Subject: [Tweeters] Whooping Cranes Migration Continues Thanks to FAA
Date: Aug 16 12:34:55 2012
From: Etta Cosey - ettacosey at comcast.net


Whooping Cranes Continue their Migration following a Light Sport Aircraft Thanks to an FAA Exemption.
Operation Migration (OM) is a conservation group reintroducing endangered whooping
cranes into eastern North America. In the 1940s the species was reduced to just 15
birds. Since only one wild flock of whooping cranes exists migrating naturally each year
from Canada to Texas, there is a danger of the birds being wiped out. OM is
establishing a second flock which is being taught to migrate from Wisconsin to Florida.
Last fall?s migration was interrupted by nonconformance with FAA
regulations but AFS inspectors found a way to do the right thing?the right way?and still help
OM get the birds to their winter home safely. This is OM?s 12th season teaching the birds to follow a light sport
aircraft in migration. The whooping cranes are hatched at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland
where OM staff get the birds accustomed to their handlers and the aircraft
before they are transported to Wisconsin where they learn to fly. The staff spends the summer
training with the birds as they get stronger. In the fall, the migration begins. The birds
follow the three costumed pilots in their Cosmos Phase II trikes. They fly about 50 to 100
miles every day, and only fly in good weather. The OM pilots lead the birds
on a one-way trip, which takes about three months, and then the birds are wild.
In 2010, the Milwaukee FSDO received a complaint from a former OM pilot that the
organization was using private pilots for a commercial operation. An aviation safety
inspector spoke with an OM representative who explained that the time the staff spent
flying was as volunteers. The inspector accepted the explanation, and the matter was
considered closed. Then, in 2011, the same person filed a formal complaint with the FAA
and letters of investigation were sent by the FSDO to OM and its three pilots. Last
December, inspectors determined that OM was not fully in compliance with regulations.
?We began our investigation and OM was, in fact, using private pilots for a commercial
venture,? said John Thiem, Manager of the Milwaukee FSDO. However, the pilots and the birds
were already in migration, and had reached Alabama at that point. The OM pilots voluntarily
grounded themselves. Pubic outcry ensued against the FAA for grounding the whooping cranes.
Even former President Jimmy Carter called Aviation Safety Inspector Tom Glista, Manager of the General
Aviation Operations Branch (AFS-830), to intercede on the birds? behalf.
?OM worked with us to apply for an exemption,? John explained. ?The exemption was
granted in less than 15 days for last year?s migration to move the whopping cranes.?
Through it all, the OM staff was gracious and accepted the necessity of complying with
federal aviation regulations.?The FAA understood the situation and knew how close we were to finishing,?
said Joe Duff, CEO of OM. ?They were very understanding. They issued a temporary waiver to
allow us to finish the migration, and agreed to work with us to find some
permanent solution. The difficulty for us is our aircraft can only be registered as
light sport aircraft, and it is the only aircraft that is the right size, shape and speed
envelope that is able to fly with birds. Fortunately, the FAA recognized that what we?re doing is
important and realized there was no category for us so they worked with us to develop an
exemption.? ?This past year, OM was granted a two-year extension,? said Larry Buchanan,
Manager of the Light Sport Aviation Branch (AFS-610). ?The agreement allows OM to
continue and, in that period, they have to meet certain requirements, and then
they?ll have a permanent solution.?
There are now more than 100 whooping cranes that migrate south in this
pattern for the winter; this is the first flock to use this pattern since the 1870s. OM
will keep working with the birds to add generation after generation of birds until there are
enough birds for the population to become self-sustaining.