Helicopter Association International (HAI) is urging its members to immediately oppose the draft Air Tour Management Plan (ATMP) being crafted by the National Park Service (NPS) and the FAA that eliminates air tour flights over the 33,677-acre Bandelier National Monument near Los Alamos, New Mexico.
The monument is the site of pueblo structures dating from between A.D. 1150 and 1600 and hosts 270,000 to 430,000 visitors per year. Elevation within the park ranges from 5,000 to 10,000 feet and motorized travel of any kind is prohibited in the two-thirds of it that is designated the Bandelier Wilderness Area.
Air Tour operates an average of 100 flights per year over Bandelier, typically at an altitude of 2,000 feet agl, producing a measured ground noise signature of 35 dBA as measured by the NPS, about half the noise encountered inside a luxury sedan traveling at 60 mph.
Ground vehicle congestion appears to be a far larger problem inside Bandelier. Visitors to major attractions within the area—such as the Frijoles Canyon, visitor center, park store, café, and Pueblo Loop Trail—are required to park their vehicles and utilize shuttle buses between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
In an “action alert” issued to members on Friday, HAI charged that the NPS and the FAA “have an agenda to eliminate the air tour industry” and urged its membership to contact the agencies in opposition before the expiration of the comment period on August 11.
“Air tours reduce traffic in the park, reduce emissions as a result, improve guest experience, reduce physical impacts on park infrastructure, and lessen cultural impacts from walking trails that possibly encroach on sacred historical sites,” HAI noted. “The national parks should be available for all visitors to see. Eliminating air tour flights unfairly limits access to the elderly, very young, disabled, and others. Eliminating flights over Bandelier National Monument is discriminating to those who might not have the time, resources, or physical means to see the Park any other way.”