Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

Legislative efforts in New York State that would have led to the closure of the West 30th Street Heliport in Manhattan have ended. Language that would have prohibited “any facility for motorized aircraft, including a heliport” has been removed from the legislation, thanks to a grassroots campaign led by Vertical Aviation International (VAI) that responded vigorously to a request to contact state legislators and express concern over the closure plans.
VAI members and others from industry partners such as the NBAA sent more than 96,000 emails to every member of both state houses, according to Josh Rousseau, VAI northeast U.S. regional representative. “They felt the heat,” he said.
The new bill, with the heliport provisions stripped out, does include language beneficial to the West 30th Street Heliport, requiring the creation of an advisory task force comprising city appointees, as well as industry and business representatives. The task force appointments are pending the legislation becoming law, which doesn’t happen until all assembly and senate negotiations over the bill are complete and they send it to the governor’s office for final approval or veto.
“The grassroots effort was incredibly effective,” Rousseau said. “There is so much more work to do, but we’re in a much better place than we were two-and-a-half weeks ago.”

News and issues regarding all manner of civil and military rotorcraft and their powerplants, including helicopters, tilt rotors and unmanned air vehicles.

VAI Lauds End of Legislative Effort To Close West 30th St Heliport

The New York State bill would have closed a critical facility

Legislative efforts in New York State that would have led to the closure of the West 30th Street Heliport in Manhattan have ended.

VAI Lauds End of West 30th St Heliport Closure Effort

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AmyWilder

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