Schumer Demands FAA Complete Top to Bottom Review of NY Airspace in Light of Recent Crash and Terrorism Threat Within 90 Days

Schumer Demands FAA Complete Top To Bottom Review Of NY Airspace In Light Of Recent Crash And Terrorism Threat Within 90 Days

Senator Gives FAA 9 Possible Ways to Make Airspace Safer Including Rapid Response Helicopters, Chem/Bio Risk Assessment for Small Planes, Background Checks for Frequent Flyers

Schumer: The FAA is Living in the Past, Must Finally Consider Terrorism in Addition to Safety

Following last week's tragic airplane accident on the Upper East Side which exposed gaping holes in New York City's aviation security and the city's vulnerability to terrorism, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to complete a top-to-bottom assessment of the New York airspace in the next 90 days. On Friday the FAA imposed a new regulation requiring pilots to seek specific permission from air traffic control to fly over the East River corridor but did not look at a host of other security issues for the New York airspace. Today Schumer asked the FAA to complete this study and look at nine specific issues. He also demanded that the FAA focus on terrorism, not just safety when making new regulations for New York.

"Last week's tragic accident underscored just how vulnerable our city still is, and it made clear that the FAA is living in the past. It is still, somehow, only focused on safety when it also needs to seriously consider the risks of terrorism," Schumer said. "It boggles the mind that we have gone to great lengths to ensure lip gloss and deodorant do not get on our commercial airplanes, but we cannot get our general aviation regulations up to snuff though we have repeatedly seen the possible consequences. The FAA hasn't completed an assessment of our airspace and the regulations since before 9-11, it is well past time."

General aviation includes small planes and helicopters, and encompasses virtually all flights other than scheduled passenger airline, military, and cargo flights. Despite the efforts to upgrade the nation's commercial air security after 9/11, general aviation rules for small planes and helicopters traveling over New York City have not been significantly upgraded over the last ten years and remain less stringent in comparison to the aviation rules imposed around Washington D.C.. New York's current rules leave security officials and air traffic controllers with no real way of knowing if a plane or helicopter has veered off course and is heading to a potential terrorist target.

Though the airspace rules for New York were tightened around 9-11, at the beginning of the Iraq war and for the Republican convention in 2004 but the tighter regulations were rescinded after each occasion. Schumer said today that its high time to FAA really assess the airspace regulations in New York and asked the FAA to look at nine changes to make New York Safer without strangling commerce.

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http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/pressroom/record.cfm?id=264742&&year=2006&