[From COPA BC Director Tim Cole]

I am pleased to announce that NavCanada has now made a commitment to not only retain weather reporting at Lytton and Clinton, but also to upgrade, at considerable expense, the AWOS installations at both sites. This upgrading will be an undertaking as part of NavCanada’s National Legacy AWOS Replacement Program.

The tentative timetable for completion for the two projects will be the spring of 2013 for Lytton and the fall of 2013 for Clinton. There will be no disruption of service.

Yesterday, my fellow COPA Director Brian Webster, myself, and COPA member at large, Captain Henry Ilg, representing COPA, and Mark Duncan and Lyle Soetaert representing the BC Aviation council, met with NavCanada’s Manager of Aeronautical Studies and Analysis, Brian Stockall, at the Boundary Bay Airport.

While making his announcement, Mr. Stockall advised that the write in campaign, organized by COPA, played a significant part in reaching the decision to retain these two very important weather reporting stations on these heavily traveled mountain VFR routes. He particularly commented on the quality of the safety rationale that was included in the correspondence.

In addition to the AWOS issue the importance and timeliness of the consultation process was discussed.

The satisfactory conclusion and retaining of these critical weather reporting sites is a prime example of the value of your collective action through your Canadian Owners and Pilots Association.

To those of you who took the time and effort to write in, THANK YOU!

To the flight Captains, will you please give this message wide distribution through your COPA Flights.

Thanks again and best regards,

Tim

W.T. (Tim) Cole