Pilots surveyed for Alaska flight service modernization
As the FAA prepares to launch a multiyear initiative to modernize flight service in Alaska, AOPA and the Alaska Airmen Association are surveying the state’s pilots on their priorities for flight service and service-delivery improvements far into the future.
The project, called the Alaska Flight Service Initiative, will have its formal launch in May at a meeting of the FAA and stakeholders in Anchorage, at which the online survey’s findings will be presented.
AOPA and the Alaska Airmen Association advocated for the initiative in 2018, noting in a joint letter to the FAA that flight service “is a fundamental resource pilots use to access flight critical information, yet, it has not been comprehensively modernized in decades. We encourage the FAA to move forward on a modernization effort that will streamline service delivery and meet pilot’s needs.”
The FAA agreed, and has begun to implement the initiative in collaboration with the aviation community and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which represents flight service specialists, said Rune Duke, AOPA senior director of airspace, air traffic, and aviation security.
“The FAA wants to ensure the service meets user needs in the modern National Airspace System and leverages evolving technology,” he said.
The joint letter highlighted Alaska’s dependence on aviation, noting that according to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, 82 percent of Alaska’s communities are not accessible by road, and the state’s average number of enplanements per capita for off-road communities is approximately eight times higher than in comparable communities in rural western U.S. states.
Also, the time is right for an overhaul of Alaska’s flight service in light of the FAA’s continuing consideration of bids for a new flight service contractor for the continental United States, Duke said.
“For pilots flying in Alaska and using flight service, this is great news,” said Tom George, AOPA Alaska region manager. “We appreciate the FAA listening to Alaska pilots and pursuing a collaborative approach to identify those services that are important to general aviation and what new services are desired. We look forward to sharing the feedback we get from our members.”
