Need Help: Aerobatic Practice Areas and Dropzones

[Ron 10]

So I have not been jumping much (went to nationals with three training jumps and six jumps for the year). But I have been busy flying aerobatics.

So I want to put an aerobatic practice area (APA) near the airport where my wife and I skydive.... Long story short, the manager of the airport said no... But I don't need his permission.

I have a meeting with the FAA later this week. I need to know what airports have aerobatic boxes and Dropzones. I have a short list, I'd like a longer one for my meeting.

So far I have:
X51 Homestead
ACQ Waseca, Municipal
CGE Cambridge, Maryland
N71 Donegal Springs, Penn
KHWY Warrenton, VA

42J Keystone had two DZ's and an APA at one point.

Anyone know of more?

And just so I don't just ask without offering something...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yonaZ4WSirE

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[DrewEckhardt 0]

KLMO Longmont, CO

[ryoder 1,590]

DrewEckhardt

KLMO Longmont, CO

I was going to make a comment like that.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[Ron 10]

So this is not true... Just more 'quiet skies' bashing?

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[ryoder 1,590]

Ron

So this is not true... Just more 'quiet skies' bashing?

AFAIK he is kidding, but I did figure out how to pull APA's out of the skyvector.com site.
Use this link: https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Askyvector.com+aerobatic+practice+area

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[DanG 1]

KHWY has an aerobatic box, but not a dropzone. The dropzone in Warrenton is at the air park, which is a different location than KHWY.

- Dan G

[Ron 10]

ryoder

***So this is not true... Just more 'quiet skies' bashing?

AFAIK he is kidding, but I did figure out how to pull APA's out of the skyvector.com site.
Use this link: https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Askyvector.com+aerobatic+practice+area

Thanks, that helped... Found about three more.

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[normiss 801]

Patty Wagstaff got a box in St. Augustine.


Have fun bud!

[DJL 235]

At Virginia Skydiving Center (Petersburg, VA - KPTB) we see a few Acrobatics flying around. I don't think it's a school, just random pilots.

"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

[PhreeZone 20]

KLHQ had a box but it's in dispute over airport access issues with the county. The DZ has had a ton of issues also with the airport but for a while there was a med chopper, DZ and Acro box all at the same time.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[jumpwally 0]

Yep,,thats way too much shit in one area....

smile, be nice, enjoy life
FB # - 1083

[boyfalldown 0]

KCMA has a skyride scam dropzone (not like a real active dropzone) the landing area is just a few miles from the Santa Paula Aerobatic box.

[weaverd 0]

Gatineau, QC

[jonstark 8]

boyfalldown

KCMA has a skyride scam dropzone (not like a real active dropzone) the landing area is just a few miles from the Santa Paula Aerobatic box.

Camarillo is waaay far from the SZP acro box. Not an issue there.

Jon

[boyfalldown 0]

Indeed its not an issue at all, but the landing are in Somis is 5 miles south of the southwest corner of the box.

[biplane_dude 0]

Hey Ron...

Good luck with this. I used to do the inverted Pitts (or biplane) drops from my S2A at Couch Freaks (and others) and wanted to be able to practice the jumps (and just aerobatics) at a local uncontrolled public field not far from my home. Same deal. The local airport board wouldn't approve it even with the blessing of the dropzone and other tenants on the field. To be honest they weren't to happy with the dz anyway at the time and were actively trying to get them off the field except they weren't going to be able to justify further FED funds without their takeoff/landings in their annual activity audits.

Long story short, I gave up trying to do it on that field or one nearby. Believe it or not, the new FAA guidelines "require" the Ops Inspector to have some sort of approval from at least one of the land owners below the box as part of an environmental noise impact review. Luckily, we had a small private field owner that was all to happy to allow us to practice over his property and gave us written permission. The FED's accepted this for their approval policy (regardless of the fact, 90 percent of the box was over a farmers field and not the principal land owner).

You CAN get approval without the airport authorities blessing, but good luck. The route you have to take is the big stick approach. Threaten their federal funding supply. If the field is federally supported (eg. tax dollars that fund runway improvement, etc), they are required to support any FAA legally authorized aviation activity. The problem with this route is that it may backfire on you. They may "approve" the activity, but require that you have 5 mill (or more) of liability insurance.

If noise is the primary concern, you can use the formula's approved in the Volpe Report as noted[url] in the FAA's Memorandum regarding Aerobatic Noise (Link at bottom) to combat any argument the airport (or anyone else) might have.

Good luck and blue skies.

Mark


https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/apl/environ_policy_guidance/guidance/media/Approval_for_APA_Equivalent_Methodology.pdf

[kallend 2,027]

Morris, IL, has a box.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.