Summer 1999 Bulletin

Amigos Bravos Sues the Airforce

Amigos Bravos is preparing to sue the US Air Force and the Secretary of Defense to compel them to produce an Environmental Impact Statement on the impacts of low-altitude training flights on river corridors and other natural areas. As a key New Mexican plaintiff, Amigos Bravos joins the Rural Alliance for Military Accountability, Southwest Center for Biological Diversity, and a broad coalition of environmental groups around the country. The Western Environmental Law Center in Taos is representeing the coalition. The Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement will require the Air Force to look beyond local impacts of low-altitude flights to the impacts on broader regions. The Air Force will have to look at impacts on the migratory bird flyway from Montana to the middle Río Grande in New Mexico. The suit addresses the low-altitude flights’ impact on the quiet we value in Wild and Scenic River corridors, wilderness areas, and National Parks, as well as their consequences for wildlife, human health, local economies, and tradional cultural activities. Several years ago, the Air Force recognized a need for a “consolidated, in-depth analysis of impacts common to low-altitude flying,” but never completed the draft study. With the advent of computer simulations used in pilot training, we believe the Air Force must re-evaluate the need for extensive training missions.

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