FAA extends deadline for airspace comment

The Federal Aviation Administration has granted a two-week extension for public comment on the Northern Utah Airspace Initiative, which could put commercial air traffic over the eastern portions of Salt Lake and Davis counties.

As early as Friday morning the FAA was considering not granting the extension. However, Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, a member of the House Transportation Committee's Aviation Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the FAA, called FAA administrator Marion Blakey's office Friday morning.

"We went straight to the administrator's office and got it changed," Matheson said.

Matheson, along with the Salt Lake Department of Airports director Tim Campbell and the Salt Lake County Council, among others, had asked the FAA to grant a 60-day extension for public comment. While two weeks isn't as long as they wanted, it's better than nothing, said Matheson, who criticized the FAA for what he perceives as a lack of effort to get the word out about the proposed changes.

"Quite frankly, two weeks is a little less than we would like," Matheson said. "The outreach efforts to publicize this have not been adequate by the FAA."

Matheson said he was frustrated that he had to resort to calling Blakey, since regional FAA officials were unwilling to extend the deadline.

At FAA regional headquarters in Seattle, FAA Airspace Branch Manager Carla Mawhorter said the FAA is in a difficult spot. While many residents are criticizing the FAA for not giving them enough information about the proposed air traffic changes, Mawhorter said the FAA can't develop more specific plans until the scoping period for an environmental impact study ends. That period was scheduled to end Friday, until the two-week extension was granted. To the FAA's credit, Mawhorter said, they have conducted several "scoping" meetings for the public and given presentations before various community groups including city and county councils.

The growth at Salt Lake City International Airport has caused the FAA to rethink flight paths over Salt Lake and southern Davis counties. Now, instead of one western "downwind" — a flight pattern commercial jets use before beginning their final approach to the airport — FAA officials are considering adding another downwind over the eastern benches.

Other options are being considered. One alternative is to have an east-side downwind but use it less frequently than the western downwind. Another choice calls for a four-corners design but with only the western downwind. Or the FAA could just keep the status quo.

Campbell and others have argued that FAA growth projections are overly optimistic and that drastic changes to current airspace patterns aren't needed.

After the scoping period ends the FAA will take about a year to develop more specific draft plans, which will also receive much public comment before a final plan is created.

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