By Jim Timm 

April 2016 

I hope all of you are out enjoying the great flying weather we have been having as much as I have. It’s obvious that spring must be here, because I can’t believe the amount of bugs I’ve been picking up flying. It appears that I’ve either been spending too much time flying at low altitudes, or this spring’s bugs are turbocharged so they can now fly higher! In any case, fly safe and make sure it’s only bugs that you’re hitting!

In past articles, we've discussed concerns over the potentially significant proliferation of UAV’s, both hobby and commercial, and the potential risk of a mid-air collision with one of them. There are obviously many of them out there, and they are not all flying by the rules by staying under 400 feet and away from airports. In a recent airspace users meeting, almost all of the control towers in the Phoenix metro area reported experiencing the intrusion of drones, or UAV’s, into their Class Delta Airspace. I read a comment about an A380 landing at LAX having a very close encounter at 5000 feet near the airport. So our area is not unique, and they are out there. What’s the probability that we may hit one? I’ve recently seen a couple of articles that have attempted to put the UAV collision concern into perspective when also considering the potential of a collision with a bird. According to a recent report from the Mercator Center of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, they propose that compared to the enormous population of birds, damaging bird strikes are rare with the most serious incidents resulting from large birds in flocks. The Mercator Center analysis has been based on actual bird strikes, not near misses or simple sightings. They point out that there have not been any recorded UAV collisions with aircraft, and they question the number of drone near-misses provided by the FAA, noting that “the FAA had been counting simple sightings as near misses.” Their conclusion was that since the addition of UAV’s to the airspace is similar in many respects to an increase in the bird population, and because UAV’s spend far less time in the air than birds, they concluded that the risk of a collision with a small drone flying in solitary formation is minimal. I hope this proves to be a valid conclusion.

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS

Be aware, many airports in the Phoenix area are reporting that they have had occasional sightings of UAV’s operating in their airspace. Please keep an eye out for them when flying at reduced altitudes anywhere in the Phoenix area.

INFORMATION CORRECTION: In the last newsletter is was reported that the FAA was considering the discontinuation of several ILS instrument approaches around the country and here in Arizona, but it contained errors. The correction is that the FAA was considering the removal of Instrument Approach Procedures (IAPs) that were underused and/or being replaced by RNAV procedures. The only IAPs proposed for removal were NDB and VOR approaches.  In Arizona there were four locations that IAP’s were considered for removal and they were Bisbee Douglas Intl (DUG) VOR RWY 17, Nogales INTL (OLS) VOR or GPS-A, Casa Grande Muni (CGZ) VOR RWY 05, and Grand Canyon Nat’l Park (GCN) VOR RWY 03. Only the Nogales IAP was removed from service, effective 12/10/15. The IAPs at the other three locations will remain in service; however, they will again be reevaluated at a future date.

If you have not yet received it, you should be getting one soon, the FAA Annual General Aviation and Part 135 Activity Survey for calendar year 2015. They need our help in obtaining accurate information on general aviation activity and safety for the past year. This annual GA Survey is the FAA’s primary source of information on the general aviation fleet, the number of hours flown, and the ways people use general aviation aircraft. The data gathered helps determine funding for infrastructure and service needs, assesses the impact of regulatory changes, and measures aviation safety. The GA Survey is also used to prepare safety statistics and calculate the rate of accidents among general aviation aircraft. 

Be aware, there is still a significant amount of airport construction activity still going on in the Phoenix and Tucson areas, and around the state. Be sure to check for NOTAMs before taking off for another airport so you don’t encounter a nasty surprise when you get there.  

The April reporting period was not bad, but it certainly could have been better. Fortunately there were only three accidents reported. One was devoid of any detailed accident information, and of the other two, one had a serious injury and the other did not involve any injuries. I only hope we can continue the year with a minimum of injury accidents and certainly no more fatal ones. Everyone out there, watch what is happening, and please fly carefully. See my April accident summary for details.

APA is still working with various airports around the state, providing the pilot and aircraft owner perspective in the process of updating their Airport Master Plans. An update of the Sedona Airport (SED), Deer Valley Airport (DVT), and Grand Canyon Airport (GCN) master plans are currently in process.

THINGS TO DO - PLACES TO GO FOR BREAKFAST:

• The first Saturday of the month fly in breakfast is at Coolidge Municipal Airport (P08). 
• The second Saturday of the month, Ryan Field (RYN) fly in buffet breakfast should have restarted. However, breakfast is available at the restaurant next door.
• The Falcon Field EAA Warbirds Squadron fly in breakfast and car show is on the third Saturday.
• The third Saturday of the month there is a fly in breakfast at Benson (E95) at Southwest Aviation. (There are special fuel prices for breakfast attendees.)
• Also on the third Saturday, around noon, a donation lunch is served by the APA at the USFS Grapevine Airstrip next to Roosevelt Lake.  
• The last Saturday of the month there is a fly in breakfast at Casa Grande Municipal Airport (CGZ). The Airport’s restaurant, Foxtrot Cafe, operating in the Terminal Building, is open 6:30am to 2:00pm Monday thru Saturday. On the last Saturday of the month they have a “Fly in Breakfast Special” available on the menu; the price for adults is $7 and kids $5.

Check with the APA Getaway Flights program and the online calendar for fun weekend places to fly.

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