The FAA has closed a loophole that caused at least one community to believe it could control the airspace over its borders. Earlier this year Huntington Beach, Calif., passed an ordinance that would outlaw banner-towing aircraft from flying overhead. The FAA has reasserted its control of the skies over Huntington Beach — and everywhere else — by revising the rule that town councilors used as the basis for their ordinance. The California politicians noted that a Hawaiian town was able to get rid of banner planes after a federal court ruled that a banner pilot there could get an aerial advertising waiver from the FAA as long as he didn’t violate any local ordinances. The Hawaiian town then passed an ordinance banning aerial advertising and that put the pilot in violation of the court order. Huntington Beach apparently used that bit of Hawaiian history as a template for its own ordinance. The FAA revision removes any ambiguity about its jurisdiction in airspace matters and Huntington Beach has rescinded the ordinance.
FAA: We Control The Skies
Key Takeaways:
- The FAA reasserted its exclusive control over airspace, closing a loophole that some communities believed allowed them to regulate it locally.
- Huntington Beach, California, attempted to ban banner-towing aircraft, citing a past federal court ruling that allowed a Hawaiian town to use local ordinances to prohibit aerial advertising.
- The FAA revised the relevant rule to eliminate any ambiguity regarding its jurisdiction in airspace matters.
- As a result, Huntington Beach rescinded its ordinance, confirming federal control over the skies.
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