significant cost savings for the airport. Also, 95 percent of DFW’s vehicles, including the rental facility, use alternative sources of fuel and burn no fossil fuels. With DFW’s environmental commitment, becoming part-ners with the EPA’s WaterSense program was the logical next step. Program wide, since the switch to WaterSense labeled products, there has been a reduction of electricity by 4.9 billion kilowatt hours and 1.75 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. These products must display the WaterSense label indi-cating that the manufacturer has gone through the certifi-

Rusty Hodapp

DFW Airport


WRP Calls on Aviation Officials for Airspace Discussion The Western Regional Partnership Border Committee and the State Aviation Journal co-sponsored an aviation meeting recently in Sacramento, CA., to discuss issues impacting airspace users in a five state region. The meet-ing, which was held at the Sacramento International Air-port included airport and state aviation officials, FAA and representatives of the Military/Department of Defense. About thirty participated including those via conference call. Discussion items included shortfalls in communica-tion among aviation users and how alternative energy is impacting aviation in the WRP Region, which include the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and New

Mexico. Additionally, wild-land fires were discussed with an em-phasis on what to expect in re-gard to coordination of aviation activities, impact of temporary flight restrictions and how to fly safer around wild-land fires. “At the end of the day, we hope our discussions lead to recom-mendations, lessons learned and best practices for aviation users to work together on issues that effect all of us in the region,”

said Kim Stevens, publisher of the State Aviation Journal. “I think what we came away with at this meeting will

stimulate future discussions.” The group hopes that the success of this meeting will allow for an expanded agenda in the future. Terry Hansen, Range and Airspace Sustainability Man-ager for the Marine Corps, said he thought it was a very good first meeting, bringing together representatives of the aviation users in the region. “It was very educational and beneficial for all attendees,” said Hansen. “The meet-ing opened up lines of communication that did not exist and proved that such a forum for better communication is helpful and in fact needed.” “These are important topics that impact us all,” said Stevens. “Being a former state aviation official, I know how impor-tant these discus-sions will be to each state in the region.” Mike Williams, Direc-tor of Airports for the County of San Bernardino said, “The dialogue was positive and beneficial to the County and I hope there will be future opportunities for discussion.” Results from the meeting include identifying aviation needs, including specific aviation GIS data layers, de-

Lance McCasland, Deputy Director, Operations for the Sacramento County Airport System gives attendees an airport update.

Kim Stevens

Terry Hansen and Amy Duffy.


WRP Calls on Aviation Officials for Airspace Discussion

velopment of best practices for aviation disclosure and a regional forum to develop aviation recommendations to communicate and collaborate with aviation users. “The meeting demonstrated the value of aviation users com-municating and collaborating across the WRP region,” said Amy Duffy, Department of Defense contractor/Duffy Consulting. “Especially to address such important issues as wild-land fires, and renewable energy and their poten-tial impacts on aviation.” “I found the opportunity to begin and build new rela-tionships with a community of stakeholders I didn’t fully understand and appreciate was encouraging,” said Steven Arenson, AF Regional Environmental Coordinator (AZ and NV). “I believe that the opportunities to collaborate in meeting our diverse mission requirements is a chal-lenge we agreed to take on together. I am looking forward to building on the strong beginning we made today.” The WRP mission is to provide a proactive and collabor-ative framework for senior-policy level Federal, State and Tribal leadership to identify common goals and emerging issues in the region and to develop solutions that sup-port WRP Partners and protect natural resources, while promoting sustainability, homeland security and military readiness.

Photos by Kim Stevens Gary Jestice, FAA and Diana Tersak, Airspace Officer with the Navy

Tony Parisi, Naval Air Systems Command, left and Steven Arenson, AF Regional Environmental Coordinator.

Lance McCasland, Deputy Director, Operations for the Sacramento County Airport System gives attendees an airport update.

Left to right are Eric Glick, and Matthew Furedy, Nevada DOT, Jeff Brown, California DOT, Bill Shea, Aviation author and lecturer and Bill Thompson, Nevada DOT.


