Government GA recognition

[Brian Hope]

The UK Government’s Aviation Minister Theresa Villiers, in a recent speech to the Associate Parliamentary Aerospace Group (APAG), made what must be one of the most significantly positive references to GA and Business Aviation for some while.
There can be little doubt that the considerable efforts of the GA Alliance, a facilitating group of the UK’s volunteer run sports and recreational aviation bodies (of which our own Roger Hopkinson is the Facilitator), to ensure that GA’s specific requirements are firmly on the agenda of the Department for Transport (DfT) are bearing fruit. Only when government departments recognise the positive benefits of GA to the business and social community can we expect our needs to be understood and fully considered when new regulation is formulated.
Below is the section of Theresa Villiers’ speech that highlights the fact that GA, as a specific entity, is now positively on the DfT radar:

“I was asked today to focus on the Government’s overall approach to the aviation sector as a whole. However, no speech to the Air League would be complete without reference to General and Business Aviation. I’ve already acknowledged the economic significance of GA. But I also fully recognise that GA’s contribution to aviation goes beyond the merely economic. It provides thousands of enthusiasts the chance to enjoy their passion for flying, providing world class training for pilots, technicians and many other roles and inspires many youngsters to take up a career in the aviation business. So I fully appreciate the importance of ensuring our policy and regulatory framework for aviation deals with GA in a proportionate way. While some issues and standards will clearly cut across the whole of the aviation sector, there will be other areas where a one-size-fits-all approach would have an unfair and disproportionate impact on General and Business Aviation. So we engaged with Ofcom when their proposals on spectrum pricing looked set to impose a very heavy burden on GA. While the outcome still involves additional charges, they are far more modest than the initial proposals and reflect the fact that GA concerns have been heard and acted on.
After discussions with the Parliamentary Aviators’ Group, I wrote formally to my DCLG colleagues emphasising the importance of small airfields. My goal was to make sure the transport benefits of these facilities were properly taken on board in the planning system. I would urge this group and others interested in GA to engage with the Department for Communities as they take forward their plans on reforming the planning system.
This is a useful opportunity for voices to be heard. And I’ve been hassling my officials on the new EASA rules on pilot qualification. The decision to require US registered pilots to obtain a licence from an EU member state was taken by the previous Government. I’m afraid this was a fait accompli before I arrived as Aviation Minister. But I want to assure you that we’re doing what we can to minimise any unnecessary bureaucracy and to give pilots sufficient time to comply with the new rules. And lastly on GA matters, I should mention that I will shortly be writing to Siim Kallas who covers transport for the European Commission about the importance of GA. The Commission’s 2007 communication on General and Business Aviation contained much that was welcomed by the GA community. The response of the European Parliament was also positive. The point I want to make to Commissioner Kallas is that we’ve yet to see the good intentions laid out in those documents manifest themselves in practical application. In particular, the EU institutions should take more seriously the need to properly assess the differential impact that new regulations can have on General Aviation and to ensure that a proportionate approach is adopted reflecting the specific characteristics of the sector. To persuade the Commission that a one-size-fits-all approach across the sector is not always the best one.”

[Bob F]

Very welcome comments, refeshing to hear this kind of support for GA come from a minister.

[Dave Evans]

They obviously don't think much of GA, otherwise the Government wouldn't have put such draconian restrictions in place for the 2012 Olympics..

You believe Politicians?

[CaptChaos]

Perhaps they could demonstrate their support to GA by removing Brown's reclassification of airfields from brownsite to greensite for planning.

[Bill Scott]

Talk is cheap

Particularly the utterances of politicians