A Palm Beach County pilot has filed a lawsuit challenging the renaming of Palm Beach International Airport to President Donald J. Trump International Airport.<\/p>\n
George W. Poncy Jr., of Palm Beach Gardens, has been a Federal Aviation Administration licensed private pilot for nearly two decades, the agency\u2019s records show. He regularly flies in South Florida\u2019s airspace and transits airspace controlled by the Palm Beach County airport, according to the lawsuit complaint.<\/p>\n
Poncy\u2019s lawsuit, filed last week and in which he is representing himself, names the state of Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Department of Transportation as defendants. He alleges that the bill approved by the governor last month to rename the county-owned-and-operated airport, HB 919<\/a>, could lead to safety risks and communication issues for pilots and air traffic controllers, raises uncertainties pertaining to licensing and trademark rights<\/a>, and is an overreach of power on local government.<\/p>\n Poncy alleges the legislation will impose a period where the airport\u2019s name differs from federally coordinated aviation systems, \u201cintroducing operational ambiguity and increasing the risk of miscommunication in active flight operations.\u201d The complaint said Poncy will face \u201cunrecoverable costs\u201d in updating aviation software, navigational databases and flight planning systems affected by the change.<\/p>\n On Thursday, Poncy filed a motion asking that PBI\u2019s name be maintained while the legal matter is pending.<\/p>\n The bill\u2019s effective date is July 1.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce implementation begins, it will trigger irreversible changes across aviation systems, airport operations, contractual obligations, and emergency-response infrastructure that cannot be undone by a later favorable ruling,\u201d Poncy wrote in the emergency motion filed Thursday.<\/p>\n Poncy could not be reached for comment on Thursday.<\/p>\n Pending \u201call required approvals,\u201d including by the FAA, only the airport\u2019s name will be affected and its code will remain as PBI, though separate federal legislation has been introduced to change the code, airport officials said in a statement<\/a> last month.<\/p>\n U.S. Rep. Brian Mast introduced a bill to change the airport\u2019s code to DJT<\/a>.<\/p>\n Changes to the airport\u2019s signs, branding and public-facing materials will be made in phases, the airport\u2019s statement said, and operations will not be interrupted.<\/p>\n \u201cA state appropriation to support these efforts may be provided, but it remains pending,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n