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“Given the recent high profile maintenance incidents and the continued economic woes of the airline industry, it has never been more crucial that our aviation safety system is operating at its highest level. The U.S. aviation safety system is a complex and redundant system that includes layers of coordination between many stakeholders including the FAA, air carriers, manufacturers, pilots, inspectors and controllers, amongst others. When the ‘safety first’ culture breaks down, it cannot – must not fail. The FAA and all the aviation stakeholders involved have a professional and moral responsibility to maintain the utmost level of aviation safety. “In Alaska, our aviation community has worked hard to create an ever improving culture of safety. As I have reported to this Committee many times, Alaska is dependent on aviation more than any other state. With the vast spectrum and sheer amount of commercial cargo and general aviation in our state, it has been a challenge to continually decrease our accident rates. Through programs like Capstone, Alaskans have been able to make dramatic strides in the area of aviation safety. The FAA and Alaska aviation industry stakeholders have set a long-term goal of equipping Alaska based aircraft and installing ADS-B ground infrastructure to cover 90% of the operations in our state. By working collaboratively to reach that goal, the FAA estimates there will be a 33 percent reduction in fatal accidents over the next 27 years. “In addition, because Alaska has 6 times the number of pilots per capita compared to the Lower 48 and 14 times the number of aircraft, the Alaskan aviation community initiated the Medallion Foundation. Medallion is a voluntary program for air carriers and pilots in Alaska which establishes safety standards that exceed regulatory requirements to help the Alaska aviation community detect safety trends or needs before actual accidents occur. The benefits of Capstone and Medallion would not have been realized without the collaboration between the Alaska aviation stakeholders and the FAA. The FAA could and should learn a valuable national lesson from the Alaska example. While the process of change is almost always difficult for both the FAA and the providers involved, the safety benefits far outweigh the angst it took to get them. The FAA must take a renewed look at the way it implements its aviation safety partnership programs. Understandably the FAA needs to thoroughly review the recommendations of the Department of Transportation Inspector General and take corrective action to address the problems.”
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