How Aviation Safety Situation in the United States Can Be Improved - Assignment Example

 Aviation Safety Situation in the United States and how it can be improved. The aviation industry has witnessed tremendous changes that are geared towards improving the safety of the passengers and the cargo that is delivered through the air transport. There are areas that can be improved on so that the level of risk is minimized. Safety in the air involves aspects such as investigations, prevention of failure, and the categorization of failures. Of particular concern in the prevention of air accidents are, proper training, regulation and education. A consideration of public awareness on air safety is also a key component to the realization of safe air travels. On average, the number of fatal air accidents has reduced in the 21st century. However, with incidences such as the recent disappearance of a Malaysian Aeroplane, concerns on the safety of air transport are raised. Historically, United States of America has been very conscious of its air transport industry. There was enacted the Air Commerce law in 1926 which was geared towards regulating the industry. This Act provided that any air accidents should be thoroughly investigated and recommendations made. It also provided for the licencing of aircrafts and pilots. In addition, air safety, rules were spelled out as well as the use of navigation aids. The interventions have been on improvement up to today. However, accidents have not failed to occur every single year. The rate of accidents has been decreasing when a comparison is drawn between the 20th and the 21st century. Alaska makes a major contribution to the number of accidents that occur; this has been attributed to weather. 2001 was a year that witnessed major aircraft accidents and the use of aircrafts in terrorism attacks. AL Qaeda militants hijacked four passenger airliner of which two of them crashed in the North and South towers in the World trade Centre. Another major accident took place almost at the same time killing 256 people. There has been a continuous improvement made in terms of the engineering technologies, design, maintenance, as well as the development of regulations that sets safety regulation and protocols. United States has created and strengthened its institutions in monitoring air safety. The Federal Aviation Administration is a body that has been strengthened over time through the input of Congress to handle aviation regulations. The body was established through a bill presented to the Senate on May 21, 1958 and the assent of the president on August 23 1958 led to the establishment of the agency. Initially, the role of regulation was bore by Civil Aeronautics Authority. FAA had to deal with incidences of all manners that have arisen with changing needs. The hijacking of aeroplanes facilitated the first amendment to the Federal Aviation Act, it made it illegal to do so. In addition, it made it illegal to either hijack an active flight crew or carry dangerous weapons on a carrier aircraft. In this regard, FAA inspectors received training and armed in order to implement the new regulations. In the next decade, noise and pollution concerns came on board, this made the Congress to empower the FAA administrator to set the noise standards. Due to the need for inspection by FAA, there was congestion, which caused delays and economic disadvantages. This resulted to the enactment of the Airport and Airway Development Act of 1970, which provided FAA to be in charge of certification at the airports. The agency went ahead to develop automation systems for the air traffic control. A major burden to FAA was in the deregulation that was provided through the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. This act made the airline industry to be more competitive hence more work for FAA. Other landmark developments towards the realization of the current state of air safety were through acts such as the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act and the Vision-100 Century Aviation Reauthorization Act. Interventions made in the air transport have borne fruits in the reduction of accidents and other air incidents. According to Aviation Safety Network’s (1), seven incidences that took place in United States out of the 38 reported worldwide. Only three individuals are reported to have perished through these air accidents. Apart from 2001 when there were incidences that resulted to fatalities especially based on September 2011 attacks; there has been a drastic reduction in air accidents and incidences. According to FAA (1), no fatal accident was reported in 2002 and 2007. In 2003, only two were reported. The figures also indicate that in 2004, 2005, and 2006 there were one, three, and two respectively. This is a demonstration of a positive move towards air safety. The aviation Safety Reporting System is an integrated program that is focussed on facilitating air safety. This program brings together the government, individuals, and the industry to deliberate on improving air safety. They get information from the industry players such as pilots and controllers, which help, in developing safety measures and guidelines. Any deficiency in the system is identified and informs the relevant authorities. Their data also acts in support of policies that are focussed on promoting aviation security (ASRS 1). The recent years have demonstrated a state of improved performance in terms of air safety. 2012 was reported to be the safest year since the jet age came into existence (Mouawad and Drew 1). During the 2012 period, Aviation safety Network reported that there were only 23 fatal accidents, which resulted to loss of 475 lives. There are various reasons that are attributable to these statistical changes; the advanced technology used in the development of planes and engines. These include the modification of navigation systems, as well as warning technologies. One of the major fatalities reported was in 2009 when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed killing the fifty people that were on board. There are aspects that pose a threat to the future of aviation safety. The first thing is the increase in the number of airlines, which is causing a lot of congestion; this is facilitated by the increasing demand for travelling across United States and abroad. The Deregulation Act created a room for the realization of the as many airways as possible. The situation has resulted to establishment of many airlines, these constrain the mandate of FAA to monitor and effectively regulate them. The future will require more interventions in order to reduce the rate of incidences that are reported from time to time. The first aspect will involve policy development. There will be the need to develop policies that will target various individuals within the industry. The aircraft manufacturers should have more stringent regulations that ensures that the quality of the planes produced are not only equal to standards but also sustainable. This will call for improved technologies, for this to be achieved research will be vital. Aircraft manufacturers