"Airport officials concerned about new Part 139 rules"

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

Airport officials concerned about new federal rules
The Associated Press


CLARENDON, Vt. (AP) - Officials at the Rutland State Airport are
concerned about new federal rules that require certain airports to have
enhanced safety and firefighting capabilities. 

Under current Federal Aviation Administration regulations Rutland is
designated a limited-certificate airport, which is authorized to handle
airlines with planes that have a capacity of no more than 30 passengers.
Those airports also are licensed to handle unscheduled or charter
aircraft with a capacity of more than 30 passengers. 

The designation means that the Rutland airport is only required to have
a local fire department on call to respond to emergencies. 

CommutAir operates four roundtrip flights each weekday from Rutland -
three to Boston and one to Albany - using 19-passenger aircraft. 

Assistant airport manager Don DeGraw said Monday that under the new FAA
rules, which went into effect June 9, Rutland stands to be reclassified
to a Class II airport, which means that at least one firefighter would
have to stand by at the airport before and after the arrival and
departure of each commercial flight. 

DeGraw said it would be more appropriate for the airport to be
designated as a Class III, which means it would be able to maintain its
current on-call emergency response with the city fire department. 

Requiring a firefighting presence at the airport would cost about
$300,000 a year, DeGraw said. 

The new rules have caught the attention of Vermont's two U.S. senators,
Patrick Leahy and James Jeffords. The senators recently urged
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta and FAA Administrator Marion
Blakey to use discretion in applying the new rules. 

"We believe the FAA is right in updating its fire protection regulations
to keep up with rapidly developing aviation technology," Leahy and
Jeffords wrote in a June 18 letter. "But it is also essential that the
unique circumstances of individual airports are taken into consideration
when developing operating plans to maintain safe and reliable air
service to our rural communities." 

DeGraw said the FAA has yet to make a decision on whether Rutland will
be designated a Class II or Class III airport. 

FAA spokesman James Peters said Monday that airports can seek
"exemptions or modifications to the new rules." 

Peters said airports have until June 2007 to comply with the new
regulations.


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