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Air travelers heading into and out of fast-growing St. George, Utah soon will be able to fly by scheduled jet aircraft now that the federal government is investing $17.2 million to help pay for a new airport for the community, Marion C. Blakey, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), announced today.

The new FAA grant is the largest single federal grant for an airport in Utah. The city will use the initial grant money to buy 277 acres of land for the new airport site, which is approximately five miles from downtown St. George. About 1,300 acres are needed for the airport, and the city plans to acquire the additional land over the next two years.

The new airport will include a new 9,300-foot runway large enough to allow scheduled commercial jet airlines and business jets to fly into St. George for the first time. The airport will be a state-of-the-art facility, which will handle twice as many passengers as the existing airport. The new runway will have the latest in lighting systems and navigation technology.

Scheduled to open in 2011, the new airport will use an approach procedure designed to keep aircraft as high as possible and to the west of Zion National Park in order to lessen the noise impact on the park.

The airport was necessary because St. George was the nation’s fastest-growing metropolitan area from 2000 to 2005 and the community now totals more than 160,000 residents. “This community is growing so fast that it deserves the kind of service many other places have enjoyed for decades,” Blakey said.

Posted under Travel

With the Labor Day weekend approaching, many people will be flying the friendly skies. But before you head off to the airport, please be aware that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has changed security screening
procedures at all U.S. airports, banning liquids and gels at security checkpoints and aboard flights.

You will not be permitted to bring any liquids or gels past the screening checkpoint or on board, with a few exceptions. In addition, the TSA is now requiring that all passengers are to remove their shoes so they may be X-rayed with their carry-on bags. This is no longer optional, as it has been for years.

Find out the latest security procedures at:
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/assistant/new-procedures.shtm

Get the full list of permitted and prohibited items at:
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm

Posted under Travel

A live test of e-Passports, that contain contactless chips with biographic and biometric information and the readers that are capable of reading these e-Passports, begins January 15, 2006 at Terminal G at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). This test is a collaborative effort between the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore that will run through April 15, 2006.

“This test provides an important opportunity to work with our international partners to further the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to put in place an e-Passport reader solution by the fall of this year,” said Jim Williams, director of US VISIT, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) program.

Participants include citizens of Australia and New Zealand who have been issued the new e-Passports, Singapore Airlines crew and officials holding trial e-Passports and U.S. diplomatic and official e-Passport holders.

The test will assess the operational impact of using new equipment and software to read and verify the information embedded in the e Passports. Participants will present their e-Passports when arriving in the United States at SFO, at Changi Airport in Singapore or at Sydney Airport in Australia.

The e-Passport contains the holder’s biographic information and a biometric identifier, in this case a digital photograph, embedded in a contactless chip set in the passport. The inspection process for those participating does not change.

The e-Passports being tested are enabled with a security feature known as Basic Access Control (BAC), which helps prevent the unauthorized reading, or “skimming,” of information from e Passports.

This is the second live test conducted between the United States, Australia and New Zealand. The goal of the live test is to gather information that can support countries around the world in their development and implementation of e-Passports that comply with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards. It will also provide valuable information on the capability of the reader technology.

“The results of the previous test, held at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Sydney Airport, indicated that further testing would be beneficial to our development of a fully operational system,” Williams said. “So we will conduct further testing to allow for the evaluation of new technologies.”

Biometrics included in a contactless chip provides a further means by which the identity of visitors may be verified, thus preventing entry by imposters and the use of fraudulent documents. Biometrics provide border officials with a critical tool in making admissibility decisions, thus enhancing homeland security.

Posted under Travel

Flying in and out of Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport will be a little bit easier for travelers who will no longer be required to sit in their seats for 30 minutes prior to take-off or landing at the airport.

The regulations were enacted after the September 11 terror attacks at The Pentagon and in New York, but travelers often complained of the rule which required they remain in their seats while in close proximity to the airport. The rule increased the time travelers spent in their seats during ascent or descent by two to three times compared to other airports in the country.

Testifying before the United States Senate Committee On Commerce, Science and Transportation, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said, “This 30-minute seating rule was a sensible measure when first applied. Now, almost four years later, significantly enhanced layers of security ranging from hardened cockpit doors to air marshals make it reasonable to eliminate this requirement.”

In announcing the change, Chertoff also said that the airport, closed to general aviation for nearly four years would reopen and allow private planes to land between national monuments on the Virginia and Washington D.C. side of the Potomac River at the region’s smallest, but most strategically placed, airport

Posted under Travel