Wyoming Populace Understands Integral Role Aviation Plays

Due to its low population and huge expanse of land, aviation plays an integral role in the state of Wyoming. Because of the importance aviation plays within the state, the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT), Aeronautics Division recently released the Wyoming Statewide Airport Inventory and Implementation Plan, which, according to the plan “…provides an inventory and evaluation of the Wyoming Aviation System consider-

ing the 40 publicly owned airports in the state…” Of those airports 32 are included in the National Plan of Integrated Air-port Systems (NPIAS) federal airport system, 10 of which are commercial service with nine of them being primary airports.

As a result of the inventory and implementation plan, a new airport classification system was developed for the airports of Wyoming. According to the study this new classification system is important as a means to:

• Align airports with similar physical facility and service attributes. • Assign roles for each airport based on the services they provide. • Define the types of facilities and services needed at each functional group of airport to meet the existing and future needs of the state. • Establish facility and service objectives by classifi-cation or airport. The study determined that there was a definite division between commercial service and general aviation (GA) airports, therefore GA airports were divided into three separate categories. The three GA categories are business, intermediate and local. Business airports cover multi-county economic centers offering a connection between state and national economies. These airports are meant to accommodate larger business jet activity, support tourism and recreational demand. Intermediate airports aid counties and medium to small communities to support local economies. Also, intermedi-ate airports assist medium to small business jet activity and recreational uses. The third GA category, local air-ports, help smaller communities and possess basic facili-ties for recreational users and support emergency use.

By Lara Jackson


According to the Wyoming Aviation System, commercial airports “serve major populations, economic centers, and areas of tourism providing a connection to national and global economies and are designed to accommodate com-mercial air service and business general aviation activity consistent with user demand.” According to Aeronautics Division Administrator Dennis Byrne, the aviation industry employs 14,500 people in the State of Wyoming with a $375 million payroll. Aviation con-tributes $1.4 billion, or 4.6% gross state product, annually to the total economic activity of the state. Compared to other states throughout the country, Wyo-ming is in better shape as far as state funding is concerned mainly because of its status as an energy state – both traditional and alternative sources, especially wind power. Byrne explained that he does not foresee any budget cuts through 2012. Because of its low population density and expansive land, Wyoming residents in addition to its law mak-ers understand the critical role aviation plays within the state. For example, many doctors travel via aircraft to treat patients. Also, Wyoming has developed programs to “attract and enhance air service to the state’s communi-ties” including the Air Service Enhancement Program, which brings American, Delta and United Airlines to the communities of Casper, Cody, Jackson, Rock Springs and Gillette. Enacted in 2004, the air service program pro-vides such incentives as landing fees waived, discounted fuel flowage and discounted ticket counter space. The Aeronautics Division also developed the “Fly Wyoming” marketing campaign to promote aviation in Wyoming. Even though more people are flying in Wyoming, residents and law makers are con-cerned about the continuation of the Essential Air Service (EAS) program. According to the Office of Aviation Analysis, “The…[EAS] program was put into place to guarantee that small communities that were served by certi-fied air carriers before deregulation, maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service....” The Department currently subsidizes com-muter airlines to serve approximately 140 rural communities across the country that

would not receive any scheduled air service.” On April 1, 2011 the US House of Representatives ap-proved a bill that would eliminate most of the $200 mil-lion essential air service program. The bill would phase out the program to the lower 48 states by 2013. Besides the threat of losing the EAS program, other con-cerns include noise pollution, threats to wildlife and the potential threat and dangers associated with the develop-ment of wind farms throughout the state. In order to address specific concerns relating to avia-tion in Wyoming, the Aeronautics Division developed an aviation conference, which touches upon all facets of the industry – from the mechanics to the pilots. Byrne anticipates the Wyoming Aviation Conference to be a biannual event. They are currently developing a council which will be compose of aviation professionals with different backgrounds to develop conference pro-gramming. Administrator Byrne, who has been in the position for three years, explains that there is an incredible learning curve to the position. Byrne considers himself unusual compared to his counterparts throughout the country because he does not have aviation experience. He has an economics and finance background. Before joining the Division Byrne was a manager for the audit group at the Wyoming Department of Transportation. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Wyoming. “I enjoy the people and the staff [of the Aeronautics Di-vision] and the people I oversee are extremely knowledge-able,” states Byrne.

