FREDERICK, MD – The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) and the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) have jointly filed a motion to intervene in a case before the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit regarding the continuing operation of Santa Monica Municipal Airport.
The motion filed Sept. 26 would allow the associations to participate as principle parties to the case, which will review the FAA’s final agency decision issued Aug. 15. That decision ound that the City of Santa Monica remains under federal grant obligations until Aug. 27, 2023 and must keep the airport open and operating according to terms that the City agreed to when they accepted money from the federal government, including that the City make the airport available on reasonable terms and without undue discrimination at least until that time.
“By asking to intervene in this case, we’re really asking to continue to be involved in these issues as we have been from the beginning,” said Ken Mead, general counsel for AOPA. “The federal grant process allows airports all over the country to maintain, improve, and expand their facilities using taxpayer money. Those airports then have an obligation to continue to serve the public that has funded those airport projects. Allowing Santa Monica to circumvent its obligations would have adverse consequences at the airport and create an extremely dangerous precedent by jeopardizing the availability of federal funds for airports nationwide.”
In the request to intervene, AOPA and NBAA note that they have “substantial interests in the outcome of this proceeding” and “seek to protect those interests.” Both AOPA and NBAA were complainants in the FAA administrative proceeding that resulted in the order that Santa Monica keep the airport open at least until 2023. The associations also note that the airport is part of the integrated national airspace system (NAS) and serves as a general aviation reliever in the busy Southern California airspace. Closing it, they warn, would not only affect those who use the airport for business and personal flying, but also would add congestion to already crowded airspace and set a dangerous precedent for airports nationwide that have accepted federal grant money for airport improvements and expansion.
Read AOPA’s story.
About AOPA
Since 1939, AOPA has protected the freedom to fly by creating an environment that gives people of all ages the opportunity to enjoy aviation and all it has to offer. As the world’s largest community of pilots and aviation enthusiasts with representatives based in Frederick, Md., Washington, D.C., Wichita, Kans., and seven regions across the United States, AOPA’s events, initiatives, and services bring current and future pilots together and make aviation more accessible to everyone. To learn more, visit www.aopa.org.