SmartSkies

[flyer172r]

The commercial is outrages. The smartskies really F'd that one up. Biz jets don't cause delays at large airports. They don't get priority handling by ATC. That "advertisement" really torqued me off.

However...the point of smartskies is that GA aircraft don't pay a fair share. I think the term "fair share" means apples to apples. A GA aircraft that flys from TEB to PWK uses the same services as an airliners from LGA to ORD. I agree with that.

The airlines get all moist over the NextGen ATC systems only for one reason....fuel savings.

Well, if airlines were really that into fuel savings, they would have working GPUs and air conditioning available at the gate to reduce APU usage, buy more fuel-efficient planes instead of still flying gas-guzzling DC-9s and MD-88s, and have sufficient ground personnel working the ramp to reduce delays waiting for a gate.

Now about what's a "fair share," I think an important point is how many people are you moving through the ATC system. This is why the fuel tax is a "fair" way of paying for ATC services. Bigger airplanes move more people through the system, and usually burn more fuel thus paying more tax.

The sad truth of the matter is that very few, if any, items in the US tax code can be considered "fair." This system may not be considered fair by everyone, but it works. Now I'm pretty sure everyone can agree that there is a lot of waste at the FAA (like all government agencies), and that finding ways to reduce that waste would benefit everyone.

 

[flyer172r]

Here's a page from the Alliance for Aviation Across America website that says airlines drive the costs of the system. Unfortunately I can't find a link that says how they determined that to be true. I wish I could.

http://www.aviationacrossamerica.com/pubs/mythsrealities.cfm

 

[Sticky]

Now about what's a "fair share," I think an important point is how many people are you moving through the ATC system. This is why the fuel tax is a "fair" way of paying for ATC services. Bigger airplanes move more people through the system, and usually burn more fuel thus paying more tax.

There are two different taxes. Fuel and passenger. Fuel tax is paid by the owner/operator. Passenger tax is paid by the passenger. The only tax on GA aircraft is fuel tax. However, airlines are required to collect the tax from passengers and then hand it over to Uncle Sam...just like sales tax at a store. The airlines don't pay the passenger tax.

How is it that an aircraft that holds 200 people from JFK to ORD generates about $2500 in tax revenue, but a private jet with 2 people from TEB to PWK collects nothing? They both used the same system and were provided the same service from the same facilities.

 

[CDHannah]

If it ain't broke, don't let the Bush administration try to fix it ... i.e. .70/ gallon increase for GA fuel tax.

 

[Sticky]

Here's a page from the Alliance for Aviation Across America website that says airlines drive the costs of the system. Unfortunately I can't find a link that says how they determined that to be true. I wish I could.

http://www.aviationacrossamerica.com/pubs/mythsrealities.cfm

Interesting. That seems to be just as narrow as smartskies. They say that a airliner cost more to control than a private plane. BS. The blips on the radar screen all require the same services. What the website is referencing are reports that include private aircraft operating VFR uncontrolled! Factor those in, and I'm sure the overall cost of private aircraft goes down.

The BOTTOM line is that private aircraft are riding piggy back on a system that paid for by airline passengers.

The taxes charged on fuel alone cannot pay for the services a gulfstream requires to fly from LAX to TEB.

 

[~~~^~~~]

The BOTTOM line is that private aircraft are riding piggy back on a system that paid for by airline passengers.

The taxes charged on fuel alone cannot pay for the services a gulfstream requires to fly from LAX to TEB.

How do you know what the services used by a Gulfstream from LAX to TEB cost? How do you know the taxes on the 6 tons of gas burned are not enough? Please break this down for us.

In any event, attaching another seventy cents on to AvGas is going to result in many parked C172's and Bonanzas. Folks like me who use small airplanes for business will find themselves with an economic incentive to avoid the system - a system which is there for SAFETY.

Lets see, I could skirt the side of busy commercial Class B airspace with my nifty GPS allowing me the precision of staying exactly a half a mile from controlled airspace while I run around the side, or I could pay $40 for flight following. Or $80 to actually coordinate separation with a controller. What is safe? What will most private pilots choose?

Sticky - if you are a pilot, you should know, this is a safety issue as well as an economic issue. Would you want to land in Atlanta, where the controllers regularly vector traffic outside the class B on busy days, knowing Joe private pilot is avoiding talking to air traffic control because he does not have the extra $40 after paying over $200 to fill up his 1960 Cessna 172?

Look around Sun and Fun this year. If this passes, general aviation as we know it is on its way out. The "fat cats" will shrug it off and as a percentage of aviation operations they are too small to make a funding impact.

Bottom line is actually this - Our Constitution gave Congress the power of the budget and the Executive Branch the power to execute the law. The FAA is trying to make an end run around our nation's Constitution by taking funding direct from citizens bypassing Congressional scruitiny.

What if the White House decides to tax the war separately? Everyone could make a tax for their own little pet causes.

Our Nation is a nation of laws founded on a Constitution. Of all the concerns I have over our White House, George Bush's violation of his pledge to uphold our Nation's Constitution is the most serious.

 

[~~~^~~~]

How is it that an aircraft that holds 200 people from JFK to ORD generates about $2500 in tax revenue, but a private jet with 2 people from TEB to PWK collects nothing? They both used the same system and were provided the same service from the same facilities.

A private jet that can fly from TEB to PWK with two people has no passengers because both people are the pilots.

Was this supposed to be a riddle? Someone say Riddle?