Spotlighting Charter Cheaters

Spotlighting Charter Cheaters

Illegal charter operators can put you behind the liability eight ball

BY DAVID COLLOGAN dlcollogan@gmail.com

There are hundreds of law-abiding, safety-compliant charter operators in the U.S. who can get you where you need to be in comfort. Unfortunately, there also are an increasing number of shady operators skating on the edge of regulatory requirements who can put you at great risk, personally and financially.

Based on a groundswell of complaints from its members about illegal charter operators, the National Air Transportation Association has formed an Illegal Charter Task Force to address the problem in multiple ways. Priority No. 1 is working closely with FAA executives in Washington and inspectors in regional Flight Standards District Offices (FSDOs) to identify and take enforcement action against the industry’s bad apples.

NATA and FAA also are developing a number of educational programs for customers, industry professionals, and FAA inspectors to make it easier to identify illegal charter situations.