Senate-Approved Appropriations Bill Would Reinstate the BARR
NBAA last week welcomed the Senate's passage of an appropriations bill with language reinstating the Block Aircraft Registration Request (BARR) program. "We thank the Senate for approving this bill with language to restore the BARR program, and we hope the House will finalize legislation to reinstate the program as soon as possible," said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen. The language is included in H.R. 2112, a funding package for several government agencies, including the Department of Transportation. The bill now returns to the House for final consideration. Learn more about efforts in Congress to restore the BARR.

NBAA Applauds Senators' Rejection of User Fees
NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen thanked a bipartisan group of 23 senators who sent a letter to President Obama opposing general aviation (GA) user fees. The November 2 letter, sponsored by Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS), strongly opposes the $100 per-flight tax on turbine-powered aircraft and other proposed user fees the president has offered Congress as part of a deficit-reduction package. A congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction must agree by November 23 on a deficit-reduction plan with at least $1.5 trillion in savings over the next 10 years. Bolen said the senators "know that user fees would pose an onerous, hidden administrative cost for the thousands of small and mid-size businesses that rely on aircraft to succeed." Learn more.

New Online Tool Helps Identify Flight Risks
A free online Flight Risk Analysis Tool (FRAT) has been developed to help flightcrews quickly assess threats to safety for a particular flight. Developed as part of a study, the FRAT presents operators with an easy-to-understand summary of the risks associated with each mission. No identifying data is collected in order to produce a risk analysis and operators can try the tool before putting it to use before a live flight. Access the Flight Risk Analysis Tool and direct questions to NBAA's Operations Service Group at info@nbaa.org. Learn more about how this tool fits into a safety management system (SMS) on NBAA's SMS resource site.

Changes to Customs Fees Now in Effect
As part of the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement recently signed by President Obama, certain exemptions from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) user fees have been eliminated. Prior to this change, commercial operators were not required to remit the $5.50 per-passenger fee on arrivals to the U.S. from Canada, Mexico, U.S. territories and possessions and "adjacent" islands. Under the new law, the exemption for arrivals from Canada, Mexico and adjacent islands has been eliminated. The exemption for arrivals from U.S. territories and possessions is still in place. Commercial operators should ensure that their billing and accounting systems are updated to account for this change. Learn more about international arrival fees.

iPad Update Deletes Pilot Charts; Apple Says Fix Is Coming
Within days after Apple released its iOS 5 update on October 12, several pilots with aeronautical charts and other flight information downloaded onto their iPads discovered some of those files were missing, without any notice or explanation. Fortunately, on November 2, Apple announced that a fix is coming to resolve the error. Learn more.

Report: Pre-Owned Aircraft Sales Up, but Asking Prices Down
Sales of pre-owned business jets increased through the first nine months of 2011, but asking prices on aircraft have largely trended downward, according to a monthly report published on October 28 by JETNET LLC, a provider of industry data. "Pre-owned business jet asking prices are more in line than they were 18 months ago, but the current reversal in average asking price is a big concern for the seller," JETNET said in the report. Learn more.

Bolen Tells Congressman: User Fees a 'Destructive Force'
In Capitol Hill testimony before an October 6 House subcommittee, NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen issued a dire warning about the $100 per-flight user fee proposed by President Obama as part of deficit reduction. Speaking in response to a question from House Aviation Subcommittee member Sam Graves (R-6-MO), Bolen said: "Congressman, the $100 per-flight fee is at best a distraction at a time when our industry cannot afford to be distracted. At worst, it is a very destructive force." View the NBAA Video segment detailing Bolen's full testimony.

Point of Impact: User Fees Alarm North Carolina Job Creator
In nine years, Greensboro, NC entrepreneur Tom Coble has grown his trench safety services and equipment business to 11 branches and 80 people. Earlier this year, he won the 2011 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Carolinas award. But the 57-year-old job creator is alarmed by proposals from President Obama to target business airplanes like his King Air B200 twin-engine turboprop with per-flight user taxes. "The bottom line is that these additional taxes on one of my most important business tools are counterproductive," Coble said. "They would just decrease the incentive to grow my business and employ more people." Read more of Coble's story.

Conflict Grows Over EU-ETS
The world moved closer last week to a confrontation over the European Union's proposed Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS), a plan to charge civil aviation operators for carbon emissions from their aircraft. The International Civil Aviation Organization adopted a working paper put forth by the U.S., China and two dozen other nations that signed onto the "New Delhi Joint Declaration" – an international rejection of the EU's unilateral plan. Listen to the NBAA Flight Plan podcast, and learn what the most recent developments mean for the business aviation community.

Russia Improves Process for Issuance of Overflight and Landing Permission
Effective November 17, changes to the Federal Rules for Use of Airspace in Russia will change how operators obtain overflight and landing permissions. Under the new rules, permissions for international flights will be based on filed flight plans and subject to the international agreements of the Russian Federation. If a flight plan is accepted within two hours of a flight, permission is deemed to be granted for the flight. The changes also clarify that non-commercial flights do not require international traffic rights to operate within Russia. Authorities will continue to use random ramp checks to ensure that operators are in compliance with applicable regulations. NBAA thanks the Russian Business Aviation Association and Leonid Koshelev for their leadership on this issue. Learn more about operations in Russia.

Runway Highlights New Hampshire Airport's Economic Benefits
New Hampshire's Nashua Municipal Airport, also known as Boire Field (ASH), has kicked off construction of a new, 6,000-foot runway to provide an extra safety margin on hot days and allow business airplanes to depart with more fuel for longer flights. With about 60 federal, state and local officials attending the kickoff, the occasion has underscored the economic benefits the airport provides, and the role of the new runway in attracting more business investment. "Business that flows through our airport is worth some $28 to $30 million annually for the region," said Chris Williams, president and CEO of the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce. "And there are roughly 300 jobs directly connected with it." Read more about the Boire Field runway project.

California Increases Penalties for Independent Contractor Misclassification
The State of California had enacted a new law regarding the classification of employees and independent contractors. Senate Bill 459, also known as the Worker Classification Bill, significantly increases the risks and penalties for employers who misclassify workers as independent contractors when, in fact, they should be designated as employees. The bill not only imposes significant financial penalties on employers who are found to have engaged in willful misclassification, but also requires them to post a public notice of their unlawful behavior on their website or at their principal place of business. Learn more about these changes in an NBAA Tax Committee article.

Save the Date: Webinar on Best Practices for Outsourcing Maintenance, Dec. 7
NBAA will host a live webinar on December 7 at 1:00 p.m. ET moderated by Jim Sparks, vice chairman of the Association's Maintenance Committee, on outsourcing maintenance projects. Focusing on the importance of setting realistic expectations and identifying pitfalls with any outsourced project, panelists will speak to the perspectives of the customer, broker, regulatory advisor, original equipment manufacturer and the maintenance facility. Further details will be published soon, and registration for the webinar begins on November 14. For more information about the December 7 webinar, contact NBAA's Jo Damato at jdamato@nbaa.org.