AVIATION SECURITY

Key Congressman Raises Questions About LASP
AV Web
3/12/2009

Those in the GA community opposed to the intrusive Large Aircraft Security
Proposal (LASP) proposed by the Transportation Security Administration
gained some important support, AOPA said on Monday, when U.S. Rep. Bennie
G. Thompson, D-Miss., asked the TSA to delay implementation of the program.
Congressman Thompson chairs the House Committee on Homeland Security, which
has jurisdiction over the TSA.

In written comments on the proposed rule, submitted last week, Thompson
told the TSA that several critical elements of its plan "appear to be
problematic, infeasible, or overly burdensome to industry." He urged the
TSA to delay implementation of the proposed regulations until the new TSA
leadership has a chance to review the NPRM and discuss it with Congress and
industry stakeholders.

"Chairman Thompson understands the negative impact the LASP would have on
general aviation," said Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice president of
government affairs. "We hope the TSA will stop its plans for the program
and address the grave concerns being expressed by the Committee on Homeland
Security and so many others who have spoken out against LASP."

The LASP proposal calls for enhanced security procedures to be applied to
aircraft weighing more than 12,500 pounds, regardless of how they are used.
It has drawn widespread opposition from the GA community, and over 5,000
comments were filed. In Alaska, where aviation is often a critical
component of daily of life, State Sen. Gene Therriaut and Rep. Mike Kelly
separately introduced identical resolutions in the Senate and House
expressing the legislature's opposition to LASP. EAA has said that it would
likely mean the end of operation for large historic aircraft that now offer
rides to the public.