Post-9/11 Air Restriction Eased

Private aviation returned to Reagan Washington National Airport Tuesday, more than four years after restrictions were imposed in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

The first aircraft arrived at the airport across the Potomac River in Arlington, Va., from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey about 7 a.m. and taxied through a water arch formed by two fire trucks.

The flight was permitted after the Transportation Security Administration introduced rigorous new rules that require passengers and crewmembers to undergo background checks.

A certified armed security officer also must accompany each flight, and some trips require a federal sky marshal. Flights also have to land first at one of 12 gateway airports.

"This is a first step," said Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va. "There are still a ton of regulations."

Reagan National's location is sensitive to security officials because the airport's runways carry planes near the White House, Capitol and Pentagon.

Commercial airline flights at the airport resumed about a month after Sept. 11, though it took incessant lobbying by local officials and business leaders — as well as congressional intervention — to persuade federal authorities the airport was safe for general aviation.

"To close Reagan down to general aviation sends the wrong signal," said Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va.

Until Tuesday, most private flights were diverted to Manassas Regional Airport, about 30 miles southwest of Reagan National.