Federal Aviation Regulations - Research Paper Example

Federal Aviation Regulations The need for standardized safety regulations became necessary in the early 1920s in response to increased commercial air travel. The response to the concern over safety issues lead to the creation of the Federal Aviation Administration which oversees all aspects or aircraft safety. This organization is responsible for analyzing and reviewing safety concerns based on data such accident reports in order to implement standardized regulation. The Federal Aviation Regulations, or FARs (Federal Aviation Regulations) are a set of rules that are stipulated by the Federal Aviation Administration and are considered law. Aircrafts not meeting these regulations can be grounded. This group governs all aviation laws in the United States and though it does not control international airlines, many other countries have implemented similar safety standards. These regulations are part of the Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations that have been implemented to promote safe aviation protecting both crew and passengers in flight. The purpose of these regulations is to provide standard and consistent safety regulations for every commercial aircraft though modifications may need to be made to accommodate differences in some types of planes. Each part of these codes is related to a different activity containing subparts. Part 25 of the FARs focuses on airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. This part covers all airplanes in the transport category which includes all civil airplanes and helicopters. Airworthiness is essential to explore as the main goal in aircraft design, maintenance and operations should focus on flight safety. Many of the regulations that have been implemented by the FAA have been based on safety incidents that have occurred prompting action to insure safety. All proposed regulations are thoroughly reviewed and analyzed prior to implementation. Failure in flight can be a result of human or mechanical error. While these issues cannot be completely eliminated, there are processes and procedures that reduce the risks of accident. Because in-flight accidents are often fatal, it is essential that accidents be reviewed in a systematic manner and that improvements could be made based on the discoveries. The FAA was established in 1958 to maintain safety standards for civil aviation such as issuing and enforcing air traffic rules and the licensing of pilots in efforts to reduce the number of aircraft accidents. The FAA also has the authority to suspend or revoke a pilot’s license and developed a system for air traffic control as well as ground a plane not meeting the standards. They are also responsible for research, engineering and development providing “the systems and procedures needed for a safe and efficient system of air navigation and air traffic control.” (Wells & Rodrigues 2003). These are just a few of the duties of the organization, but all aspects of its duties revolve around safety. Many of the regulations have been developed from investigating accidents and have made adjustments from mechanical issues to limiting pilot flying hours per month. “Fatal crashes in the 1940s and early 1950s prompted revised standards setting minimum acceptable performance requirements that were designed to ensure continued safe flight and landing in the event of failure of key aircraft components.” (Wells & Rodrigues 2003). There was a midair collision over the Grand Canyon that finalized the need for legislative action. “On June 30, 1956, two commercial airliners collided over the Grand Canyon resulting in 128 fatalities. As air travel was becoming increasingly common, this high-profile accident raised public concern, and top policy-makers in Congress responded.” (Harris). These lead to significant changes in aircraft design. President Eisenhower initiated the development of the FAA in response to the tragic loss of life. Regulations continue to evolve as information is gathered and as technology changes. Unfortunately, usually a fatal or near fatal accident is what prompts new guidelines. In the 1960s, a number of airplane hijackings demonstrated a need for the agency to also include aviation security and required airports and aircraft to establish minimum security standards for safety in order to be permitted to operate. In order to ensure consistency with all aircraft and airports, the FAA issued Federal Aviations Regulations to cover all aspects of air safety. Compliance with the FARs is mandatory to obtain the kind of certificates or approvals to which the particular FAR applies. Once a certificate or approval is issued for a purpose that requires ongoing compliance, such as a Production Certificate, noncompliance with or violation of the terms of, the approval would result in civil penalty or administrative enforcement action, or if the infraction is of a serious nature, the certificate or approval could be suspended or revoked. ”(Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety). While anyone can request a petition for rulemaking, it is usually prompted by the FAA and is usually in response to problem that has already