A Velocity kit plane crashed after taking off of KVGT, North Las Vegas. The plane had 5 hours of phase I. Tragically it hit a house and killed the pilot and two occupants of the home.

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/story.asp?s=8883721

Youtube 11 min raw footage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbnVKoN3rpM

The airport manager Randall Walker held a press conference saying he thinks they should ban student pilot training and experimental aircraft from ALL urban airports. He thinks that these HIGH RISK operations should fly out of rural airports. I guess next airplane crash he will just ban all airplanes, that should make it real safe. He than compared how safe McCarran was with out experimental airplanes or student pilots.

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/Story.asp?s=8887402

PLEASE WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMAN AND SENATOR.

This will make you Mad. From 00:22 to about 08:00 of the 27 minute video Mr Randall Walker, airport manager and hater of pilot's, training and experimental planes speaks. [color="Red"](Your really have to hear this, after a short intro at the top, he comes on and talks for about 7 minutes, than there are Q's and A's. You need to listen to this. He talks about HOW IF HE WAS ALLOWED HE WOULD DO THIS AND THAT. He is clearly mad that the Fed Gov controls airports. He thinks he should control all Fed regulations he wants as he sees fit. He is going to ask to talk to our (Nevada) Congressional Delegation. He is trying to make political hay, self aggrandizing.)

"....we should manage these (airport) operations for the benefit of every body and not necessarily for the benefit of the pilots."

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs2AyS_ds3s&feature=user

(Call the las vegas city council, city GOV. If they get flooded with calls at least they may shut him up. After a tragic accident he uses this news conference to propose his agenda, an idea of how federal aviation laws should be written and he KING of the airport, an airport paid with FED TAX DOLLARS. He goes onto say he should look into disciplinary action the FAA has takes against pilots. Is he running for Mayor? Head of FAA?)


Mr Walker the manager states the fact he has no authority to ban experimental planes per federal law (thankfully and true). He says experimental aircraft and flight training is HIGH RISK. No doubt his effort to ban them in the past has made him aware of the law, when the EAA defended our rights last year. Las Vegas FSDO tried to ban airspace from experimental planes. So he is using this tragedy to support this agenda again.

Keep in mind these airports take Fed funds (our tax money). Also Mr Walker resigned from management of McCarran airport in 2006, is a city accountant. How you can have an airport manager that is ANTI aviation and pilots is beyond me. I don't know if he is appointed, hired or elected to the position. I don't know if this is his own thing or he is representing some group that put him in that position.

No doubt North Las Vegas airport has been around much longer than the neighborhood that sprung up around it. So when the rural airport has population grows up around it, do you have to move further out?

This is not new in Las Vegas area, North Las Vegas has been trying to ban planes for the airport (REALLY HOW IRONIC). It is like a car maker or gas station trying to get cars off the street. He also said in a conference that the federal aviation laws favored pilots too much and they should include the community......... REALLY?

Write the airport and register you outrage. When flying into Las Vegas this is the place to land. Here is the contact.

Las Vegas Commissioner Clark County - Collins
Send email to: [email protected]
702-455-3500 (phone number but email will be requested)

Mr. Randall Walker
Address: 2730 Airport Dr, Ste. 101
N. Las Vegas, NV 89032
United States of America
(Randy Walker Office)
Telephone: 702-261-3806
Email: [email protected]
Web site: http://www.vgt.aero

Nevada Congressman and Senator (may not accept emails from persons with non Nevada address?), but you can write your own reps.
http://reid.senate.gov/nevada/NVDelegation.cfm (senate)
http://ensign.senate.gov/contact.htm (senate)
http://berkley.house.gov/ (North Las Vegas US Representative Congress)

Don't think Reid will be taking this Airport manager but drop his office a line, as well as Ensign and Berkley.


We have to pull together. If this was a gun ban or an issue with a minority you would have mass protest.

ONCE THEY TAKE ONE AIRPORT AWAY THEN IT WILL BE A MATTER OF TIME TILL MORE FOLLOW.

Some TV coverage (may have to use search function on site for coverage of velocity crash)
http://www.ktnv.com/
http://www.klas-tv.com/
http://www.kvbc.com/

1SeventyZ wrote:
AOPA needs to do something, anything to start spinning this as a fluke and put a positive spin on the safety record of GA. Try to get inside the mind of these people...they've got no appreciation or sense of awe for flight like we do, there is no appeal. No representative or senator in any state, Democrat or Republican can ignore people who feel physically and psychologically terrorized by little planes. That's bad.

mr scout wrote:Why does AOPA have to do something ? that guy needs a good ass kicking from a bunch of towns folks.

Thanks very much. We're aware of Mr. Walker's comments from last Friday and in fact have a pretty long history of having to deal with him. Both we in the media relations department and the staff in the airports department know about his latest tirade and are working with local pilots to deal with it.

hooznext wrote: If you compared the number of innocent people killed in their homes by a GA airplane compared to an automobile it would be interesting to see the results.