Yuma Airport puts hold on vehicle ban

Dec. 01--A ban on the use of privately owned vehicles (POVs) inside the perimeter of Yuma International Airport will not go into effect today as originally scheduled.

"This is to reassure you that the airport's access control procedures WILL NOT change on Dec. 1," Gladys Wiggins, deputy airport director, said in an email that went out to the general aviation community on Wednesday.

"As you know, we are working with our counterparts on MCAS (Marine Corps Air Station) Yuma to coordinate our policies and procedures with theirs. We are making progress, but we have not yet concluded our work. Until that happens, all of the rules and regulations in our Minimum Standards will remain in effect," Wiggins said in the email. "In other words, nothing changes on Dec. 1, 2011."

General aviation (GA) pilots have been able to drive their vehicles to the hangars they rent at the airport and to their parked aircraft to ferry tool boxes, parts, materials, luggage and passengers.

However, given the preparations now under way at MCAS for the arrival next year of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and the heightened threat of terrorist acts since Sept. 11, 2001, MCAS officials say POVs on the airfield is a breach of military security that no longer can be allowed.

Col. Robert Kuckuk, who became commander of MCAS last spring, told the GA community in September that as the one responsible for the security of the airfield he can't bend the rules.

"It has nothing to do with the trust of the GA community," Kuckuk said earlier. "There's just too many threats out there."

And there are no barriers between the military side and civilian side of the airport, he noted.

"It's a complicated issue," said Albert Gardner, a recreational pilot who sits on the Yuma County Airport Authority. He is chairing a committee that is trying to find a solution that will meet the needs of the general aviation community for access to their aircraft while satisfying the tighter security requirements of MCAS.

Most airport tenants who responded to a recent survey were emphatic about wanting continued vehicle access to their hangars and parked aircraft, he said. While several said they were agreeable to a fence being erected between the GA side of the airport and the airfield, only 13 percent were willing to pay for it.

There was no appetite for another option, the use of golf carts instead to ferry heavy parts, tools and material, Gardner said. Other options have fallen short as well.

"It's still a work in progress," said Gardner of the committee's efforts. "We're very concerned about our users but we're very concerned about the Marines, too."

Chris Alberti, a GA pilot who sits on the airport subcommittee, agreed that it's nice to be able to drive to his hangar, but considers it a privilege, not a right, and one that very likely will be lost.

"If it comes to the F-35 coming or my driving my car to my plane, I'll park outside the airfield," he said.

That's a sentiment Gardner shares as well, with the hope that some compromise can be reached for disabled pilots and ambulances.

"I accept there will be less POV access," he said. "I hope if we voluntarily limit POV use, we will have a policy for the cases when vehicle access is really needed."

The latest development, reported Airport Director Craig Williams, is that military staff have inspected the perimeters, examined the airport's procedures and technology and are now in the process of reviewing that information.

Once their review is completed, talks between the military and civilian sides of the airport will resume, Williams said. He promised that will be a transparent and open process during which public input will be gathered.

If any changes are required, there will be a training process before they are implemented, he said.

He added that he's hopeful there will be some resolution in the near future. "Probably within the next 60 to 90 days, we'll have this wrapped up."

Joyce Lobeck can be reached at [email protected] or 539-6853. Find her on Facebook at Facebook.com/jlobeck or on Twitter at @YSJoyceLobeck.

Copyright 2011 - The Sun, Yuma, Ariz.