Flight Schools at SMO

Transcription

1 Flight Schools at SMO John Fairweather

2 SMO Traffic Breakdown Almost 2/3 of SMO traffic is flight school and training related. Same for evenings, weekends and holidays. Flight School+Training Jet Other 31% Prop Planes (~90%) use Leaded Fuel. Source:Community 2011 studies, 500 observed flights over months. 8% 61%

3 Flight School Breakdown Justice Aviation - largest. American Flyers, Skyward Aviation Usage varies by day of week. 3% 3% 16% 17% 2% 5% 11% 42% 100% 75% 50% 25% Justice Aviation Skyward Aviation Proteus Air Services Santa Monica Flyers America Flyers Santa Monica Aviation Air Spacers Flying Club Other Local Loop Traffic 0% Mon Tues Wed Thur Fri Sat Sun

4 100% SMO % Residential Surroundings 75% 50% 25% WHP OXR SBD EMT TOA FUL POC VCV CMA RAL VNY CNO 0% Number of Flight Schools Why so Many?

5 Why - Ineffective Ordinance Circumvented using Taxi-back on ground. Allows Flight Schools to engage in pattern flying from 7 AM to 11 PM every day. Other local airports restrict taxi-backs also. No city action to tighten restrictions. (a) Touch and Go and Stop and Go operations are prohibited on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, and during weekdays between one-half (1/2) hour after sunset and 7:00 a.m. of the following morning.

6 Why - No Landing Fees Flight Schools do not pay landing fees, unlike all other airport users. Landing fees cover less than 10% of airport costs. Granted by City to flight schools in 2005 after the large jets lawsuit. Result of flight school lobbying, not FAA request. Supposed to be one-shot, but granted thereafter to new schools/planes.

7 Why - Information Hiding Airport Commission had no data on airport usage (until community studies). Not allowed to see complaints data (even though FAA does). Staff no longer supplying VFR tail numbers Misleading data from staff

8 Pattern Flying

9 Pattern - Noise Impact db 4 Planes in the Pattern - 8 minute loops db Annoyed 40% of the time 75 db Time minutes Usage Type Average Maximum Flight Schools 76.4 db 85 db Jet Aircraft 81.1 db 83.8 db Pattern Loop Variant Time in Air Time on Ground Total Loop Time Touch and Go >= 3.5 min < 1 min 4-5 mins Stop and Go >= 3.5 min 1.5 min 5-6 mins Other Prop. Traffic 76 db 83.9 db Taxi Back (Day Time) >= 3.5 min 4 mins 8-9 mins Taxi Back (Tower Closed) >= 3.5 min 2 mins 6-7 mins

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11 150.0 Saturdays Apr 23, 2011 May 7, 2011 May 21, 2011 Jun 4, 2011 Jun 18, 2011 Jul 2, 2011 Jul 16, 2011 Jul 30, Sundays The Great Lull Apr 24, 2011 May 8, 2011 May 22, 2011 Jun 5, 2011 Jun 19, 2011 Jul 3, 2011 Jul 17, 2011 Jul 31,2011 Pattern -Weekends

12 30.0 Week Nights The Little Lull Apr Apr 24, 24, 2011 May 8, 8, 2011 May 22, 22, 2011 Jun Jun 5, 5, 2011 Jun Jun 19, 19, 2011 Jul Jul 3, 3, 2011 Jul Jul 17, 17, 2011 Jul Jul 31,2011 Pattern - Evenings

13 Pattern - Summary Over 1,300 proscribed loops documented/analyzed over 3.5 months. Pattern flying after dark is heavily dependent on weather conditions. When conditions permit, on average 50% of evening traffic is caused by pattern flying. This at a time when pattern flying is prohibited! This percentage can increase to over 85% when multiple planes in the loop. On average there are between 40 and 50 pattern loops each day on the weekend for a total of up to 100 for the entire weekend. This average is almost unaffected by the weather conditions.

14 Health and Safety Leaded Fuel 60% of SMO noise is from flight schools Aprox. one crash/year from SMO over last 20 years

15 Recent Crashes Oct. 7, 2008: Iniziative Industriale Italian Sky Arrow 600 Sport (fatal). Witnesses observed the plane flying low over the water and then, while it was making a steep left turn, they saw it nose over and impact the ocean off Malibu and sink. The student pilot and instructor (from Northfield Aviation), who suffered critical injuries, were flown by helicopter to UCLA Medical Center. The instructor later died. Jan. 28, 2009: SIAI-Marchetti SF-260C (fatal). The single-engine plane lost power during takeoff, crashed on the west end of the runway and burst into flames. The probable cause was the pilot's failure to select the proper fuel tank for takeoff, which resulted in a loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control while attempting a return to runway maneuver. The pilot and passenger died. Aug. 2, 2009: Davenport DAVE-EZ (nonfatal). The aircraft experienced engine failure after takeoff. The pilot attempted to turn back to land but crashed on the taxiway. July 1, 2010: Cessna 152 (fatal). Cleared by the tower for touch-and-go pattern work, the pilot failed to maintain adequate air speed and airplane control during the initial climb, resulting in an aerodynamic stall/spin. Witnesses observed the plane make a 90-degree left turn and enter into a spiraling nose dive. The plane crashed nose-down near the 8th hole of the Penmar Golf Course, and the pilot died. The plane was rented from Justice Aviation. Mar. 10, 2011: Piper PA-280R-200 (nonfatal). The student pilot and the instructor from Justice Aviation were forced to land in a field near Agoura Hills after the plane lost power. Aug. 29, 2011: Cessna 172 (nonfatal). According to reports, the pilot, after 40 hours of instruction, attempted to land at SMO and was instructed to go around. The plane crashed into the side of a house at 21st and Navy, and the pilot and one person on the ground were injured. The plane, owned by Justice Aviation, was built in 1973.

16 Are Flight Schools Safe? 4 out of last 7 crashes/incidents at SMO have been flight school related. Two of them fatal. Three by Justice Aviation (1 fatal, 1 injuries). Out of 82 SMO incidents/crashes since 1982, 22 have been flight school related. Justice Aviation - 7 (4 fatalities) American Flyers - 4 (2 fatalities)

17 Published Safety Statements Justice Aviation written statement in response to Aug 29,2011 crash: In 20 years, and with more than 2,000 students, none have suffered serious injury in a crash City of Santa Monica written statement on Sept 2,1011 in response to Aug 29,2011 crash: This is the first known accident involving a student pilot directly associated with one of the Airport s flight schools.

18 Conclusions Too many flight schools Need to fix pattern flying ordinance Health and Safety Issues Need for increased openness esp. in current visioning process. Lots to do before 2015 (lease expires).

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