FAA Stops Direct Chart Sales To Small Dealers

Cap'n Jack

Cap'n Jack

Final Approach
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Cap'n Jack
As reported by Avweb-The FAA will no longer offer wholesale rates on aeronautical charts to dealers with less than $5,000 per year in sales, as of this week.

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/FAAStopsDirectChartSalesToSmallDealers_201266-1.html

According to this, there are only 2 places in all Nebraska to buy charts
http://naco.faa.gov/agents.asp?MktSeg=AA&stateSearch=NE&ProvinceSearch=&otherSearch=&submit1=Search

One of those really doesn't count- they never have the chart I need- including the local sectional.

So much for a drop-of-the hat XC...I'm glad www.wactac.com is outh there (rant over)
 
Only 4 of 28 chart dealers in Arkansas meet the $5K limit. I'm about half way there. I'm dropping charts completely. If I counted the man hours involved, we probably weren't much more than break even anyway. We provided charts as a service to pilots. Having to go through a middle man and losing the ability to return expired charts, it just isn't worth the effort. We were doing the best we could to minimize returns by ordering intelligently but these kind of sales support the spontaneous or short notice trips outside of a pilots normal area. There isn't enough volume to produce reliable statistics. I agree that the FAA needed to get more efficient but I think it could have done a lot on the supplier end. We had to inventory shipment content against the packing slip and against the order. We had to send returns with delivery confirmation so when they said they didn't receive them, we could say "Well, the post office said that they delivered on ----". It was easier to fax orders that to use their web site. Chart distribution was an area that was ripe for being turned over to private industry. I guess that is what they are doing in a way.
 
Guess my AirChart sectionals just got a bit more useful. :frown2:
 
More proof the FAA hates GA.
 
Gotta wonder how many folks will now decide that charts aren't important and will go flying anyway if they can't buy 'em locally. Wonder if we'll see an increase in wrong frequencies, landing issues, TFR busts, and other things that are bad for GA as a result of this decision.
 
wsuffa said:
Gotta wonder how many folks will now decide that charts aren't important and will go flying anyway if they can't buy 'em locally. Wonder if we'll see an increase in wrong frequencies, landing issues, TFR busts, and other things that are bad for GA as a result of this decision.
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One would hope (!) that FAA thought about these kinds of things before making their decision. But I wouldn't think TFR busts would change one way or another really, since they're not shown on sectionals anyway. Unless you meant that you need a sectional to be able to identify the boundaries of a TFR?


Trapper John
 
Trapper John said:
One would hope (!) that FAA thought about these kinds of things before making their decision. But I wouldn't think TFR busts would change one way or another really, since they're not shown on sectionals anyway. Unless you meant that you need a sectional to be able to identify the boundaries of a TFR?


Trapper John
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The latter as it appplies to TFRs. Outdated charts are one thing, traveling to a new area w/o a chart (and following the magenta line) is another. I can see both happening.
 
Yea that really sucks Jack. I've always wondered why they didn't just order more charts. Even as flight instructors out of the same building we have trouble getting them. Sometimes they'll ask if we want them to tell us when they come in. I was trying to get an AF/D the other day for a student's XC...but no go. Thankfully I could just print them out off the internet but that doesn't help much if we have to divert. Sectional charts are another story.
 
Tristar said:
Yea that really sucks Jack. I've always wondered why they didn't just order more charts. Even as flight instructors out of the same building we have trouble getting them. Sometimes they'll ask if we want them to tell us when they come in. I was trying to get an AF/D the other day for a student's XC...but no go. Thankfully I could just print them out off the internet but that doesn't help much if we have to divert. Sectional charts are another story.
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I've stopped dealing with them for AFDs or charts and just buy on-line. FWIW, we really only have Omaha to buy charts from since Lincoln nearly never has anything. Sometimes the local business doesn't want to be supported.
 
A couple of our local airports were in ca-hoots with each other and combined their orders to maintain the 'old' minimums. I don't see either of them on the new list, though. :(

It was destined to fail from the beginning, though - think of the manpower necessary at the airport level as Graueradler mentioned and multiply that by the hundreds of airports that would be sending and receiving stuff from the chart office within one day. Definitely operating in the red.

Yet another push of business onto online sources.
 
That stinks. For my "local" flying it doesn't really matter, I have a subscription with Sporty's for the WAC, TAC, sectional and AF/D covering this corner of the country. But if I ever get around to flying to Elko to see my brother, where am I going to get the charts at the drop of a hat? Hate to pay shipping for a single sectional.
 
wactac.com is going to be the way to go...
 
wsuffa said:
Outdated charts are one thing, traveling to a new area w/o a chart (and following the magenta line) is another.
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The MLOD Oh My!!! :D:D:D

As Liz said I think the airchart system just became more desirable for some people who live where it is hard to get charts. I also think some people will, as Bill said, be flying with less information. Not a good thing.
 
Plenty of online retailers offer sectionals at a discount with free shipping. I've had good luck with mypilotstore.com and usually receive an order within two days. Usually a trip that's outside of the range of my "home" charts is planned more than two days in advance anyway. I believe in supporting the local airport, except when the only FBO is the evil Atlantic, as it is here.

Jon
 
JoeSelch said:
Guess my AirChart sectionals just got a bit more useful. :frown2:
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Policy change aside, it's hard to beat the Airchart system if you fly true cross-country flights. I've been getting the IFR atlas for years and highly recommend it.

Jon
 
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