Dennis Byrne

Wyoming Aeronautics Division Fleet


States Use Art Contest to Promote Aviation and Aerospace The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) and the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) recently announced the U.S. winners of the 2011 Interna-tional Aviation Art Contest. States with winning entries included New Jersey, California, New Mexico, Nebraska, Minnesota and Texas. “The goal of the aviation art contest is to continually encourage young people to use their artistic talents, while help-ing them to become more famil-iar with aviation, engineering math, and the sciences,” said Janese Thatcher, manager of the Minnesota Department of Trans-portation’s Aviation Education, Safety, and Training section of the Aeronautics Division. The winners, which are split into three categories, one for ages six to nine, an intermediate category for ages 10 to 13 and a senior category for ages 14 to 17, have been forwarded to the Fédération Aéronau-tique (FAI) to be judged at the 2011 International Aviation Art Contest in Lausanne, Switzerland later this month. According to Kathryn Solee, NASAO Director of Opera-tions and president of the NASAO Center for Aviation Research and Education, “There has always been a need to promote aviation. In order to have a qualified work-force in the aviation industry we must spark kids’ interest. This art contest represents all forms of flight globally.”

This year’s contest theme is “50 Years of Human Space Flight.” “The art is spectacular and you can really see the effort and research the kids put into con-ceiving their artwork. Some of the pieces

are fun and playful and some are very detailed,” explains Solee. Students from across the United States are encouraged to enter the contest. This year more than 6,800 students submitted artwork, with more than half coming from the states of California and Texas alone. An experienced panel of judges who have an eye both for art and an understand-ing of aviation selected the winning artwork. According to Solee the number of entries is trending up from previous years. Last year there were 5,000 entries. Judging for the

national contest was held at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. Traditionally, state aviation offices have administered or supported the art contest on the state level and have expended resources as part of their aviation education and outreach efforts. Although state participation has held steady over the past several years, the most important improvement to the program, according to Solee, was the willingness of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott Campus, to accept the art from students in states that do not hold state judging. E-RAU then set up judg-ing by state and submitted the state winners to the national competition. “That’s how New Jersey ended up with two winners this year,” said Solee. The goal of the Aviation Section under the Louisiana Department of Transportation is to increase public awareness and support of the aviation industry in their state. “It is our intent to motivate and encourage young people through-out Louisiana to become more fa-miliar with and participate in aeronautics, engineering and science,” said Brad Brandt, aviation director. The Aviation Section has partnered with AOPA, EAA and the Louisiana Airport Managers & Associates organization for prizes and introductory flights for the winners, which helps with incentivizing participation in the program. “As part of the contest we also encourage the youth participants to visit the airport in their local area to generate ideas and talk with the airport managers,” said Brandt. North Dakota decided to revive the state’s program this year and according to Larry Taborsky, Aeronautics Com-mission Director, they “jumped in with both feet.” “All the schools were contacted through the art teachers as well as the principals,” said Tabor-sky. First prize for each age group was a ride in the state aircraft to bring them to the state capitol for the awards presentation. “The first lady sponsored a lunch with the winners and their parents,” said Taborsky. “It made for good press in several local papers as well as provided good advertising for aviation in the school system.” Chris Roy, Minnesota Depart-

By Lara Jackson

Janese Thatcher

Kathryn Solee

Chris Roy

Art by Celine Qui - Nebraska


ment of Transportation Aeronautics Director said that they take great pride in sponsoring this program and that it helps expose children from 6-17 years old to the history, benefits, values, and excitement aviation brings to our com-munities. “This contest is a valuable community outreach effort that helps to raise the awareness and demonstrate the importance of aviation to the state and nation.” NASAO is optimistic and hopeful about this country’s artwork submit-ted for the international competition. “There have been many first place winners over the years in all three cat-egories,” said Solee.

Art by Michael Roznick - Minnesota

Art by Brian Sun - New Jersey

Art by Nolan Riggin - MinnesotaArt by Karen Ahn - California


Essential Air Service GOOD, BAD or UGLY The publisher of this Journal asked if a broad brush ap-proach on Essential Air Service could be put together for the enjoyment of the SAJ readers. No problem we can “Broad Brush” just about anything given time. The first thing is to probe my personal data base on the program. Being from a rural state with three EAS sites, that base is extensive. Next - “Google” of course, to see what infor-mation is in cyberspace. As the cowboys say, “Whoa”,…… 4,420,000 web re-sults. Total surprise is not the word. How can so much be accumulated on one small transportation program?

