ANN has learned from numerous credible sources that aero-hating Chicago Mayor Daley (right) has tried an end-run around the FAA to close off a fair amount of Chicago airspace to America's pilots and aircraft.

Earlier; the FAA had refused Daley's request to institute a "permanent no-fly zone over the city, in response to the upgraded security level in advance of possible U.S. military action against Iraq."

Mind you; Daley had asked for the no-fly zone on previous occasions, using the situation in Washington and New York City (with its very restrictive no-fly zones) as an excuse to further his anti-aviation agenda (and screw his citizens out of all the benefits and cash that aviation feeds into Chicago on a daily basis). Daley reportedly claimed that Chicago residents were not as well protected because the city faced the kind of restrictions seen in NYC and DC. Unfortunately; an equally aero-ignorant Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich, backed Daley's machination.

With the FAA and TSA refusal, Daley's scheme then allegedly targeted the Dept. of Homeland Security's Secretary Tom Ridge... and we now hear reports that Ridge, ever the political animal, is listening.

This does not look good. 

If that wasn't bad enough, EAA told ANN that Daley tried yet another slick trick to seek previously unsuccessful objectives and had also petitioned Ridge to close Meigs Field in downtown Chicago. "Perceived terrorist threats" (or is that political gamesmanship?) have apparently led Daley to shut down Meigs on previous occasions... which seems to suspiciously coincide with Daley's long burning desire to shut down Meigs and turn it into a (yet another) park.

We know that AOPA and EAA are on the scene in Chicago, and we expect to have more word soon, but we advise the embattled pilots who try to fly through or into Chicago that you may be in for some tough times... thanks to yet another bit of political grand-standing from Richard Daley. Remember him well come election day...

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.tsa.gov, www.aopa.org, www.eaa.org