A recent request for flight records by Jackson resident Joe Albright reveals that scenic helicopter tour operator, Wind River Air, LLC, flew below the 2,000 foot overflight recommendation over Grand Teton National Park and adjacent public lands on numerous occasions in September and October of 2021. Local and Montana-based operators have been justifying these low overflights in the National Park as “ferrying,” “repositioning,” and “cargo transport,” but there is currently extremely limited oversight evaluating the truth of these claims. Joe penned a letter outlining his findings to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is the agency responsible for regulating scenic tours over public lands. The Conservation Alliance is submitting its own letter to the FAA in partnership with the National Parks Conservation Association calling for increased oversight and regulation of these scenic flights over public lands in light of Joe’s findings.
Read the letter below and learn more about our Heli No! campaign on our newly updated webpages.
