Is Willis a pilot, or does he have people to do that for him?

A pilot? I have no idea, don't think so anyway.My guess is he has the dough, and an appreciation for the "time machine" factor of personal aviation, and has people/pilots on his payroll to make it happen. Hell, I get that with my S-7S, when I casually mention I had breakfast in Jackson Hole, to someone in Pocatello, and it's noon. I can't imagine how something like a G IV (or other go fast private jet, I have no idea what he has access to) shrinks time. With the current hellish conditions of regular airline flight, if you had the money, why would you subject yourself to it?

Good for him. Won't be a low budget operation, probably increase neighboring property values.

My wife flies a Citation Sovereign and a Legacy 600 for work. I've been lucky to be invited on a few trips.

Once you fly private you NEVER want to walk through an airport terminal again.

If I was Bruce Willis I'd probably have a Sovereign, or a CitationX or Latitude, because I love Cessna and private jets rock.

So, we all agree, having your own private jet is a good thing?! The absolute coolest thing would be having one, or a few, and hangaring it at your own private rural based airstrip. Joe Clark comes to mind. Willis probably has the same thing in mind, to be able to fly direct to "the big city" from rural Fairfield. I'm curious now, I see a ski plane flight for a Fairfield breakfast (1+ hr flight) in my future.

I was at the meeting and sadly this is not the outcast hero sticking it to the man, while at the same time single handedly crushing the uber villian. It is a bunch of super wealthy people, of which Willis is just one, from southern California with spare mega-mansions in Sun Valley threatening lawsuits that the county does not have the money to counter. Camas County is one of Idaho's smallest: population ~1000 in an area of about 1000 sq mi. The primary activity is farming marginal ground (too cold and too dry).

According to the FAA filing, the Willis project consists of a 8500 X 100 foot concrete runway and anticipates approximately 500 landings per month. While the county commissioners have never sought to regulate aviation activities in the past, they thought that a project of this scale might require some scrutiny, like who is going to supply emergency services, etc. They considered making a runway of over 5000 feet a conditional use and were immediately threatened with a lawsuit. Since there is no legal fund to deal with something like this, the commissioners blinked.

As an "airport" (alfalfa field) owner myself, I have tried to stay neutral. Even though I benefit from the decision, I hate to see the county get bullied.

Courierguy: no snow yet but pm me if you need a condition report.

Ya...Hollywood big money bullying Idaho is a pretty common theme, especially around Sun Valley.

Can't wait for Bruce&Friends to sue for a county/state funded crash-rescue fire department to be on call 24/7 at their "airstrip".

Oh ya, and we're going to put in fuel tanks, but don't hassle us about correct instillation or EPA regulations or spill containment or ground water testing, because if you do we'll sue you.

I'm pro-airstrip, but this is no airstrip. It's a jet airport for the uber-wealthy which negatively impacts the quality of life of at least as many people as it serves. Of course those impacted folks don't have the money to fight it, so they rely on their government, which doesn't have the money, either.

Just because it's aviation related doesn't mean it's good. I think this stinks, and I think it taints aviation as we know and love it. The Joe-Twelvepacks who are members here will not benefit from Camas County being forced to capitulate to the super-wealthy and their Jet-Port. If anything it will create a negative attitude towards ALL aviation from small counties and communities who associate aviation with wealth and power and entitlement...and bullying.

Hammer, you’re making a HUGE leap there, accusing these folks of all sorts of evil doing before they’ve even started to build their Airport. Without knowing their plans, or at least being prescient, I can’t imagine that all you posted is anything but pure speculation.

This may not be the most positive outcome, but what ever happened tp innocent till proven guilty?

MTV

Hammer wrote:Ya...Hollywood big money bullying Idaho is a pretty common theme, especially around Sun Valley.

Can't wait for Bruce&Friends to sue for a county/state funded crash-rescue fire department to be on call 24/7 at their "airstrip".

Oh ya, and we're going to put in fuel tanks, but don't hassle us about correct instillation or EPA regulations or spill containment or ground water testing, because if you do we'll sue you.

I'm pro-airstrip, but this is no airstrip. It's a jet airport for the uber-wealthy which negatively impacts the quality of life of at least as many people as it serves. Of course those impacted folks don't have the money to fight it, so they rely on their government, which doesn't have the money, either.

Just because it's aviation related doesn't mean it's good. I think this stinks, and I think it taints aviation as we know and love it. The Joe-Twelvepacks who are members here will not benefit from Camas County being forced to capitulate to the super-wealthy and their Jet-Port. If anything it will create a negative attitude towards ALL aviation from small counties and communities who associate aviation with wealth and power and entitlement...and bullying.

Nice.....

History 101; The first rule to conquering is dividing .....

Mr Willis' Airstrip will in fact be just that... The fact that you, me, or probably no other BCP'r can't afford one quite as posh doesn't make it anything less.

The day someone happens to be passing by in their Lancair or any other form of less than off road worthy aircraft and suffers a total flame out, they will not only benifit from it, we all will. One accident turned to an incident is a good thing in my books.

As for the bullied county? What a better place for the county to now be able to station or receive emergency A/C in a pinch?
What no permit fees? applications fees? employed local people (at a minimum for the duration of the project)?... As a general contractor licensed in three states, the way I see it If this county sees no benefit from this project it is purely undersight and unseized opportunity on their own part.

