The General Aviation Airport Coalition (GAAC) was officially formed late last week to “preserve and promote,” on a national level, GA airports in the U.S. It consists initially of 24 founding members–all GA airport operators–from across the continental U.S. that began meeting late last year to discuss GA airport issues. “There are several excellent organizations that represent general aviation to federal lawmakers and federal agency officials, but these groups do not exclusively represent the general aviation airport,” said Richard Lewis, GAAC interim chair and director of Concord (N.C) Regional Airport. “GA airports need eyes and ears on the ground to look out exclusively for policies that impact our airports.” As an example, the coalition cited federal agencies, such as the TSA, that are considering placing additional requirements on GA airports but are not proposing any funding support to help implement any resulting changes. “GA airports need to work together to create a strong, unified voice to prevent the federal government from forcing us to do things we cannot afford to do,” Lewis noted. GAAC, which meets at least monthly via conference call and webcast, recently launched its new website and plans to start a national marketing campaign to recruit new members.