"One's Too Many" wrote in message
om...
"Byron Miller" wrote in message
...
I have been learning to fly and hanging out at KLNS (Lancaster PA) for
years, and it has been a privatized airport tower ever since i've known
about it.

Nicest controllers, safe airport and friendly skies. They're not any
more
incompetant than a "guvenment" controller and most certainly they enjoy
aviation and the lifestyle just as much as anyone else could!

Heck they even volunteer to the ground schools and give tours when the
FAA
allows!

Just thought i'd throw that in

The big ATC privatization issue is not so much about the tower guys at
your little class D airports. The big worry is more about enroute
stuff, centers, approach, departure, clearance delivery and all of a
sudden everyone getting repeatedly billed large sums of money just for
flying thru some airspace handled by some private corporation that
will staff these positions with personnel the quality of a typical
computer tech support script-parrot.


Given the FAA retains Certification and enforcement powers, which everyone
agrees is an inherently governmental function, the qualification scare
tactic is obviously a red herring.

Fees are a big issue but privatization doesn't have to mean the money earned
by private contractors comes from any source other than where it comes now.
It is very equitable to burden fuel with the fees; that way 777's pay more
than Cessna 150's, and no one would ever have to choose not to call a FSS,
ask for Flight Folowing or file IFR because they'd rather not incur the
cost. Just pay them out of those funds based on some formula. That isn't
rocket science.

I'm sure wages, job security and retirement pay is better for Federal
workers than the contractors but this has nothing to do with the tone of the
debate

-Greg