Military base

[Aztec Driver]

The charter company I fly for has an upcoming charter to land as close as possible to a military base as the client has business on the base. I realize that permission is required and security in these times might make it impossible, but are there any private flights able to get permission to land to conduct on base business?

 

[AcroBoy]

Yes, it may be possible, but it depends on the base and their mission. Generally, since 9/11 it has become much more stringent, particularly if the flight crew aren't in the military. You can call base ops and ask for the airfield manager, or your point of contact can talk with them. You will need to sign a hold harmless agreement as well as fax documentation regarding your insurance. If approved they will issue a PPR, with a very narrow window for arrival. It helps to come in IFR. Most fields will have a follow me vehicle. Do not taxi anywhere except where they tell you, and do not walk cross any painted red lines on the ramp- there are controlled entry points to get into and out of the red area, even though it's just a line. Since some bases have an alert mission, or have fighters with live ammo ready to go, the security forces take their job very seriously. Any deviation may find you eating concrete with a loaded weapon pointed at your head.

Unless you are intimately familiar with the procedures, it may not be worth the trouble.

 

[Tom-D]

Yes, it may be possible, but it depends on the base and their mission. Generally, since 9/11 it has become much more stringent,

Not true

particularly if the flight crew aren't in the military. You can call base ops and ask for the airfield manager, or your point of contact can talk with them. You will need to sign a hold harmless agreement as well as fax documentation regarding your insurance. If approved they will issue a PPR, with a very narrow window for arrival. It helps to come in IFR. Most fields will have a follow me vehicle. Do not taxi anywhere except where they tell you, and do not walk cross any painted red lines on the ramp- there are controlled entry points to get into and out of the red area, even though it's just a line. Since some bases have an alert mission, or have fighters with live ammo ready to go, the security forces take their job very seriously. Any deviation may find you eating concrete with a loaded weapon pointed at your head.

Unless you are intimately familiar with the procedures, it may not be worth the trouble.

It can be done over the phone and fax machine in about 20 minutes. all the customer needs to be is a government contractor. with the numbers to prove it.

I did my Facilities permit friday.

 

[poadeleted20]

It isn't as easy as Tom makes it sound. There is paperwork to be filed, insurance forms to fill out, and if the aircraft isn't the contractor's own, more issues to resolve. Contact Base Operations at the destination base and get them to help, since they are one of the agencies which must sign off on the thing anyway. Note that there are three forms to be filed -- an insurance declaration countersigned by your insurer, a hold-harmless agreement, and an application for landing permit. I've done this several times over the years, and I've never seen all this accomplished by fax in 20 minutes.

 

[LearDriver]

I have done this in the past as well. As said above it wasn't accomplished in 20 minutes. I think the quickest that I was able to accomplish this in was about two days. However, I don't do it that often to get the process done quicker.

Our company uses a private flight planning and weather service that takes care of all these issues for us. So I am not sure how long the process really takes currently. We have operated into and out of Military airports all around the world from time to time.

My assumption would be that once you go through the process the first time you will know exactly information that you have to forward with the request. Which will make repeat requests much quicker to process.

Just remember that when on a Military airport you may not be able to purchase fuel. that can be even more difficult to get done than the permission to use the airport.

 

[AcroBoy]

Again, a lot depends on the base and the mission, as well as the attitude of the airfield manager and up to the wing commander. I've flown into Volk Field (Wisconsin) on official Air Force business multiple times, but the ramps in both Madison (Truax) and Milwaukee (Mitchell) are off limits, regardless of rank or mission, to civilian aircraft. So, it is base dependent, and not always that easy.