A representative group from the four EAS communities in North Dakota flew to Wolf Point to testify before the DOT. They had compelling information about the needs of the communities and the importance of continued sup-port for funding of the program. Just before this reauthorization discussion began a large group of interested citizens, from across the nation, met in Denver, Colorado and created the “National Committee of Cities and States for Air Service” (NCCSAS). These were individuals from New Hampshire to California. They cre-ated a great interest, strengthened by the diversity of the group, on the EAS issue. The end point was, the program being reauthorized. They worked tirelessly for a positive outcome, and for that group’s efforts, EAS was reautho-rized and those rural communities, saved. The reautho-rization took place but for the last 24 years a continued conflict has ensued. Because of that conflict the NCCSAS group, for many years, maintained a lobbying presents in DC with a small firm, with one interest - watch the back of rural America and the EAS program. That group has since dis-solved into history. There has always been the Love/Hate relation-ship with the program from all corners. You can only LOVE the program and see the benefits of it for rural America or you can HATE the program as a wasteful boondoggle that is only reviled by the “Bridge to No Where”. Someplace along the political trail of funding, defund-ing, refunding and re-defunding, Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota made a procedural move and EAS was moved to a permanently authorized program. (FAA Re-authorization Act of 1996) This action reduced the size of the battle that took place each year to keep the program from being canceled to dealing with only the funding, af-ter the first $50 million of the program. Only the funding! .....understatement! 9-11-01 changed the face of aviation completely and air service in particular. Large and small carriers alike began economic free falls from all corners of the industry. Com-munities that had service witnessed airline withdrawal and the EAS program began to grow and the total subsidy cost also grew with the inclusion of those communities. Thus

As the cowboys say, “Whoa,” 4,420,000 web results.

Let’s start from the beginning, with an explanation and definition from the USDOT, Office of the Assistant Sec-retary for Aviation and International Affairs; Office of Aviation Analysis; Division of Essential Air Service and Domestic Analysis: http://ostpxweb.dot.gov/aviation/avi-atanalysis.htm#EAS. The Essential Air Service Program is explained; The Airline Deregulation Act, passed in 1978, gave air-lines almost total freedom to determine which markets to serve domestically and what fares to charge for that service. The Essential Air Service (EAS) program was put into place to guarantee that small communities that were served by certificated air carriers before deregula-tion maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service. The Department currently subsidizes commuter airlines to serve rural communities across the country that otherwise would not receive any scheduled air service. My personal data base starts in November 1986, with re-authorization hearings being held across the nation. Wolf Point, Montana was on the hearing site list, reason; small-est community, in the lower 48 served by the program. The Montana congressional contingent had requested that hearing officers come to the most rural area to see the reasons the program should continue to function. If memory serves me the total budget for the program at that time was less than $25,000,000. {As of May, 2010, the program serves in the lower forty-eight, 34 states + Puerto Rico, with 109 communities on the subsidy list of $163,000,000. http://ostpxweb.dot.gov/aviation/X-50%20Role_files/essentialairservice.htm.}

By Gary Ness

Gary Ness


Essential Air Service GOOD, BAD or UGLY

the cost has increased the discussion of those increases in light of today’s economic downturn. The State Aviation Journal would like to thank the Na-tional Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) for sharing information received from the organization’s membership on the subject of the Essential Air Service Program. Sticking to the “Broad Brush” theme, there is one thing that is very apparent. EAS has an important function in the National Aviation System. Many years ago a speaker, who was explaining transportation on a national scale said, “Outside of the large metropolitan areas of your states, we all look alike in this country.” The speaker continued to explain, “The nation has a responsibility to provide transportation access to communities whether it is roads, ground transportation, rail or air. A minimum level of service which provides the community an opportunity to grow at the pace and size that it may choose.” The USDOT, with a National Transportation System, has that responsibility and those standards should be estab-lished. Are those NTS standards in place? EAS, does however, lend a standard of air service to rural communi-ties. A conclusion from the NASAO information received would suggest continued support and interest plus a

