Yuba County Airport Safety

The 2013-2014 Grand Jury found that there was “no formal accident response plan for the Yuba County Airport.” 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety The Yuba County Administrative Services Director and the Yuba County Airport Manager responded to the finding: “Disagree. There is a posted ‘in an emergency’ placard in every hangar to call 911 in an emergency, and a plan filed with all emergency responders in the area (including the FAA and the Yuba County Sheriff).” The Yuba County Board of Supervisors responded to the same finding: “The Board of Supervisors disagrees with this finding. Plans are on file with local emergency responders, particularly fire.” The 2014-2015 Grand Jury interviewed the Yuba County Airport primary and secondary fire responders, and the Yuba County Office of Emergency Services. All three agencies stated that there is no formal accident response plan for the Yuba County Airport.

The 2013-2014 Grand Jury found that there was “no planned Yuba County Airport related exercises with local emergency responders.” The Yuba County Administrative Services Director and the Yuba County Airport Manager responded: “The airport and the local jurisdictions (primarily fire) do conduct emergency response drills and exercises at the airport at various times of the year. And Administrative Services has been working with the Office of Emergency Services to schedule multi-jurisdictional emergency response exercises.” The Yuba County Board of Supervisors responded to the same finding: “In addition, Yuba County Emergency Services is planning an emergency response exercise for the Airport during the current fiscal year.” The 2014-2015 Grand Jury interviewed the Yuba County Airport primary and secondary fire responders, and the Yuba County Office of Emergency Services. All three agencies stated that there have been no planned airport response drills or exercises with the Yuba County Airport for the last several years. In October, 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety 2014, a multi-jurisdictional emergency Slow Rise Flood response exercise was conducted; however, it was not directed to the Yuba County Airport emergency response capability.

The Yuba County Administrative Services Director and the Yuba County Airport Manager responded to a 2013-2014 finding that: “There is a posted ‘in an emergency’ placard in every hangar to call 911 in an emergency.” The 2014-2015 Grand Jury did locate the “in an emergency” checklist placard at the Yuba County Airport (See Figure 1). The Grand Jury, however, found it contained deficiencies:  Phone numbers are not listed for the Airport Manager or the Airport Lead maintenance worker.  There is no date listed on the checklist to indicate when it was last reviewed or updated.  There is no point of contact to notify if there are any issues with the checklist.  The checklist does not define the acronyms FAA, NOTAM, or ELT.  The checklist does not identify who is to notify the FAA or how. 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety Figure 1. Yuba County Airport Emergency Procedures Checklist

The 2013-2014 Grand Jury recommended “the ultra-lights be moved to the west side of runway 14/32 where safer operations with other aircraft at the airport would be improved.” 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety The Yuba County Administrative Services Director and the Yuba County Airport Manager responded: “This recommendation will not be implemented. This would require ultralight flyers to relocate onto actual airport property which would cause greater potential for conflict with aircraft, and would also put them in conflict with County ordinance which prohibits their use on actual airport operational land.” The Yuba County Board of Supervisors responded to the same finding: “This recommendation will not be implemented. This would require ultralight flyers to relocate onto actual property which would cause greater potential for conflict with aircraft, and would also put them in conflict with County ordinance which prohibits their use on actual airport operational land.” County of Yuba Ordinance Chapter 2.110.130 AIRPORT RULES AND REGULATIONS, Adopted December 16, 2008 states, “…No motorless aircraft or ultralight vehicles as defined by FAR (Federal Aviation Regulations) Part 103 (http://www.ultralighthomepage.com/CFR.part103.html) may land or take off at the Airport without prior permission of the Airport Manager…” (See Figure 2) 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety Figure 2. Sign located at main entrance at Yuba County Airport. The Grand Jury is puzzled why the Airport Management has not exercised the authority provided in the aforementioned ordinance to relocate the ultralight operations to a safer, more suitable location. Pilots interviewed by the Grand Jury voiced safety concerns regarding the in- flight conflicts between ultralights and other aircraft operating at the Yuba County Airport. Pilots stated they have observed ultralights crossing over the runways and approach/departure zones. Ultralights operate at a much slower speed, have a much slower maneuvering response time, and because of their small size, are very difficult to see. It was reported to the 2014-2015 Grand Jury that most ultra-light activity occurs along the Feather River which is west of the Yuba County Airport. The interview with an FAA representative confirmed that moving ultralight activities west of runway 14/32 would eliminate their potential runway crossings and greatly improve the safety of ultralight operations and other aircraft operating at Yuba County Airport. 2014-2015 Yuba County Grand Jury Final Report Yuba County Airport Safety

The 2013-2014 Grand Jury recommended “The Administrative Services Director revise and update the Airport Manager Job Description to reflect current duties and responsibilities.” The Yuba County Administrative Services Director and the Yuba County Airport Manager responded: “This recommendation will be implemented. The Administrative Services Director will coordinate with the Director of Human Resources to review the class specification for the Airport Manager and determine if any updates are needed. This will be done within 30 days.” The Yuba County Board of Supervisors responded to the same finding: “This recommendation will be implemented by requesting a review of the job specifications immediately with the intent to complete the review by the end of the current fiscal year.” The 2014-2015 Grand Jury conducted an interview with the Yuba County administrativeServices Director on March 26, 2015. The Airport Manager’s class specification review (job description), as of that date, was still not complete. The Yuba County Administrative Services Director is in violation of Penal Code §933.05 (b)(2).