The fact that this airstrip will cater to a select few shouldn't get your goat, My airstrips are no different in that regard, we just happen to not fly jet's. In fact a couple weeks ago when a young Marine Capt. called to ask permission to land a couple Ospreys on my strip as it was close to a training route they use for night vision training, I could have had your tone, and suggested their jet set airplanes would not be welcome Now THAT would have been a missed opportunity... instead I politely asked they come as often as they like, but please land on the west half, as to not test my mules (pastured adjacent to the east end) whose appreciation of military aircraft may be a little lacking

Nah.... good on Bruce I hope he builds it and surprises everyone flying in himself one day.

Carry on

Rob wrote:
Nah.... good on Bruce I hope he builds it and surprises everyone flying in himself one day.

Carry on

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I see both sides of this debate. As a person that lives close to the proposed site there are good and bad effects to this. Idaho is full of NIMBY people. Development is good. It is also unfortunate that it seems to be much more accessible to the the rich and famous than the ordinary person.

When we allow that to happen it does divide people and feelings. What we should push for is equal access to our dreams, and at times our local governments kinds step on that.

Good, bad, we will see with the test of time.

MTV...you're correct that I am speculating, and not giving the accused parties much benefit of the doubt. But I'm doing so based on their actions to date, which I interpret as "We're going to get what we want, whether Camas County want's it or not, because they can't afford to confront us."

Rob...Let's look at your Osprey situation from a different angle. What if you told the Marines "well maybe, but I need to study the situation some first" and they replied with the threat of a lawsuit you couldn't possibly afford to fight. How would you feel about it then?

Some see this as aviation, and all aviation must be good, apparently. I see it as a misuse of power...the powerful minority getting what they want, regardless of what anyone else wants. It's essentially bypassing the democratic process with cash. Nothing new there, but just because it's for aviation doesn't mean it doesn't stink.

Hammer wrote:MTV...you're correct that I am speculating, and not giving the accused parties much benefit of the doubt. But I'm doing so based on their actions to date...

A wise man, in relation to another group with a reputation based on their actions, once said the folllowing:

I love how people villainize the motives and actions of groups they see as Other-Than-Them... Since they don't think the way I do, they must be wrong, suspect, and immoral. Also stupid, apparently....

It it makes you feel better to think that way, that's your business. But I don't buy it. I could be proven wrong on this account, and that's fine too. But I refuse to wallow in the sewer of "prove it wasn't intentional" just because THEY are not like ME.

Others have built similar very large paved strips, capable of handling jets, in other area of rural Idaho without all the negative attention Willis has received, primarily because though they had the dough to make it happen, they weren't hampered by celebrity. Being a totally unknown and off the radar rich guy, that's the ticket! It must be a huge PITA to be as famous as Willis, can't do squat without being under a microscope. It's a USE of his power, not sure if it's a misuse....the guys with the gold make the rules, this is news? Like the people that bitch about a subdivision going in next to their rural home (been there/done that), if they don't like it maybe THEY should have bought that land first. It ain't fair but it sure as hell is the way it is.

Rules, regulations, and threats of law suits aside, and knowing a bit about the terrain out there, I can't see it being a huge deal, unless your an airplane hating newbie NIMBY, then NOTHING is going to make you happy anyway. Flat high desert, covered with sage brush, seems like a good location to me. I seriously doubt the ranchers and farmers in the area give a hoot either way, they know how the system works.

I find it interesting that (warning — speculation here) if this were some Joe Idahoan, proposing to build a 3000 foot strip to run his 180 out of, and similar events transpired, we’d be hearing a hue and cry that the county was overbearing and “big government” is evil, etc.

MTV

The Sun Valley airport/approach situation has been a ongoing political football in my mind. Instrument approach minimums are limited by terrain, especially for the missed approach procedures. (Many years ago, a Canadair Challenger was lost on a missed approach) It has been thought for many years that moving the airport just a few miles to the south, out of the valley and into the flats, would increase use-ability in the winter considerably. Moving has been fought by the local government stiffly and the call to move has been recently silenced. It just appears to me, that Bruce Willis has planned an airport be in a rural location, I believe about 8 miles from Fairfield, that can accommodate all that Friedman can accommodate with the ability for some more usable winter minimums. Maybe, its a bad thing to make the area more accessible in the winter, but it appears that Sun Valley/Hailey/Ketchum thrives on the tourist/local winter and summer attractions.

Just my outsider, lightly informed opinion.

He may have a tough time getting instrument approach procedures approved for a private airport.

MTV

I believe there are some "Special Instrument Procedures" or something like that, that are not regular published approaches or procedures that can be had. I don't know the ins and outs of them, but I believe they are available, even for Private airports. I know procedures can be had, because I know Frontier Airlines - the old Frontier, put in NDBs for some of the VFR only public airports with procedures to be used by the airline only. Public airports but private procedures. A Colorado based airline that I don't remember the name of had approved approaches for Aspen for their Dash 7s that were not authorized for outsiders. - liability and such, but I understand that they were FAA created and approved. There was a private airport near PBI that I believe had multiple approaches. In more recent times, I believe Delta has procedures at Eagle that are company specific. I'm sure there are others. I'm sure with enough money.