their aircraft. That same airport will provide a base for emergency medical service and foundations for fire sup-pression operations in those isolated communities. When you read the reasons identified by these communi-ties for the continuation of essential air service and the support from the people most affected by the program, one would reason that the continuation of the program is proven and should be maintained. The “Small Community Air Service Development Pro-gram” gave many markets a chance to review, plan and implement marketing programs for their communities and met with a variety of success , however the consensus is that, overall, these programs were positive, but in affect, depended on the communities ability to market the air-port and the services it provided. There were many grants given to larger communities that were not on the EAS roles that profited from the SCASDP. The attack from the negative side of fence has been and will continue to be, that it is a “Welfare Program”. “If the

professed need to continue the EAS program nationwide. Information received from the east coast to the west along with the number of comments, should prove that national interest remains and that the needs are similar. Number one on the list for a continued program is the isolation of the communities from not only commercial air service within comfortable driving distance, but lack of train or bus service for those communities. Economic development was a close second. The decision makers of the “NEW ECONOMY” want air service for business development investments, not only for those enterprises that may develop in the communities but those that are being recruited. The recruitment of medical professionals and the influence of air service were pointed out as very important. Tourism and access to “Last Best Place” areas gives support for the EAS program and the economy sur-rounding those communities. The importance of airport development for commercial service provided an economic difficulty for some com-munities but it also gave them a better facility to provide to those recruited businesses that need modern access for

The decision makers of the “New Economy” want air service for business development investments.

community can’t support an airline on its own it shouldn’t have one.” Honestly that is a tough argument to counter. However, I return to the National Transportation System comment, “The Nation is responsible for a certain level of service that should be provided for, whether it is road, ground transportation, rail or air.” There are good argu-ments also on the low number of passengers flying on some routes. I go back to the NTS comment….Let us put the NTS into motion and those needs for the communi-ties can be analyzed with the service needs identified and provided. We have put millions into the Small Community Pro-gram, let’s put some effort and funding into a National Transportation System Plan. This plan cannot be done from the “BELTWAY”, it has to be done in the field. It needs to be done similar to the system plans that each state provides for themselves, to make the decisions that are needed with the funding available. The conclusion of this “Broad Brush” is just this, EAS is a needed program; It contains Good, Bad and Ugly parts, for-sure. Mostly good. The bad and the ugly can be fixed. The naysayers will yell and scream about waste, fat and the program only serves the few. But this is a national program. A sales person from Hersey, PA wants to fly into Devils Lake, ND to sell someone there a widget. That is commerce on a national scale. As an old employer of mine once said, “Nothing happens in this country until someone sells someone something.”

“The Nation is responsible for a cer-tain level of service”


The 2011 Upper Midwest Aviation Symposium Each year, since 1983, the North Dakota Aviation Coun-cil (NDAC) has sponsored the annual “Gathering of Eagles”. The organization is made up of eight aviation associations giving the aviation community, what they know is an, “Umbrella of Strength”. Go to www.ndac.aero for further details. This may be the Councils 28th year as an organization of associations, but the true gathering is in its 63rd year of existence. In 1949 a diverse group of aviators from across the state created the North Dakota Aviation Association and that organization met continually until being reorga-nized as the Council in 1983 - a long and distinguished track record of representation. This year’s Symposium theme is “ 2011- Avia-tion’s New Challenges”.

Kicking off the Symposium on Sunday, the North Da-kota Agricultural Aviation Association (NDAAA) held a “Safety/Security Meeting” followed by a Council Board Meeting. The North Dakota Pilots Association (NDPA), presented the Sunday afternoon programming, which

included the Wings Safety Seminar and the FAASTeam CFI Refresher Course. The NDBAA discussed many relevant and timely topics related to FBOs and busi-ness aviation. The NDPAMA provide IA renewal programming along with their Annual Business Meeting. The big hit presen-tation was a combo

session with the Mech’s and Pilots. Two local aviators discussed their encoun-ter with a flock of ducks on a training flight over central North Dakota. The whole flight was discussed including the procedures that took place after the bird strike and the importance of team work especially keeping one’s head, in case of a collision with fowl of any kind. Another session, covered factors relating to a mistaken fueling (Diesel vs 100LL). It was presented by a charter pilot who experienced it firsthand. Ultimately, YOU, the

