U.S. Plans More Scrutiny for General Aviation

Think the FAA’s August decision to shrink and streamline the Air Defense Identification Zone around Washington was a harbinger of a “kinder and gentler” U.S. government view of general aviation? Think again. Testifying before the Senate Homeland Security Committee today, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said that agency plans more stringent requirements on general aviation flights to prevent them from being used to smuggle weapons of mass destruction into the United States. The feds since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks have focused on heading off such smuggling on commercial airline flights and shipping. With countermeasures for them in place, Chertoff said, it’s time to focus on GA as a smuggling tool. New requirements, which will start with transoceanic GA flights, will include early reporting of crewmembers and passengers on a flight and expand “ultimately to a process of physical screening of private aircraft” at their departure points abroad.        For related news