Report about the National Transportation Safety Board - Essay Example

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent federal agency, without any regulatory powers, exclusively for carrying out investigations into aviation as well as major road and rail accidents. Making safety recommendations is the focal point of its investigations. This is to help prevent future accidents. Investigation of accidents is comprehensive, effective and successful as NTSB employs a vast array of resources-most advanced and efficient. The investigation is carried out by NTSB’s ‘Go Team’, who comprise of several groups of experts to study various factors involved in any accident, such as weather, human factors, or systems.

In cases of suspected criminal activity, certain other federal agencies might get involved in the investigation process. Meticulous reporting is done and recommendations are issued at the end of any investigation as it is the primary goal. NTSB also undertakes specialised research on transportation safety to create new knowledge to make effective recommendations. NTSB also engages in safety advocacy by issuing safety alerts for the public and transportation providers. For instance, recommended actions to “prevent aerodynamic stalls at low altitudes” (NTSB, n.d.) is for the pilots and technicians, while various alerts regarding highway safety addresses the public.

These could be accessed on NTSB website and appear to be highly useful. Another key division of NTSB is its Transport Disaster Assistance (TDA) division that functions as a coordinator after any transport accident in order to provide various support services to the victims and their families. To name a few, TDA coordinates forensic services, counselling, translation and interaction with foreign governments. TDA acts as the coordinator between those who respond to an accident and those affected, that is the state and federal agencies or volunteer organisation and the respective transport carriers.

It also helps in planning disaster assistance. Throughout the period of investigation, TDA serves as the information source for the families. Overall, NTSB plays a vital role in advocating transportation safety by carrying out investigations and issuing recommendations to prevent recurrence of such accidents. ReferenceNational Transportation Safety Board (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2015 from http://www.ntsb.gov/Pages/default.aspx