Comments on: Tiny Airports Get Big Cut of Stimulus Cash

Small, Rural Airports Get Big Payouts While Safety Violations at Major National Airports Get Little Attention

[aviationgeek84]

This is NOT a "rich mans" club. If you think it is, educate yourself. www.gaservingamerica.org

I am amazed that CBS News would even think of broadcasting a story like this, that effectively is biting the hand that feeds them. CBS News has been using General Aviation (G/A)for it's news gathering operation for over 50 years. It was through the use of G/A that CBS News was able to break the story about Acid Rain. CBS News used G/A to follow the presidential primaries for years when the fastest way to transmit video was by carrying it from rural areas to their stations by helicopter. Without the G/A airports, there would have not been any place from which the helicopter could operate.
CBS News uses G/A facilities all over the country for their news gathering, traffic reporting and crew placements. General Aviation facilities are the backbone of the transportation system that you use to keep your viewers informed.
With this one story, you are bad mouthing the very system that you require to present current information to your listeners.
This one story casts doubt into your ability to fairly and honestly present any news to the public since you have an inside view of the workings of G/A through your daily use of the system.
I know of CBS News's use of G/A since I leased a helicopter to them for over 10 years.
Shame on you CBS News.

[aviationgeek84]

What a terrible, terrible news story. General aviation supports many functions throughout this country every single day and every single hour.

Research something for once. Try it out - you might like it.

[BHoge]

Shame those involved in this horribly slanted report. Most small municipal airports in this country receive little or no money from the government, local or federal. They are for the most part totally dependent on sales from fuel, maintenance, flight lessons and charter services located on the field. (all of which are taxed except for flight lessons)In other words, small airports are self sufficient small businesses and in these tough economic times make it difficult if not impossible to fund even the smallest of airport repairs and upgrades. Also the majority of the traffic in and out of these airports are not the ultra rich CEO's with private jets, but small piston powered planes used to provide much needed air services to areas that are no where near a city with regular scheduled airline service. This stimulus money creates jobs and improves airport safety and infrastructure for small communities with low tax revenue If CBS wants to do a story on the government wasting our money, how about doing a story on the billions of tax dollars being wasted on large corporations who can afford the private jets rather than the small airports they are supposedly using.

[POGOP38]

Ask United or any of the others, how much fuel taxes they pay per gallon.Yet we the public provide all the services.

[RVdriver]

It's truly unfortunate in this country that the national reporting organizations spend so much effort to spin their articles in such a way as to divide opinions. Clearly, this story left out the other side completely. To all those who believe the premise that small airports are for a select few, should also consider the roads that lead to their own homes. I know at least some of my tax dollars are funding the upkeep of those roads, even though I will most likely never use them. That is part of what is called infrastruture. We ALL benefit, whether you see it or not. Shame on CBS for their self serving reporting. Wouldn't we all be better off if all sides of an issue were put on the table so informed decisions could be made?

[Falken634]

Wow, I'm speechless at how poorly researched this story is. Many more intelligent people know how valuable these regional and rural airports are to their community from giving them public transportation to the other many purposes they serve such as medical, agricultural, various industrial uses such a pipeline/powerline inspection, flight training, surveying, business connectivity, firefighting, and the list goes on. Sad to see such extreme laziness on the behalf of this writer, this reporter ought to be fired.

[marccoan-2009]

It's amazing how many things the reporter left out of the story...which is common when laypeople write about complex technical subjects. (If they are ignorant about the aviation industry, think about how ignorant they are about the industry YOU'RE in.)

My final comment is this: The reporter, in his or her ignorance, failed to explain that many of these airports are FAA reliever airports. What that means is that they exist to provide private, corporate, air ambulance, etc. aircraft a place to land so they don't have to use major airline airports.

In other words, without these airports, your airline flight would be far more likely to be delayed.

[marccoan-2009]

Let's call a spade a spade: The real complaint here is that urban taxpayers have to subsidize rural living. If we want to have that conversation as a country and whether that is in our country's best interests, then fine, let's do it. But as long as we ARE continuing to subsidize places like Alaska and upstate NY, supporting rural air infrastructure is a legitimate expense.

Remember: These airports are used by air ambulance, search and rescue, firefighting, small package express services, as well as local businesses. Would you want to live in a rural area without these services? I wouldn't.

[marccoan-2009]

The intention of at least some of the stimulus was about generating immediate jobs. Airports met that requirement more than many other projects. That's because FAA requires airports to have multi-year master plans for improvements. If those improvements were scheduled anyway, and the engineering was already done, those were most eligible to begin construction fast and get people working. All the stimulus did was make it so these scheduled improvements could be made this year instead of in coming years. Not a big deal.

Let's also remember that the majority of Airport Improvement Program expenditures are paid from the Aviation Trust Fund, which is paid with airline ticket taxes and fuel taxes. Except that Congress raids the Trust Fund in order to fund spending on non-aviation projects (which can be done without making the deficit look bigger).

A case could be made that the stimulus funds are simply paying back all that money that was borrowed from the Trust Fund so that it could be used for the purpose intended.