The restrictions were imposed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks because of military installations in the region: a weapons depot at Indian Island near Port Townsend; the Navy's aircraft carrier base at Everett; the Trident submarine base at Bangor; the naval shipyard and carrier homeport at Bremerton; and the chemical weapons depot at Umatilla.

Private pilots had complained that the restrictions made it harder for them to navigate and in some cases land at nearby airports.

The Pacific Northwest sites were among 11 restricted areas nationwide that were shrunk this week to ease restrictions on general aviation pilots.

"This is a good first step, but it's only a first step," said Phil Boyer, president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, an advocacy group. "All four of the Puget Sound (flight restrictions) have created navigational nightmares for pilots in the area."

While the restricted areas have been reduced in size, they were not eliminated, "and pilots still have to beware," Boyer said.

Washington Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, as well as Reps. Rick Larsen and Jennifer Dunn, had urged the FAA to act, saying the "temporary" restrictions imposed more than two years ago were beginning to appear permanent. Murray, Cantwell and Larsen are Democrats, while Dunn is a Republican.

In a Dec. 16 letter to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Murray and Cantwell said the FAA restrictions - imposed at Rumsfeld's request - "cause operational, access and efficiency challenges for civilian pilots."

For example, "pilots can no longer use the Columbia River as a navigation reference" without deviating from normal flight paths, the lawmakers said. The restrictions also made it harder to fly in and out of four airports in the Seattle area and closed a seaplane base in Poulsbo, Wash., they said.

The pilots group, which includes about 11,000 members in Washington and 6,000 in Oregon, is analyzing the impact of the changes, said spokesman Warren Morningstar.

In most cases, altitude restriction on private pilots were lowered and restricted areas were made smaller, he said. They still guard what needs to be protected - nerve gas depots, chemical weapons and nuclear submarines, Morningstar said.