pilot (PIC) is responsible for the fueling of your aircraft. There never is a clear cut excuse/reason for the problem. The following checklist was suggested: #1-Right Truck, #2-Be there/stay there, #3-check fuel slips, #4-No distrac-tions and #5-It is YOUR responsibility. The most anticipated event, at 6:00 p.m., is always the gathering at the annual “ICE BREAKER”, a tradition over the last 20 years of sharing adult beverages, food and networking. This year the “Breaker” was held at one very fine facility, The Dakota Territory Air Museum (DTAM). Twenty-five years ago there was not even a building on this site. Now there are three buildings and a collection of memorabilia and aircraft that is world class. Don Lar-son, Minot, Chairman of the Council, is also the leader of DTAM and has been instrumental in several restorations of these magnificent aircraft on display. For the complete inventory which includes a P-51 and a Japanese Zero, set among a collection of great civilian aircraft, click on www.dakotaterritoryairmuseum.com. You will not be disappointed. When the Monday program begins, Dr. Bruce Smith, is traditionally the first out of the box at 7:30 am with the UND/JDO (www.aero.und.edu/) Aerospace program re-view and outlook briefing. This very informative presen-tation has been a mainstay for several years as the kick-off general session of the Symposium program. The NDPA/NDEAA Monday focus was on Unmanned Aircraft along with briefings from the FAA on owner/operator responsibilities. A presentation by Tom Ken-ville on his experience of having a heart attack on an ILS approach was a well attended and appreciated program piece.

Robert Miller

Ice Breaker at the Dakota Territory Air Museum.

By Gary Ness


Another high point was the briefings from Jim Coyne , NATA and Henry Ogrodzinski, NASAO, about the chal-lenges in Washington, DC. Both speakers were candid about the issues and the political reality within the “Belt-way”. The one impression that you could come away with from their session was that aviation may have friends in D.C. but we have to communicate well with our indus-try alphabet groups to protect what we have from those that don’t understand aviation, nor care. The main speaker at Monday’s noon luncheon was Mr. Robert Miller, Chairman of the Aeronautics Commission. He presented a proclamation from Governor Jack Dal-rymple signifying the week as, “Aviation Week in North

Dakota.” The support of the aviation community related in the proclamation was well received and appreciated. An additional presentation from the Alliance for Aviation Across America gave a per-spective of cooperation that is needed for aviation to pro-vide the correct information in D.C. on the importance of aviation in today’s world. Monday night has tradi-tionally been the “Exhibi-

tors Night”. A great selection of food is provided in all four corners of the exhibit hall providing not only a taste sensation but another time for mixing and exchange of in-formation about prod-ucts available to the industry. The hall was filled with 42 exhibi-tor booths. Fifty-two speakers from across the nation were booked for the event. Don Lar-son, Chair of the Coun-cil, always reminds the attendees that without the exhibitors and speakers, this great gathering would be very hard, if not impossible, to produce. Tuesday morning began with a continental breakfast and speaker Bill Hamilton, AOPA’s Regional Rep, sharing information about the activities of AOPA. He covered the MET Tower concerns and the importance of watching the actions of state legislatures, congress and the administra-tion in relation to aviation. Do we hear a common thread of caution and direction from those outside North Dakota? Following the breakfast presentations, Larry Taborsky, Director of the Aeronautics Commission gave a State of the State report on the Commission, reported on the

Jim Coyne, NATA

Dr. Bruce Smith Continued on next page


activity related to aviation at the legislature, and the Com-mission’s goals for the future. Mr. Miller, Chairman, led the discussion during the “Listening Session” with the attendees. Discussion ranged from a new FAA budget to military airspace in Southwestern North Dakota (Powder River) and use of the airspace related to UAV/UAS train-ing (Devils Lake and Tiger). The “Listening Session” was

established many years ago and has proved a great place to exchange information with the Commission members and the industry. The three organizational classrooms began Tuesday with many topics of interest. The FAA was represented by Barry Cooper, Regional Administrator, FAA Chicago and included Susan Schalk, Chicago ADO, Brian Schuck

