A federal rule that required aircraft-only use of airport runways that had been upgraded or repaired with federal funds has been rescinded and the cool Flashlight Drags, held at Pennsylvania’s Greene County Airport, will return. But the airport and runway in question had not even received a penny of federal funding and the whole thing was just a red tape screw up.
According to a story on Observer-Reporter.com, the federal ban on “nonaviation” events was put into place to protect airport improvements that the government had paid for. They were apparently fearful that tires spinning on concrete would wreck the place, not that multi-thousand pound aircraft would be falling out of the sky at high rates of speed onto the runway. Great government logic at work there. Ban the hot rodders!
It took a couple members of congress and a year to get everyting sorted out, but Greene County Airport, which has never taken federal money, does not have to follow the junk rules, so the drags are back in business! When a schedule is announced, we’ll keep you posted.
Source — Observer-Reporter — Federal ban lifted; drag racing returns