occurred. However, all petitions properly filled out are considered and reviewed. The petition must include information about the petitioner and his or her interest in the action being requested and there must be ample information and arguments as to why the petition should be granted and how it is in the best interest of the public. If the FAA sees merit in the request, a summary of the submitted petition is published for public view. Anyone in the public may review and comment on the petition and those commentaries will be taken into consideration by the FAA and the merits of all views are reviewed. To be considered, comments must be submitted to the FAA within a specified time frame as published in the NPRM. “Comments that state simply for or against without support information are generally not given consideration.” (Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety). When the FAA is considering making a rule, an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) is released to the public so comments can be made. A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) then “proposes specific changes in regulations for public comment with supporting information and proposed text.” (Croucher 2004). Sometimes a new regulation will not include a NPRM. Comments will only be accepted when there is an NPRM or ANPRM. The Final Rule is the revised or new requirements that have been established and the exact dates in which this goes into affect. The Final Rule may be a new rule or it could possibly remove requirements from existing rules. If an NPRM was provided, the FAA’s response to the NPRM will also be included. The decision on a rule and implementation could take as long as a year or more. “The only exception to the long time element is in the case of ADs, which may be processed quickly under emergency procedures.” (Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety). ADs are Airworthiness Directives which are implemented quickly because they generally address an unsafe condition that must be handled promptly. An example would be in the case of an accident that was caused by a condition that might occur in other aircraft. In order to prevent another similar incident, the regulation needs to be implemented immediately. The AD has the same authority as an FAR and compliance with the policy is mandatory and failure to comply could ground the aircraft. “In the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, a complex multi-step approval/certification process was established for the FAA to follow to ensure that civil aircraft meet minimum safety requirements. These regulations are found in 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), which comprise the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs). 14 CFR Parts are commonly referred to as FAR Parts.” (Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety). Part 25 of the Federal Aviation Regulations was established in the 1960s as aircraft were becoming more complex and there was growing concern about the stability of the airplanes to ensure mechanical and structural systems would not fail. At this point, aircraft were becoming more complex and often dangerous. FAR Part 25 relates to Airworthiness Standards: Transport Category Airplanes. These standards have performance requirements and each aircraft must be certified in order to be permitted to fly. The regulations in this section cover everything from seats to seat cushions to electrical wiring of the aircraft. Section 1729 of FAR 25 states that, “the applicant must prepare Instructions for Continued Airworthiness applicable to EWIS in accordance with Appendix H sections H25.4 and H25.5 to this part that are approved by the FAA.” (GPO Access). The purpose of this specific section is to certify the electrical wiring interconnection system of airplanes. This has become significant as the addition of electronic features such as entertainment screens has increased the wiring needed in the aircraft and issues with wiring can cause safety issues. Therefore, the addition of these sections has provided specific regulations for not only design, but also in maintenance and replacement of wiring as well. These sections (H25.4 and H25.5) were announced for review in 2005. H25.4 sets: Each mandatory replacement time, structural inspection interval, and related structural inspection procedures approved under 25.571. Each mandatory replacement time, inspection interval, related inspection procedure, and all critical design configuration control limitations approved under 25.981 for the fuel tank system. Any mandatory replacement time of EWIS components as defined in section 25.1701 (GPO Access) Section H25.5 reviews the electrical wiring interconnection system (EWIS) stating the following must be approved by the FAA: Maintenance and inspection requirements for the EWIS developed with the use of an enhanced zonal analysis procedure that includes: Identification of each zone of the airplane. Identification of each zone that contains EWIS. Identification of each zone containing EWIS that also contains combustible materials. Identification of each zone in which EWIS is in close proximity to both primary and back-up