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What is General Aviation?
Overview
Simply put, general aviation (GA) encompasses all civilian flying except for scheduled airline service.
GA includes flying a variety of aircraft for business, personal, and recreational purposes, flight training, firefighting, law enforcement, disaster relief, search and rescue, medical transportation, news, weather, and traffic reporting, pipeline patrol, power line repair and maintenance, agriculture, aerial photography and survey work and so much more. GA also includes the various businesses that support all these activities.
According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, more than 90% of civil aircraft registered in the United States are general aviation aircraft. And, of the nation’s approximately 600,000 pilots, an estimated 500,000+ fly general aviation airplanes and learned to fly at GA airports.
Of the nearly 3,300 airports in the United States that are included in the National Plan of Integrated Airports (NPIAS) and considered critical to the nation’s system of airports, 514 are commercial service airports serving primarily the airlines with the other 2,786 or so airports, including the LA County airports, serving strictly GA.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is responsible for overseeing and regulating all aspects of civil aviation in the United States, including regulating aircraft design, maintenance, and operations, managing air traffic control, and promoting aviation safety.
Advancements in technologies are bringing exciting changes to GA as a new era of air travel called Urban Air Mobility approaches. Some of the changes coming in the very near future include:
- Lighter, quieter, and more versatile aircraft
- New and more efficient ways to transport people and goods
- Cleaner aircraft power sources, including more sustainable and environmentally friendly aviation fuels
By embracing these technological innovations, GA continues to evolve, becoming safer and more accessible, and opening up new and exciting applications that serve to benefit Los Angeles County’s GA airports and the surrounding communities. This progress will equip the local economies for long-term growth and continue to position the airports as tremendous assets and essential hubs for business, education, recreation, and civic enrichment.
Information Resources:
General Aviation and Recreational Aircraft (Federal Aviation Administration)
LA County Airports
