FDK Commission Considering Its Position On Issue

One of aviation's most vocal -- and effective -- voices against FAA user fees has been the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. Now, just as it looked as if Congress might be leaning towards denying the FAA an entirely fee-based funding scheme, AOPA faces a new user fee threat in its own backyard.

Maryland's Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK) may soon see not only rate hikes, but landing fees as part of the city's next budget. Airport Manager Charles Abell sees an opportunity to extract revenue from pilots of transient aircraft, which make up 18 percent of Frederick's traffic. This would presumably include pilots flying in to visit AOPA Headquarters, located on the field.

The Airport Commission hasn't had a chance yet to take a position on the issues, but was scheduled to discuss them and decide whether or not to back them during a special meeting Tuesday night. Abell presented the proposals to the commission after the mayor presented his budget to the Board of Aldermen, Jonathan J. Greenway, the commission's vice chairman, told the Frederick News-Post.

"It was not something that was brought up before the commission in a timely manner," Greenway said. "This was just foisted on us as if there was some agenda that they were going to do this come hell or high water."

According to commission minutes, Frederick Mayor William J. Holtzinger released his proposed budget on March 21... and it included both the fee increase, and the new landing fee. But, the airport commission wasn't briefed on the fee hike until the next day, and it wasn't until its April meeting that Abell briefed the commission on the landing fees.

In defense of the proposals, Abell said he is obliged to keep the airport on a sound fiscal footing, but airport commission members tend to be pilots who "generally dislike" fee increases.

"If I waited for (the commission) to approve it, it might not ever get approved," he said. "The budget can't wait for you -- you've got to get money there."

FDK is expected to lose nearly $250,000 a year in revenues it had received as rent, from properties it purchased as part of a recently completed long-term obstruction removal project, and then leased back to the former owners, Abell said.

But, raising hangar and tie-down fees by about 15 percent and adding a landing fee on aircraft not based at FDK would help to address that, he said. Renegotiating airport leases as they expire will help also, he said.

Abell said Monday he projects the new landing fee would bring in $118,000 a year, down somewhat from the $200,000 a year included in the proposed budget released in March by the mayor. The exact amount of the fee has not been set.

Of that $118,000, roughly $35,000 would be used to pay contractor to operate an automated system to collect the new fees, Abell said.

FDK performed a survey of five nearby airports listed as having similar fees to FDK in July 2006. Four of those fields -- Martin State Airport in Baltimore, Montgomery County Airpark, and airports in Leesburg and Manassas, VA -- have no landing fees, according to airport staff and flight service providers.

Landing fees have not been the norm at noncommercial airports, but Abell says he fully expects that to change as federal aviation funds decrease.

 The Board of Aldermen is scheduled to vote on the budget May 17.

FMI: www.aopa.org, www.cityoffrederick.com/departments/Airport/Main.htm