It may get easier to take an air tour over a national park. Congress approved and sent to President Barack Obama for his signature the Federal Aviation (FAA) Administration Modernization and Improvement Act of 2012 (H.R. 658).
The bill's many provisions include one that would exempt small tour operators (those with fewer than 50 flights per year) from the permitting process. But the National Park Service (NPS) could withdraw the exemption if it deems it necessary to improve visitor experiences or protect park resources.
Current rules require the FAA and NPS to develop air tour management plans for parks, but the legislation would allow them to enter voluntary agreements with air tour operators instead. Agreements may or may not require the operator to pay a fee. But NPS could terminate agreements if it determined the flights were damaging park resources and FAA could end them for safety reasons.
New entrants could get into the business. All commercial tour operators would have to report the number of flights they provide.
Read the provision at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/cpquery/?&dbname=cp112&sid=cp112jFu0C&refer=&r_n=hr381.112&item=&&&sel=TOC_649447&.
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