Soldner: Impose reservation system for elite and famous

I want to apologize to all of the American and United Airline travelers who, on Dec. 30, were diverted to Grand Junction and forced to take six buses to the Aspen airport because, as our pilot explained, there was no space available for these domestic flights. There were so many private planes parked at the Aspen airport that we could not welcome our most important visitors to Aspen!

And I understand this was not an isolated incident.

I was on one of the flights diverted to Grand Junction, and I want to commend both the Grand Junction airport employees and the Aspen airport employees for their amazing hard work, dedication, and kindness as they worked diligently to help our disconcerted visitors find their bags and buses for the 2-hour drive to the Aspen airport, ending in a horrendous blizzard, while they worked tirelessly to do the best they could to help people find their bags and transportation into Aspen.

Please correct me if I am wrong, but I have been told by the “powers that be” that the FAA says domestic flights — carrying hundreds of travelers — do not have priority over the private planes, and there is no limit to the number of private planes that can fly here on any given day. This seems completely backwards and dangerous. There must be a better solution.

In this day and age when “pay to play” is the new norm, why can’t the elite and famous make a reservation and pay for an airplane parking space on a first-come first-serve basis? This could be a wonderful revenue generating source for the airport. Please reserve crucial space and safety for domestic flights and travelers on which our economy depends.

Stephanie Soldner

Aspen