Taber Law Group
Aviation and Airport Development News, October 11, 2010, vol. 2, no. 16

The following is a summary review of articles from all over the nation concerning aviation and airport development law news during the past week.  These were all first posted, in abbreviated form, on http://twitter.com/smtaber^[1].  This Newsletter also appears as a post on our website on our blog, The Aviation and Airport Development News^[2].  For more information about the Taber Law Group, please visit our website:  http://taberlaw.com^[3].

AIRPORTS

terminal operations at the Texas airport, will become only the third director at Tampa International

since 1964. The Hillsborough County Aviation Authority board on Wednesday selected Lopano over former Detroit airport director Lester Robinson to succeed Louis Miller.

Air Mail:  Waxman and Harman to FAA. – Santa Monica Dispatch, September 29, 2010

Dear Administrator Babbitt: We are writing to urge the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to produce a thorough Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) examining flight traffic at Santa Monica Airport (SMO). As you know, SMO is a uniquely situated airport directly abutting densely populated neighborhoods. Both sides of the airport’s single runway face homes as close as 250 feet. The dramatic rise in traffic at the airport in recent years, particularly among large business jets, has elevated community concerns about safety, noise and pollution.

Airport using surplus funds for bills and ramp. – Jerry Lynott, The Times Leader, October 1, 2010

As losses mount for the year, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport is tapping into its surplus of more than $1 million to pay bills and contribute its share for the construction of a new ramp for general aviation operations. The airport, owned and operated by Lackawanna and Luzerne counties, reported a net operating loss of $201,702 through August. Contributing to the loss were first-time pension payments the airport made to the counties; $117,378 to Luzerne and $65,732 to Lackawanna. But an increase in rent for private fliers and higher landing fees for commercial airlines is expected to reduce the loss in the coming months. It should be reduced even further when the fees temporarily waived to attract American Eagle Airlines to the airport start to be collected, said Barry Centini, airport director. The addition of the carrier has boosted passenger numbers by 6,919 since it began service to Chicago in June. For August, the number of people boarding airplanes increased by 7.9 percent from the same period a year ago.