McCarran a checkpoint for private planes

Friday, Feb. 8, 2002 | 9:49 a.m.

Dozens of private aircraft have begun arriving at McCarran International Airport and while many of them are carrying big-spending tourists, they aren't transporting high-rollers to Las Vegas casinos.

That's because McCarran has been designated as one of four "gateway airports" for private planes traveling to Salt Lake City for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, which begin today.

Under a security plan established by the Utah Olympic Public Safety Command, all private planes flying into the Salt Lake City area during any portion of the Games through Feb. 24 must be inspected and the identities of all passengers checked.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Allen Kenitzer said inspections are being conducted by the U.S. Customs Service, which may delegate some of the job to local law enforcement or National Guard personnel. Inspectors will match identities of people aboard planes against the names of people submitted for permits in a screening process that occurred between Nov. 1 and Jan. 21.

"If you haven't submitted an application," Kenitzer said, "you're not going, (by private plane) because applications were due last month."

Before leaving McCarran for Salt Lake City, pilots turn in their flight plans and get a special transponder code that will identify their aircraft on air traffic control radar screens.

Planes without the code will be considered suspicious and may be greeted by military planes or helicopters when they get close to central Utah. Planes suspected of being hijacked and headed toward Olympic venues are likely to be confronted by military fighters guarding the Salt Lake City area's airspace.

Kenitzer said because of security precautions, he could not say how many inspectors have been assigned at McCarran or what exactly they'll be looking for when they check planes.

But Warren Morningstar, vice president of communications for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, said inspectors would be looking for anything out of the ordinary and will verify who's aboard every plane.

Kenitzer said the length of the inspections in Las Vegas will depend on the size of the aircraft, with the smallest planes taking a few minutes. Inspectors hope to complete three to four checks an hour and will work 16-hour days beginning at 4:30 a.m., he said.

At that rate, the four gateway airports should be able to accommodate the 4,800 pilots who have applied for clearance to fly to Salt Lake City -- as long as they aren't planning to arrive at the same time. Pilots have been directed to make a reservation for an inspection. The three other airports providing gateway inspections are in Boise, Idaho, and Colorado Springs and Grand Junction, Colo.

McCarran officials have designated five acres on the west side of the airport to park planes awaiting inspections. Airport spokeswoman Hilarie Grey said providing the space and a portable lighting system is the extent of the local involvement in the inspections.

Pilots flying from the gateway airports to Salt Lake City have the option of landing at one of six airports along Utah's Wasatch Front, from Ogden to Provo.

A special federal aviation regulation restricts all other flying within a 45-mile radius of Salt Lake City International Airport -- known as the "Olympic Ring." It effectively bans most flying except by emergency, military and law enforcement personnel, clearing the skies of everything from hang gliders and hot air balloons to crop dusters and Great Salt Lake brine shrimp spotters.

In addition to restricting flights within 45 miles of the Salt Lake City airport, no-fly zones have been established over nine Olympic venues, including the Olympic Village.

Morningstar said private pilots had little to say about the security arrangements, which pilots concur are far stricter than most originally had envisioned.

In AOPA forums on the Internet, pilots have expressed concern that inspections at the gateway airports will be delayed because inspectors won't have dogs and every check will be completed manually.

Morningstar said Utah pilots have even more to be concerned about. Southern Utah pilots, for example, can't fly directly to Salt Lake City during the Olympics -- they must first go to one of the gateway airports like everybody else.

Also, pilots who have planes based at small airports in the Salt Lake area won't be able to fly them during the Games. Pilots have been encouraged to move their planes to airports outside the Olympic Ring during the event. But that will put many commercial fliers, including flight instructors and their student pilots, out of the sky for three weeks.com