and Mark Holzer, both from the Bismarck ADO. This team helped clear up or con-firm the confusion in D.C. on the continuing resolutions,

which seems to be the funding process the industry has to live with today. A great presentation on Small UAV operations by Alan Frazier closed out the programs for the symposium sched-ule. For all organizations, Tuesday afternoon is a time of annual business meetings and selection of those members that will sit on the Council Board of Directors. At the reorganizational meeting for the North Dakota Aviation Council they selected Timothy J. Thorsen, Airport Operations Manager, Bismarck Municipal Airport, as the 2012 Chairman. The full board and other officers will be appointed at the April meeting of the Council. Banquet speaker Brian Shul www.sleddriver.com/ is a Vietnam-era USAF fighter pilot and a retired major in the United States Air Force (USAF). He flew 212 combat mis-sions and was shot down near the end of the war. He was so badly burned that he was given next to no chance to live. Surviving, he returned to full flight status, flying the SR-71 Blackbird. Major Brian Shul completed a 20 year career in the Air Force. He has written four books on aviation and runs a photo studio in Marysville, California. His story was well received by the 200+ banquet audience and was a great cap to the three day event.

NASAO’s Henry O.

Larry Taborsky gives the “State of the State.”

Photos by Amy TaborskySymposiumContinued from previous page


To close out the annual “Gathering of Eagles” the Awards and North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame Social and Ban-quet is the Symposium’s final highlight. The awards presented at this event are in recognition of special efforts made towards improvement of the aviation industry. The FAA’s Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award recognizes pilots who have demonstrated professionalism, skill and aviation expertise by maintaining safe operations for 50 or more years. Recipients are awarded a certificate and a lapel pin and are recognized in the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award – Roll of Honor. Two North Dakotan’s were honored this year, J.B. Lindquist of Hettinger and Robert Miller of Casselton. Both of these gentlemen are members of the ND Aeronautics Commission. The ND Professional Aviation Mechanics Association (NDPAMA) announced the North Dakota Aviation Me-chanic of the Year; Kent Pichard from Bismarck. Kent is a Lead Mechanic Technician for Bismarck Aero Center.

GA Airport of the Year. The Airport Association of ND (AAND) honored Kulm Airport (KDO3) as the GA Airport of the Year. This com-munity has redeveloped a turf airport after high water destroyed the “old” field south of town. The community committed to move and redevelop the facility and over about 10 years they have succeed in their endeavor.

Commercial Airport of the Year Minot International Airport (KMOT) received the Com-mercial Airport of the Year. In 2010, the Minot facility’s list of accomplishments included adding new United Airlines flights to Denver, new Allegiant Air flights to Las Vegas and completing a $760,000 terminal modification project. The airport saw airline boarding’s increase by 36 percent over 2009’s numbers.

North Dakota Awards

ND Aviation Hall of Fame Inducts Odegaard

Robert Odegaard of Kindred, North Dakota was honored by being inducted into the North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame in 2011. Odegaard’s aviation journey began at a young age while watching DC-3s fly over the family farm. Today he is known for his many contributions to aviation, not only in North Dakota, but worldwide. He was the found-er and operator of Odegaard Aviation, originally a fixed base operation and aerial spray firm serving the region that has evolved into a WWII aircraft rebuilding facility. Odegarrd built the first taxi-through indoor aerial spraying loading facility and, as the former owner, rebuilt the Super Corsair, Race 57, a historic aircraft that brought worldwide attention to North Dakota due to its uniqueness. He has raced at the Reno Air Races and has provided entertainment to many air show attendees. His smiley faced bright yellow DC-3, Duggy, is used to spark interest in young people in aviation. Odegaard’s enthusiasm for flight and the repair and rebuilding of aircraft has inspired and continues to inspire others, including his two sons, to in-dulge and participate in aviation. “To have a lot of fun with an airplane and not share it with someone else is a disgrace,” states Odegaard.

Robert Odegaard Family

Air Carrier Airport of the Year L to R:, Larry Tabor-sky, David Waind, City of Minot, Andrew Solsvig, Minot Airport Manager.

GA Airport of the Year - Left to right are Mike Hol-mgren, Larry Taborsky, Anthony Buerkly, and Laurence Holmgren.

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StateAviationJournal-MarchApril2011