State Proposes Bill To Prohibit Student Pilots Under 17
EAA circulated a New York State
Member Alert on last week, asking its 4,000 members there to write
Assembly Bill A03899 sponsors, as well as their local
representative, to oppose proposed legislation to prevent persons
under age 17 from piloting an airplane.
As we warned you over two weeks ago,
Republican State Assembly members Bob Barra (14th district), Tom
Alfano (21st district), Tom Kirwan (100th district), and David
Townsend (115th district) introduced the bill to “amend the
general business law, in relation to prohibiting persons less than
17 years of age from operating aircraft” in New York.
Taking Away FAA Authority
EAA’s primary objection to this proposed legislation is
that it attempts to usurp federal government regulation. “It
is the FAA’s responsibility, not the states’, to
regulate pilots and student pilots,” said EAA Vice President
of Government Relations Earl Lawrence. This legislation is
ostensibly aimed to prevent the kind of incident that occurred in
2001 in Tampa (FL), in which a 15-year-old committed suicide by
crashing a stolen plane into a building. “What the
15-year-old in Florida did is already illegal under the existing
federal regulations,” Lawrence said. “The passage of a
state law will not change or reduce the chance that another
15-year-old will steal an aircraft.”
Since that unfortunate
incident, the FAA has put in place—and flight schools have
incorporated a set of provisions to reduce the chance that anyone,
not just a 15-year-old, can gain unauthorized access to an
aircraft. However, NY Assembly Bill A03899 would also prohibit a
16-year-old from obtaining his/her student pilot certificate,
currently authorized under the federal regulations. The bill also
prohibits 15-year-olds from obtaining their glider student pilot
certificate, also allowed under the current federal
regulations.
The security of aircraft and pilot training continues to be
addressed by federal legislation, the Transportation Security
Administration, and FAA. Numerous new laws, regulations, and
agencies’ policies have been enacted since September 11, 2001
to deal with aircraft security and regulating those eligible to
obtain pilot training. Aviation regulation is the federal
government’s jurisdiction, not local authorities. They do not
have a full understanding of the national security risks or pilot
training requirements as do those national agencies designated by
Congress to regulate aviation and aviation security, said the
EAA.