Agency Says Ban Violates Conditions Of AIP Grants

A ban on jets that has been in place at Lantana Airport in Palm Beach County, FL (KLNA) since 1973 has been struck down for a second time by the FAA.

According to attorney Alan Armstrong, an attorney who represented pilot Capt. Errol Forman in his complaint against the airport, the agency determined that the airport's ban on pure turbojets weighing more than 12,500 pounds "violated FAA Sponsor Grant Assurance No. 22 which requires recipients of federal funds at public airports make the airport available as an airport for public use on reasonable terms without unjust discrimination and that the airport be available to all kinds and classes of aeronautical activities."

On February 22, 2019, the agency determined that the ban "could not be sustained." and said that the FAA "may request that the Respondent eliminate or alter restrictions at LNA (Lantana Airport) after further analysis is conducted by the FAA."

The analysis posted by Armstrong is long and technical. It goes through the history of how the county initially passed its jet ban, and how Capt. Forman came to be involved, which is pretty interesting reading. You can find it all at the FMI link below.

FMI: Source report