User fees proposed for air traffic services (AND a fuel tax increase)

Washington Post ^ | 02/05/07 | John Crawley

[narby]

The Bush administration proposed on Monday that airlines pay billions in user fees to replace ticket and other taxes that currently underwrite much of the nation's air traffic control system.

...

Business jet owners and other private fliers would likely pay higher fuel taxes as part of the new formula, industry officials said.

[narby]

The Republicans descend into tax increases (labeled as "user fees") PLUS fuel tax increases. The current FAA budget is in the black, so obviously they want to siphon off money allocated for aviation to pay for ... whatever.

The airlines are behind this. The airlines will do fine. The billionaires and their Gulfstreams will do fine. But a few hundred thousand of us "little airplane" pilots will take it in the shorts.

General aviation is on the fuzzy edge of the critical mass necessary to exist at all. I'm afraid the US will go the way that Europe did, and the only airplanes will be ultralights that go slower than my pickup truck, and mass transit airliners.

[Aeronaut]

[bill1952]

You nailed it dude. Perfect.

[spunkets]

It's a country club thing.

[Turbopilot]

Business jet owners and other private fliers

Great quote. No one mentions that the "other private fliers" are people like the 19-year-old college student struggling to pay $70 or more an hour to rent a two-seat Cessna to get his private certificate, or the retiree on a fixed income who just wants to tool around in the antique Taylorcraft he restored himself. It's just "business jets and others". No bias from the WaPo here </s>

They might as well have said "Business jet owners and other evil rich".

[US_MilitaryRules]

The gov messes with EVERYTHING I love to do. Small planes I make a living with. Riding dirtbikes and they take away land and coup you up in small pens to crash into each other. Muscle cars use to much gas. Etc...etc... B@stards.

[GoldCountryRedneck]

From the article: Private plane owners, who like the airlines have a powerful lobby in Washington, fiercely oppose the plan. "This is real and it's just as bad as we thought it was going to be," said Phil Boyer, president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the leading general aviation trade group.

If you're not a member of AOPA, JOIN!. It's the only large (400,000+ members) organized group (maybe EAA as well) trying to twist congressional arms against user fees.

[af_vet_rr]

Too true. The past few years have seen one attack after another on GA. Starting with all of the false alarm crap about using crop dusters as terrorist weapons, etc.

The way some act, it was a bunch of little Cessnas and not airliners that flew into the WTC, etc.

At times it's hard to say who's more anti-GA - the feds, or people like a certain mayor of Chicago.

[dalereed]

"If you're not a member of AOPA, JOIN!."

Been a member for the last 27 years.

[biff]

Every damn one of the politicians just want more and more of our money. I keep wondering if there will be that perverbial 'straw that breaks the camel's back' but it seems as though the money pit is bottomless and people will just blindly continue forking over more of their money until there is no more.

[eyeamok]

i allready pay $4 per gallon for avgas in my 172,and of curse Ca hits me with $500 per year in use tax. I would be in favor of putting ALL FEDERAL EMPLOYEES on the DO NOT FLY LIST

[ExSES]

Business jet owners and other private fliers would likely pay higher fuel taxes as part of the new formula, industry officials said.

Makes "Light Sport" ever more attractive (use auto gas). However, if you are stuck at a big city airport you are screwed! I have to feed the Beech 200HP Musketeer fuel at $4.25/gallon locally ($3.35/gallon 20 miles away). Looking forward to feeding a Rotax powered LSA premium auto fuel at $2.30/gallon! I now have to drive 35 miles to the new home airport but, it is a low-key airport which is tolerant of "do it yourselfers"! The drive is well worth it! I'll miss the bigger birds but..., the flying is cheaper and more fun!

[taildragger]

General aviation is on the fuzzy edge of the critical mass necessary to exist at all. I'm afraid the US will go the way that Europe did, and the only airplanes will be ultralights that go slower than my pickup truck, and mass transit airliners.

Narby,

As the Pilot population continues to gentrify and not replenish, we are swept to the margins of the Rovian vision. Never mind the margins, we may have been thrown overboard. Gone are the days of George Herbert Walker Bush visiting Paul Poberezny at EAA, we don't have the numbers.

Without the patriotic WWII pilots around as a voting force as many are now on their final mission, I am afraid we will go the way of Europe as far as Gen Av.

Part 103 less than 254 lbs. is looking better every day....

[LIConFem]

Republican: Just another word for well-dressed Democrat who bathes daily.