Airplane Movements, Camping, Attendance All Increase In The Early Days Of The Show

EAA Chairman Jack Pelton said that AirVenture 2015 is off to a great start, despite some rough weather that moved through central Wisconsin on Saturday.

"We're experiencing a record number of airplanes over the past couple of days. About a thousand airplane movements for arrivals over what we've seen the last two years. We've seen camping that been up about 13 percent over the last few years, and gate attendance also up about seven percent."

Pelton said it was difficult to say why the numbers were on the rise this year, "other than there seems to be a little more optimism in the world of General Aviation. I think we're seeing more and more people recovering and back flying again."

And with more flying being done, AirVenture seems to be high on the list of places pilots want to go, Pelton said.

Pelton said that the FAA has finally come to the conclusion that it should support a third class medical exemption for GA pilots. But the NPRM for the exemption has been stuck at the Department of Transportation for over a year, so EAA as part of its advocacy efforts is pursuing other pathways to get that done. One is the Pilots' Bill of Rights II introduced by Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe last year. A vote on PBOR II may come in September, Pelton said.

He also said that the exemption could be made a part of the FAA reauthorization bill to be considered by Congress later this year. "We do know, in that currently proposed bill, there is a third class medical provision in there."

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta is scheduled to be at AirVenture Thursday for a session with the attendees as well as a separate media availability.

(Staff image)

FMI: www.eaa.org