Res 2001-006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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While it may be difficult to qualify for an FAA-funded airport traffic control tower, the FAA does share ATCT staffing costs through the contract tower program. The development of an ATCT is available through the airport improvement program. The The city of San Marcos should closely follow the development of these programs to determine their eligibility for inclusion in either program. OTHER FACILITIES The airport has several lighted win"d cones and a segmented circle which provides pilots with information about wind conditions and local traffic patterns. These facilities are required when an airport is not served by a 24- hour ATCT. These facilities are sufficient and should be maintained in the future. An automated weather observation system (A WOS) is an important component to airfield operations as it notifies pilots of local weather conditions. This system should be maintained through the planning period and upgraded as needed. A summary of the airfield facility requirements is presented on Exhibit 3C. F.A.R. Part 139 Certification Requirements F.A.R. Part 139, "Certification and Operations: Land Airports Serving Certain Air Carriers", as amended, prescribes the rules governing the certification and operation of land 3-15 airports which serve any scheduled or unscheduled passenger operations of an air carrier that is conducted with an aircraft having a seating capacity of more than 30 passengers. [A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued by the Federal Aviation Administration on June 21, 2000 would extend certification requirements to airports serving scheduled air carrier operations in aircraft with 10-30 seats]. Under the new rulemaking which will likely become law, four categories of certification will be established. The first three categories generally deal with scheduled air carrier airports. The proposed law, however, includes the requirement for airports served by unscheduled charter operations utilizing aircraft with 30 or more passenger seats to be certificated under Part 139 as a Class IV airport. While San Marcos Municipal Airport currently does not maintain a Part 139 certificate, consideration needs to be given to the requirements for a Part 139 certificate if operations are initiated by Berry Aviation with greater than 30 seats. Currently, Berry Aviation operates unscheduled 19-seat aircraft charter operations from San Marcos. It is estimated that charter operations totaled 250 in 2000. As previously discussed, Berry Aviation is considering upgrading its charter operation at San Marcos Municipal to include either a Saab 340 or Emb120, both with greater than 30 passenger seats. The following sections describes the requirements necessary for San Marcos Municipal to meet Class IV Part 139 certification requirements.