If they can get the insurance, the Reno Air Races are a go this year

The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority Board on Thursday gave a 1-year special permit for the Reno National Championship Air Races with the stipulation that the Reno Air Racing Association obtain $100 million in insurance coverage.

The association must also pay any increase in insurance rates incurred by the authority for holding the Reno Air Races.

“It’s one more hurdle out of the way,” Reno Air Races President and CEO Mike Houghton said.

Houghton said he hopes to come back to a airport authority meeting next week with the proof of the $100 million insurance.

“We’re close to finishing, and we’re in great shape,” Houghton said of the effort to obtain the insurance certificate. He said they need a “group effort” to raise the money quickly to pay for the policy after obtaining the certificate.

Houghton said that the association was also trying to respond to National Transportation Safety Board concerns within 90 days and was using people with technical skills on certain aspects. He joked that keeping track of them all was the most difficult part.

Last month, the NTSB recommended safety steps as part of its review of the deadly Sept. 16 crash that sent debris flying into the audience. Eleven people died, including the pilot, and at least 70 people were seriously injured.

Houghton also planned to bring the findings of the association’s “blue-ribbon” panel, which was formed to review plans and recommend changes for the Reno Air Races, to the meeting next week.

The NTSB is an independent agency created by Congress to investigate transportation disasters and make safety recommendations. Though the NTSB has no authority to require its proposals be followed and is not part of the permitting process for the Reno Air Races, NTSB Chairwoman Deborah Hersman said that the association has responded well to past NTSB recommendations.

In anticipation of this year’s event, slated for Sept. 12-16, the NTSB recommended that pilots receive special G-force training and perhaps wear G-suits to help them deal with race conditions, Hersman said. And the race course at the Reno Stead Airport should be changed to keep spectators away from the flight path, she said.

Hersman also said the Federal Aviation Administration needs to fix its rules to clarify whether spectators must be 500 feet from the flight path, or 1,000 feet away. FAA documents showed that one order demanded a 500-foot setback, while another said spectators should be 1,000 feet from the showline.

Race officials also need to change their inspection system to make sure that problems found during pre-race technical inspections are fixed and documented. And each aircraft should undergo an engineering evaluation to confirm that the airplane can handle race speeds and stresses, she said.

Source:   http://www.rgj.com