hydraulic, mechanical, or electrical flight controls and lines. Identification of— Tasks, and the intervals for performing those tasks, that will reduce the likelihood of ignition sources and accumulation of combustible material, and Procedures, and the intervals for performing those procedures, that will effectively clean the EWIS components of combustible material if there is not an effective task to reduce the likelihood of combustible material accumulation. Instructions for protections and caution information that will minimize contamination and accidental damage to EWIS, as applicable, during performance of maintenance, alteration, or repairs. Acceptable EWIS maintenance practices in a standard format. Wire separation requirements as determined under 25.1707. Information explaining the EWIS identification method and requirements for identifying any changes to EWIS under 25.1711. Electrical load data and instructions for updating that data. (b) The EWIS ICA developed in accordance with the requirements of H25.5(a)(1) must be in the form of a document appropriate for the information to be provided, and they must be easily recognizable as EWIS ICA. This document must either contain the required EWIS ICA or specifically reference other portions of the ICA that contain this information. (GPO Access). Safety concerns grew about these wiring systems after a midair collision in 1996. The cause of the collision was likely the ignition of flammable vapors in the fuel tank. This ignition would likely have been caused by a wire failure that would have allowed the spark to actually enter the fuel tank. Though the exact cause was never 100% proven, the theory was that there was re-solidified copper on a portion of wire in the entertainment system cable which was around the area where it appeared the fire had been started. This incident alone did not incite the new regulations but further accidents and inspections identified different types of wiring issues in other airplanes with older wiring prompting the focus on wiring issues. “The problems include inadvertent damage during maintenance, such as using wire bundles as ladder rungs, stepping on and damaging wiring hidden under insulation blankets, inadequate support clamping, and improper installation that can aggravate chafing and the potential for dangerous arcing.” (Federal Aviation Administration). As electrical systems became more sophisticated, wiring had become vital as airplanes are primarily run by computer based systems. Minimizing the likelihood of failure is accomplished through inspections, maintenance and scheduled wiring updates based on an EWIS model developed after detailed analysis. The implementation of new regulations sometimes ad cost to the airlines as it increases the need for maintenance and at times the need for those who specialize in specific area such as electrical writing. While airlines have the right to comment on FAR proposals, the changes made on the proposals are only to increase safety benefits and are not meant to be adjusted in ways that help an airline reduce cost. Accidents or other serious incidents almost always have various causes but there is usually a primary cause in each case. The purpose of the FAA is to determine those causes and identify accident prevention strategies to not only reduce the risk of an identical event occurring, but also investigate other types of accidents that could occur because the factors or combination of factors whether these errors are mechanical, electrical or even human they need to be addressed and corrected as the result of these accidents can be the loss of human life. Though appeals can be made to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for any action taken against pilots, navigators, mechanics, dispatchers and air traffic control tower operators from orders of the FAA suspending, revoking or modifying their certificates for alleged violations of the Federal Aviation Regulations, or for lack of qualification to hold such certificates, it should be kept in mind that these regulations are for the safety. Works Cited Croucher, Phil. (2004) FARS in Plain English. Calgary, Canada: Electrocution Technical Publishers. Federal Aviation Administration. Development of an Electrical Wire Interconnect System Risk Assessment Tool. (2006, September). Development of an Electrical Wire Interconnect System Risk Assessment Tool. Retrieved June 21, 2009 from http://www.tc.faa.gov/its/worldpac/techrpt/artn06-17.pdf Federal Aviation Administration Fire Safety. FAA Regulations. Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.fire.tc.faa.gov/pdf/00-12_Part_4.pdf GPO Access. (2008, July) Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. Retrieved June 21, 2009 from http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr;rgn=div6;view=text;node=14%3A1.0.1.3.11.8;idno=14;sid=9c9178ded0c878c3a03daee987bc9298;cc=ecfr Harris, Douglas B.. "Federal Aviation Act (1958)." Major Acts of Congress. The Gale Group Inc. 2004. Retrieved June 22, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3407400112.html Wells, Alexander T. and Rodrigues, Clarence C. (2003). Commercial Aviation Safety. New York: McGraw Hill Professional. Read More