The Federal Aviation Administration has dismissed pilot Vernon Ricks’ complaint against Greenwood-Leflore Airport, calling the complaint “rambling and disjointed.”
Ricks had alleged the airport violated the terms of federal grants it receives.
But Randall Fiertz, the FAA’s director of airport compliance and field operations, said in a Jan. 24 decision that Ricks brought up broad allegations reaching back to the airport board’s 1967 inception.
He said he surmised that the main point of it was that Ricks claimed the airport discriminated against him by failing to provide an acceptable spot to move his hangar or to pay Ricks enough to move his buildings and other property in order to accommodate expansion by GE Commercial Aviation Services (formerly the Memphis Group).
The company demolishes commercial jets for parts. GE made an offer in January 2008 to expand that would have increased the airport’s annual income by $141,000 per year, according to Airport Manager Bardin Redditt.
But as part of the deal GE wanted to take over Ricks’ nearby lease.
Ricks’ contract allows for him to be moved at the airport’s expense if necessary for industrial expansion. But negotiations failed, and Ricks filed an FAA complaint in June 2009.
Fiertz summarized Ricks’ allegations into six issues and rejected them all. He repeatedly said Ricks didn’t provide evidence to back up his claims.
As to what he said was Ricks’ main point, Fiertz said the record indicates the airport has been making reasonable efforts to accommodate Ricks by moving him to another spot at the airport.
Ricks said this morning that he hadn’t seen the FAA determination yet and therefore couldn’t comment.
He has 30 days to appeal.
A federal lawsuit Ricks has filed against the airport board, Redditt, Greenwood, Leflore County, GECAS, Airport Development Group, the Greenwood-Leflore-Carroll Economic Development Foundation and others is still pending.
Redditt said the FAA decision said the airport acted according to regulations. He said that could possibly help the airport in the lawsuit.
“If it didn’t break any FAA rules, then it probably didn’t violate the law,” Redditt said.
He said the airport board has turned over duties to negotiate Ricks’ move to the city and county. In the meantime, the airport has been losing out on potential revenue.
“Minimum of $300,000 less money in the till, plus I’m sure we haven’t enhanced our relationship between the airport and GE by not making a little bit greater effort at giving them what they want to stay here,” Redditt said.
• Contact Charlie Smith at csmith@gwcommonwealth.com.
