Francis: Playing chicken with the Federal Aviation Administration

It’s busy around here and everyone feels it. How do we slow down? If the decision is to widen the runway or not, get informed. Don’t sign on to a plan that you don’t understand.

Aspen Fly Right is flying wrong. Many don’t realize that they were wrong on the fixed-base-operator (FBO) issue and once the numbers were made public they did a 180-degree turn — supporting Atlantic running the FBO. But now it’s difficult to lock in the contract with Atlantic because of the uncertainty created by Aspen Fly Right, while also seeking to delay the decision that both the Airport Advisory Board and the Pitkin Board of County Commissioners have made — that the new Airport Layout Plan (ALP) should be submitted to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for approval. Aspen Fly Right is asking Pitkin County to “play chicken” with the FAA — and this is a terrible idea. If citizens want to take on regulatory mandates, they need to organize and speak to Congress, not plan a midair collision with the FAA.

As someone who has been involved in local airport issues for 20 years (currently airport advisory board chair) and expressing my own opinion as a citizen, I promise you this ALP is good. Also, as a climate solutionist, the plan has everything I could possibly include to make our airport more climate friendly (as far as airports go).

If you want to understand the complexity of airport planning, financing, regulatory requirements, and respecting community input, please come to the monthly meetings — third Thursday of every month at the airport operations center or on zoom. Voting to decapitate the Airport Advisory Board and the BoCC on this important and complicated decision is wacky. The leadership of the group pushing for it, Citizens Against Bigger Planes, parachuted into town a few months ago and do not have your best interests in mind. I do.

There is also a local pilots group that has formed to collectively bargain for their concerns to be heard. If you are a local pilot — join in.

Jacquelyn Francis

Aspen