FAA Is Closing Seven Key Alaska Flight Service Stations, Saying It's Due To Rampant 'Employee Misconduct'
Talkeetna is an important flight-seeing airport serving Denali. (Journal photo) Hard Times In The Small-Town Aviation Industry In Alaska Fo...
Talkeetna is an important flight-seeing airport serving Denali. (Journal photo)
Hard Times In The Small-Town Aviation Industry In Alaska
For Many, A Plane Is Just Like A Car
FROM THE COUNTRY JOURNAL: Small planes are a vital form of transportation and service-delivery in Alaska, where over 80% of our communities lack road access. The state has around 400 public-use airports and thousands of small airstrips. DOT operates 235 of the small public airports. One in every 70 or so Alaskans has a pilot's license, which is six times the national average. There are around 9,000 licensed pilots in Alaska. There are around 10 to 15 fatal plane crashes every year in Alaska, which is a significantly higher rate than the national average. There are around 100 plane crashes in Alaska every year - the highest rate in America.
The FAA has told the newspaper, the Nome Nugget, that the Office of Inspector General is investigating allegations of misconduct to 'the fullest extent to protect taxpayer money and the integrity of the FAA.' It's not clear what the misconduct charges are about, but the Inspector General has apparently found possibilities of rampant bad behavior across Alaska's most important small airports.
They are closing seven flight service stations, reports say, although there is little clarity on what it all means.
The stations affected include far-flung locations with no road access that rely on planes on a daily basis for commerce and travel, including Nome and Kotzebue; locations with difficult road access like Utqiagvik and Deadhorse; Northway, and road-accessible locations in key Mat-Su communities, including Palmer and Talkeetna.
Talkeetna is the jumping-off point for mountaineers and tourists to Denali and has a very busy airport as a tourism hub.
Fairbanks staff would cover Barrow, Northway and Deadhorse, the FAA report quoted in the Nome Nugget said. Kenai would take care of Palmer and Talkeetna.
