The Fees Don’t Stop Comin’

Unfortunately, city officials all over the country are being taught about landing fees, and it’s spreading at an alarming rate! Aero-News friends over at Stop ADS-B Abuse have long profiled these infernal systems, where ADS-B data can track aircraft activity for fully-automated billing at participating airports. Right now, Arizona’s Falcon Field (FFZ) is looking to impose some landing fees of their own, and locals are putting up a fight. The Phoenix area is plush with flight training, but it’s a delicate ecosystem.

Ambitious Campaign Would Guarantee Preservation for Decades to Come

The Pearl Harbor Museum commemorated December 7th with a campaign to raise $51 million to restore the aging battlefield. Many elements are the original WWII units, but time is catching up to them. That funding will go towards ensuring Pearl Harbor exists for generations to come, to tell the stories of the fallen, and remind kids to come of those who came before. A 4-phase plan will start renovations and improvements in increasing fashion...

ANN Analysis — A Safety System Hijacked for Profit, and a Community That’s Had Enough

The Affordable Flying Expo didn’t just showcase new aircraft and ideas — it exposed a brewing aviation scandal that is rapidly turning into a flashpoint for general aviators across the country. Knowledgeable pilots arrived angry, and for good reason: ADS-B, the system the FAA swore would never be used for enforcement or billing, is now being weaponized as a cash register. Florida is the latest and loudest battleground. Kissimmee Gateway Airport (KISM) has teamed with Vector Solutions, a company that pitches airports on a no-effort way to make money off the backs of aircraft owners. They capture publicly broadcast ADS-B data, match it to tail numbers, count landings, and send invoices — all without a single conversation, notification, warning, or handshake.

Samaritan’s Purse Caravan Was Able to Land and Meet National Security

A Samaritan’s Purse humanitarian flight was hijacked on Tuesday, December 2, while attempting to supply a mobile medical unit in South Sudan. Authorities were able to meet the aircraft on the ground and take the suspect into custody without further incident.