should be facilitated in the promotion of research and development. Another target of the policies should be the airlines. Better and tougher regulations are required so that the congestion that is being experienced is limited by through a reduction of the number of industry players (Williams, 2013). The policy will not have to interfere with Deregulation Act but it will promote a fair play that will encourage only players that are capable of complying with the strict requirements. Reducing the number of airlines will help FAA to focus on quality services that will ultimately result to improved safety. A policy for the staff is also required. The controllers and the pilots need a regulation that will facilitate improved service delivery as well as knowledge sharing. In addition, to be addressed is the need to redefine the role of the co-pilot and other staff that may help in safety. Other staff, members should also be aware of basics of piloting and other safety interventions. Secondly, engineering technologies will have to be modified in order to achieve a greater level of safety. Throughout the last century when the aircraft technology was developed, there have been increases in technology towards realization of safer aircrafts. In this century, it is expected that the technology will advance to safer levels (Voss 1). It may not be longer before we develop aircrafts that have the capacity to stop in the air or capable of making landings in any given place. More thoughts are being considered that are geared towards efficiency in the aviation industry. The other intervention that will facilitate the realization of air safety is the incorporation of all stakeholders in developing future airline safety strategies. Different airlines, airport authorities, accident investigative bodies, governments among other stakeholders should be capable of joining hands and developing an international forum that will facilitate knowledge sharing, and consultative research that will ensure that synergistic interventions are realized. This body should have a special whose specific mandate to deal with aspects of aviation safety. The realization of such a platform will help foster a platform for wide research consultations that will ultimately result to progressive interventions. Enhancement of error reporting systems is a great intervention toward the realization of aviation safety. Error is to human, and they are almost inevitable in the aviation industry. However, there re interventions that can be made to mitigate these errors. The first thing is through the empowerment of controllers, the pilots as well as the entire crew. This will facilitate the realization of a situation whereby these individuals are capable of sharing any information based on their experiences. Another aspect is the establishment of global best practices in aviation. This would involve global communication of the weather patterns and that would otherwise interfere with safety of aircrafts while in the air. In addition, sharing of information on incident and accident reports enhances the realization of factors that compromise on air safety. When all these reports are brought together there will be a common platform of addressing emerging and historical issues related to air safety. The states should be empowered to share their reporting informations so that comparisons are drawn. In addition to state investigations, every incident should be capable of having private investigators who work independently from the state. One of the latest technologies that has been recommended is the use of parachutes that are capable of carrying the entire plane. Most of the accidents do occur as a result of technical problems which require emergency landing or the plane just comes down with a thud. Tis situation can be prevented or alleviated through the adoption of parachutes for the entire plane (Moskvitch 1). It is almost impossible for all the individuals on board in a commercial plane to be rescued through individual parachutes in case of an emergency. Therefore, installing a mega parachute that will carry the entire plane is a major innovation that can help reduce the fatalities. The parachutes are already in place through their use in commercial airliners has not been considered. Manufacturers should consider having this technology tested for use in commercial planes in order to save lives in case of emergencies. Personnel training and equipping them through experience will facilitate the realization of some level of air safety. Most of the personnel especially pilots and controllers have been reported to have little experience in the industry. This has caused a lot of concerns over the type of individuals that serve in the airlines. In addition, the ,increased number of airlines has created a substantial increase in the demand for aviation personnel, therefore some of the half-baked individuals are given tasks on the basis that they have been approved and licenced by FAA. This means that a more thorough training and an extensive experience is required for pilots before they are allowed to make their own decisions in the air. It will also be prudent to have regular capacity building programs for pilots from time to time. In conclusion, the United States and the rest of the world have made efforts toward the realization of aviation safety. However, the battle remains far from being won. Incidences and accidents have continued to be reported throughout the years. Though there has been a drastic reduction in fatal air accidents, interventions towards the realization of air safety will involve capacity building, policy development towards air safety, adequate training and experience for the personnel, advancement of engineering technologies, use of whole plane parachutes, information sharing and reporting of air incidences. Works Cited Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS). Program briefing. 2014. Web. April 12, 2014. http://asrs.arc.nasa.gov/overview/summary.html Federal Aviation Administration. History. 2014. Web. April 12, 2014. http://www.faa.gov/about/history/brief_history/#origins Flight Safety Network. United States of America air safety profile. 2014. Web. April 12, 2014. http://aviation-safety.net/database/country/country.php?id=n Moskvitch, Katia. Aircraft safety. BBC. 2013. Web. April 12, 2014. http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20131223-should-planes-have-parachutes Mouawad, Jad & Drew, Christopher. Airline industry as its safest since the dawn of the jet age. The New York Times. 2013. Web. April 12, 2014. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/business/2012-was-the-safest-year-for-airlines-globally-since-1945.html?pagewanted=all&_r=2& Voss, William. R. The future of air traffic safety. CNN. 2013. Web. April 12, 2014. http://edition.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/04/27/voss.airtraffic.nextgen/ Williams, David. J. Improving aviation safety for the future by learning from the past. 2013. Web. April 12, 2014. http://www.nycaviation.com/2013/11/agricultural-aviations-impact-aviation-safety/#.U0lpcKhdUyU Read More