Speech

Flight Safety Foundation

Good evening, and thank you, Ambassador [Stimpson]. It’s a pleasure to be here.

I don’t know how many of you caught the documentary about aircraft carriers on PBS a couple weeks ago. It was all about life on the Nimitz — from the bridge to the kitchen. They made the analogy that the carrier is just like a city, and I’d say that’s about right.

I have a copy of that series on my desk right now. There’s a segment about nighttime landings in high seas. The deck moving up and down. The fuel gauge is telling you that you’ve only got one or two passes left. The crew bringing them in was pretty tight. But there was a cutaway, down below in the ready room where all of the junior officers were watching the events unfold. They would laugh when someone missed the wire and bolted. In truth, some of their colleagues were really in an extremely tight spot, and these young pilots were eating popcorn, watching the broadcast on small-screen TV.

True confession — I’ve been in those ready rooms, and I’ve eaten that popcorn and sat back and watched. But that’s a story for a different day.

What all that reminds me of right now is the situation in which aviation finds itself. We’re not in the position where we can afford to have people who know the business sit back and watch. There’s a real issue of public confidence on the table.

When the critics talk about the danger of runway collisions, that’s only one side of the story, and we all know it. Last year we had eight serious commercial incursions — in the course of 61 million operations. Eight is eight too many, and our attention is keenly focused toward runway safety. But to paint a picture that the system is hanging by a thread is a public disservice. Goodness knows, the FAA and each one of you has really turned up the focus on what happens on the ground, and that’s the right thing to do.

When I get asked a question like, “Is it safe to fly?” or “What’s the leading cause of airplane accidents?” — well, as we all well know, there is no leading cause. The system is so safe that we’ve picked off the low hanging fruit. We’ve whittled away at the accident count over the years with technology and training. The data-based and risk management approach to safety is working.

Over 40,000 people died on the highway last year, and we handled over three-quarters of a billion passengers without a single on-board fatality.

What we see in the press, however, paints an entirely different picture. It focuses on the shortsighted actions of a few in a very, very distinct minority. There were mistakes made, but we’re hard at it to make sure they never happen again. By and large, without question or hesitation, I can say here and now that those few incidences of error are the exception to the rule. Those inspectors are the backbone of safety, and the safety record is a testament to their work.

With 46,000 people and more than 500 manned ATC facilities, plus tens of thousands more in the industry, we will have our issues from time to time. But we can’t sit back and watch while being painted with a broad brush.

Yes, the FAA is a regulator with an enforcement role, and by and large, people know where to draw the line. But our business, and any effort to improve it, needs to have collaboration, partnership and voluntary disclosure programs as strong components. Backing away from these areas will set us back a decade and drive safety issues underground. That is a result we cannot permit.

Can we improve? You bet. And that should be our focus. It will take all of our efforts, working together in partnership, to continuously improve the system. Butthe FAA can’t do it alone.

So what I’m looking for in this room is for a commitment to step forward, to speak out, to correct the record when you see that it’s been reported incorrectly. To educate, to inform, to talk about the complexities and the details.

The public depends on our industry to say and do the right thing. I know that you have the knowledge, the experience and the perspective to step up. This group can provide perspective and context. This group can educate people on how to move forward. I’m asking you to do so. And when you see areas of safety concern, my commitment to you is that my door is always open. Thanks.