Hersman Reiterates 25 Recommendations Made To FAA Following The
Accident
NTSB Chairman Deborah A. P. Hersman (pictured, left) and
FAA Associate Administrator Peggy Gilligan testified in the U.S.
Senate today about the status of aviation safety a year after the
crash of Continental Flight 3407 near Buffalo, New York on February
12, 2009.
The flight was operated by Colgan Air. The crash resulted in 50
fatalities, including all of the passengers, the flight crew, and
one person on the ground.
The NTSB issued its final report on the investigation of the
accident following a public board meeting on February 2.
Chairman Hersman provided a summary of the investigation that led
to the Board's final report and a determination that the probable
cause of the accident was the captain's
inappropriate response to an aerodynamic stall from which the
airplane did not recover.
At the hearing before the Subcommittee on Aviation of the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Hersman noted
that the Safety Board's final report makes 25 new recommendations
to the FAA and reiterates 3 previously issued
recommendations. The recommendations cover a wide range of
safety issues that were factors in this accident, including pilot
training and fatigue. Just last week, the NTSB updated its 2010
Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Issues to better
emphasize these 2 safety concerns, Hersman noted.
"If we are serious about aviation safety, we must establish a
system that minimizes pilot fatigue and ensures that flight crews
report to work rested and fit for duty," said Chairman Hersman. "We
must also have a system in which we are steadfastly confident that
all of our commercial pilots
are proficient and well-trained."
Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said regional
carriers need to be held to the same standards as the legacy
airlines. "...(W)we need to make certain that the pilots of
regional airlines have the training, rest, and experience required
to operate as safely as the major airlines," he said. "It has
become clear to me over the past year that Congress and the
industry need to take major steps to ensure there is one level of
safety throughout the entire commercial aviation industry. The
Aviation Subcommittee’s work over the past year has raised
significant concerns with regard to the adequacy of pilot training,
flight crew fatigue, pilot compensation, and commuting practices in
the industry.”
Speaking for the FAA, Peggy Gilligan (pictured, above),
Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, Federal Aviation
Administration, said the recently-released "Call to Action" is just
a beginning for the agency. "We believe that the collective efforts
of FAA, the airlines, labor unions and, of course, Congress, will
continue to result in implementing best practices, transferring
pilot experience, and achieving an overall improvement in safety.
Safety is at the core of the FAA’s mission, and we will
always strive to make a safe system safer.”
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