FAA says Trump arch with signal flame got no special treatment in review

WASHINGTON: The head of the US Federal Aviation Administration said on Wednesday there was no political interference in the agency's air safety review of President Donald Trump's proposed triumphal arch that will include an eternal flame for visibility.

"We put the process through the same obstruction evaluation that our career (employees) do for any project," FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters on the sidelines of an event, adding the project did not get any special consideration.

The proposed 250-foot (76-metre) arch would be 3,000 feet from Reagan Washington National Airport and within the airport's main approach and departure corridors.

The FAA determination last week requires the arch to be marked with the flame atop the structure and floodlight projectors pointed at it to make it noticeable for pilots. Some aviation experts have raised safety concerns given its proximity to the airport's main approach and departure corridor.

The FAA dropped an earlier requirement for red obstruction lights, which it generally mandates on buildings more than 200 feet (61 metres) tall near airports, such as the nearby 555-foot (169-metre) Washington Monument.

On Tuesday, US Representative Don Beyer said Trump's plan to base military drones at the arch would require the FAA to conduct a new safety analysis. Bedford did not directly address the Democratic lawmaker's question.

On Sunday, Trump said he would convert the arch into a military complex capable of deploying drones and positioning snipers. The FAA review did not contemplate drone operations at the site.

The arch is part of Trump's broader push to remake Washington, including renovating the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, redeveloping a golf course in East Potomac Park and adding his name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Preservationists say the projects would alter some of the capital's most prominent historic landmarks.

Veterans have sued to block the arch, arguing it would destroy the historic sightline between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.