IN TH E N EW S
Avoiding landing fees A
RCHERFIELD Airport in Brisbane may consider following a precedent set by some other GA airports in Australia and restrict arrivals of light sports aircraft if a new process to gather landing fees is unsuccessful. Airport General Manager, Heather Mattes, said 15,225 privately-owned light sports aircraft landed at Archerfield Airport in 2016, however only a small percentage of pilots voluntarily paid their landing fee. As a result, Archerfield Airport Corporation incurred extensive cost in sourcing and billing aircraft owners – a cost Mrs Mattes says cannot be sustained. “In terms of time and resources, Archerfield Airport Corporation pays dearly to allow light sports aircraft to land,” she said. “This is despite a very modest landing fee of $10.50.” Mrs Mattes said AAC’s new landing permission and fee process was included in the airport’s ERSA and detailed on the AAC website. Its effectiveness in addressing the issue of non-paying landing fees will be reviewed later in the year before a decision is made regarding the future of light sports aircraft arrivals.
CEO of RAAus Michael Linke urged members to do the right thing when landing at airfields that charge a landing fee. "RAAus believes in a user pays model and trusts all members to do the right thing when using resources, such as runways, taxi ways and parking bays.
“The issue is not isolated to Archerfield Airport, however it is of concern that the practice of side-stepping landing fees appears to be widespread and may actually jeopardise the movement and flexibility of all light sports aircraft owners in the future,” she says. “AAC encourages recreational flying and would be pleased to see more pilots landing here provided they do the right thing and accept that airport users must pay.” Prior permission is a condition of landing at Archerfield Airport. Pilots are required to read the airport’s section in ERSA and comply with the Prior Permission Required (PPR) provision. The process is straightforward – it involves completing an application form available at www.archerfieldairport.com.au, receiving formal approval to land, then paying the landing fee invoice at a later date.
RAAus won’t share members details with third party operators and as such, members should register with AVDATA or whichever provider the airfield in question uses to ensure fees can be paid on time. As RAAus progresses applications with CASA to increase our weight allowance and gain access to controlled airspace, now more than ever our members need to demonstrate goodwill with other airspace and aviation related infrastructure users.
17 / SPORT PILOT