AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2024 - 4

PRESIDENT 'S POSITION
There's a lot
to celebrate
Great things are happening in the
GA community
BY MARK BAKER / President and CEO
AOPA Foundation Legacy Society member
IT'S THAT MOST wonderful time of the year again. The time
when we celebrate the great gift of our freedom to fly by joining
thousands of our fellow pilots and aviation enthusiasts for a week
of all things flying. Descending on the world's largest airshow is
truly a holiday season for us.
I have been flying into Oshkosh for decades now, and every
time I land, I know I am in for something new. That's what
drives us to make the pilgrimage every year-that and seeing our
wonderful members and general aviation friends.
This year, there's something really new in the air as we fly into
OSH, something that benefits virtually all GA pilots-and it simply
can't be emphasized enough. The recently enacted FAA reauthorization
legislation is something we have covered in these pages
and through all AOPA's media channels. This groundbreaking law
not only funds important FAA programs through 2028 but has a
specific focus and benefit to general aviation.
Every pilot and aircraft owner at AirVenture will reap
benefits from the FAA reauthorization law, thanks in large part
to the first-ever GA Title, introduced by our friend on the Hill,
Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) (see " Protecting Our Freedom to Fly, "
p. 24). AOPA is proud to have worked with Graves and others on
both sides of the aisle for many months to help craft and bring
about that title.
Those GA benefits include funding for small airports,
ensuring we have the 100LL we need while we transition to an
unleaded future, and aviation workforce development to get
young people interested in this passion we share.
I want to take a minute to expand on one of the most important
elements of the FAA reauthorization law: BasicMed. We fought hard
to bring about long-needed third-class medical reform in 2017, and
we have been pushing to go even further. I hear about this topic
countless times as I travel around this great country, and it's often
addressed by members calling into our Pilot Information Center.
The adoption of BasicMed is astounding. Since it was
enacted, more than 85,000 pilots have qualified to fly under it.
But we have not stopped there. AOPA has strongly advocated for
the continued expansion of BasicMed operating limitations, and
I am happy to say that these efforts have paid off.
Provisions under the FAA reauthorization further loosen the
BasicMed pilot and aircraft restrictions. You will be able to take
4
AOPA PILOT / August 2024
off in a covered aircraft weighing up to 12,500 pounds (which
more than doubles the previous limit of 6,000 pounds). The bill
also expands the number of allowed passengers (six, up from
five) and seats (seven, up from six).
In addition, the FAA now allows DPEs to perform their duties
while flying under BasicMed. Hopefully, this will ease the crunch
on pilots looking to schedule their checkrides. There simply
aren't enough DPEs, and the waits for these tests are way too
long. These changes go into effect 180 days after the bill was
signed, which will be around mid-November.
Every pilot and aircraft owner at AirVenture will
reap benefits from the FAA reauthorization law,
thanks in large part to the first-ever GA Title.
I believe one of the reasons the FAA and Congress have
been so willing to expand BasicMed is because it works! Just
last year, the FAA was required to report to Congress on the fiveyear
results of BasicMed, and it found what we already knew:
no difference in safety when comparing pilots flying under
BasicMed to those with a third class medical. I thank all of you
for that-for continuing to fly safely and making this the safest
era ever for GA.
The medical-related benefits of FAA reauthorization were not
limited to BasicMed, and in fact, it will create a working group
to examine all of the agency's medical policies and procedures.
This includes the review of the special issuance process and could
provide more leeway for an AME to issue a medical certificate for a
pilot with specific medical conditions. We hope that this will make
the whole medical certification process smoother and quicker, a
reform that we've been actively pursuing.
So, while we're all checking out the new and vintage aircraft
on the field, seeing old friends and
making new ones, and simply soaking
up everything that makes AirVenture
an aviation pilgrimage, keep in mind
what got you there. For many, it was
literally BasicMed. Blue skies!
mark@aopa.org
MARK BAKER is
a commercial pilot
with single- and
multiengine land and
seaplane ratings and
a rotorcraft rating.
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2024
