Pushing the Envelope: Why Washington, DC Airspace Restrictions Do Not Enhance Security

John W. Heck, Washington College of Law

Abstract

SUMMARY: ... While the emphasis on passenger safety was laudable, a surge in aircraft hijackings in the late 1960s required the FAA to go beyond the Aviation Act's mandate and face the problems of aviation security and aircraft piracy head on. ... SFAR 94 mandated all pilots and flight crews operating from the Maryland Three undergo a background check, attend an FAA briefing regarding airport security procedures, maintain no more than one airspace violation on record, and receive a personal identification number before a flight plan is filed. ... The new regulatory scheme made no change to previously-established ADIZ airspace boundaries - instead, the SFRA changed only minor procedural rules to fly in the National Capital Region and clarified existing requirements such as speed restrictions and pilot actions in the event of a transponder failure. ... These funds were made available "to reimburse fixed-based general aviation operators and the providers of general aviation ground support services ... for direct and incremental financial losses incurred while such airports were closed to general aviation operations ... due to the actions of the Federal Government following the terrorist attacks on the United States that occurred on September 11, 2001 ... ." ... In its Final Rule codifying the DC SFRA, the FAA acknowledged the SFRA "impacts aircraft operators, airports, and aviation-related businesses in the Washington, DC region," "has reduced revenue at airports and aviation-related businesses," and has "caused some operators ... to cease operations altogether." ... Although the court hinted that Air Pegasus had the right to use the non-navigable airspace immediately above its leasehold, it reiterated the well-established principle "that the navigable airspace is public property not subject to private ownership." ... Chevron Deference To ensure the courts do not become overly political, executive agencies are normally entitled to a good deal of deference when interpreting an otherwise ambiguous statute.