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Speech

American Bar Association Air and Space Law Forum

Good afternoon, everyone. I want to thank Nancy [LoBue]for those kind words just now, and for the leadership she’s shown as your chair. I know you all won’t miss a beat when Renee [Martin-Nagle]takes the helm next year.

I have to admit to feeling an overwhelming sense of deja vu. If it seems like just yesterday when I was in Montreal, well, maybe because it was. Actually, it was ten days ago, for the ICAO conference on air traffic modernization. It’s great to be back with President Kobeh in the city where the roots of aviation run deep.

The purpose of my visit then was to talk about the coming together of the two most advanced aviation systems in the world — America and Europe. We’re both heading into a critical phase of meshing our future technology and airspace systems. We call our new system “NextGen.” Europe calls theirs “SESAR.” [Single European Sky ATM Research].

As part of our NextGen efforts, you’ve seen us focus on congestion and, in particular, the redesign of the New York airspace.

I like to call these initiatives our “full attorney employment” initiatives, because I think collectively — between the airspace redesign and our market-based auctions — we have about twenty-something lawsuits filed against us. And the number’s rising by the hour.

Humor aside, as I thought about what to discuss with this group, New York is a microcosm of some of the issues that we face going forward, from both an operations and policy perspective.

Collectively, we have to figure out how to keep moving forward on infrastructure projects — new runways, new taxiways, terminals, and airports.

Operationally, we have to find ways to better utilize existing infrastructure, accelerate technology and better design airspace.

From a policy perspective, how do we maintain competition when there’s no additional capacity? And what are the best ways to manage congestion?

Beyond New York, there are other policy issues yet to be resolved:

• Confidentiality of data and data-sharing.
• How to resolve fatigue issues and move to a framework that’s based more on the science?
• Should our efforts in commercial space adopt industry-consensus standards similar to the Light Sport Aircraft?
• FAA oversight — How do we keep up with this ever-evolving industry?
• What’s the best way to certify and introduce new technology and aircraft in a manner that further improves aviation safety?
• And what’s the best approach for financing the FAA in a way that’s fair and ensures stable, reliable funding?

All of these topics are a speech to themselves, and we ought to be able to debate them in a thorough, constructive manner — not through sound bites and political rhetoric.

The system is too important to the collective good of this nation.

Especially in this time of change and struggle for the carriers in every location, we recognize the challenges the industry is going through, what with the fuel crisis, the financial straits and the cuts in service to small communities.

In the here and now, we’re working with the airports and the airlines to ease the sting.

For example, this past summer, with fuel prices going through the roof, I met with a couple dozen industry executives — a “fuel forum” — to talk about where things stand and what to do about it. We discussed new procedures and other steps that the carriers can take to lower their fuel bill. Not ten years from now, but things they can do right now.

But, today, I want to hold off on the policy issues and take a little different approach.

I’d like to talk about a safety issue that we’ve tackled with renewed energy. The heart of the issue is the intersection of humans and technology. It’s a collective liability for all of us, and I need your help in working with the industry to make further improvements — runway safety.

You may remember the call to action we convened last year with the stakeholders to get the incursion numbers down.

At the FAA, we’ve spent millions on new technology. We’ve repainted runway markings. And we’ve installed runway status lights that act like traffic signals.

The airlines are doing their part too, training pilots on the need for constant vigilance in the cockpit, changing procedures, changing checklists.

And it’s clear that despite all that we’ve done, attention is not focused where it needs to be. As a matter of fact, I just sent another letter to the airline CEOs asking them to ratchet up situational awareness once again.

We’ve taken the human out of the loop with things like autopilot, but machines aren’t the answer. If they were, my DVD player wouldn’t always be flashing 12 o’clock.

I’d like to illustrate the scenario with some video.

[Video shown].

The pilot is told to hold short. Roger that. The controller repeats the instruction. The pilot repeats it for the second time — and then he rolls onto an active runway.

Instruction. Confirmation. Instruction. Confirmation. Then an incursion. What do you say when the correct instructions are given twice? When we’ve made all these efforts, and it comes down to this?

As you can see, human-in-the-loop issues are everyone’s problem. They are our collective liabilities.

And since you are all part of the industry, and you deal with the airlines and the stakeholders, I need your help — help me solve these human-in-the-loop issues. What can we do to further enhance safety when we’ve maxed out on technology — whether it’s for pilots, controllers or vehicle drivers?

As a former airline pilot, I am concerned that certain business practices, such as cleaning up as pilots are taxiing in, can exacerbate the problem. This is a liability none of us needs.

The safety record of commercial flying is extremely high, but it’s no accident or miracle. It’s because we’ve been paying attention to the little details. A safety record like ours requires the continued, sustained attention of an entire industry on the little things. Thank you.