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 NATA Urges The U.S. Senate To Confirm Huerta As FAA Administrator |
Today, in a letter to U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV and Ranking Member Kay Bailey Hutchison, NATA urged the U.S. Senate to confirm Michael P. Huerta as administrator of the FAA. Huerta has been the acting administrator of the FAA since he assumed this role in December 2011.
“As our country prepares to undertake a massive evolution of our National Airspace System, the FAA needs the strong and stable leadership that has been demonstrated by Michael Huerta since he took over the agency’s helm last year,” stated NATA President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks. “Michael Huerta’s leadership of several key Next Generation Air Traffic System initiatives and his extensive knowledge of the aviation issues confronting us today are assets that will serve the aviation community well as the agency moves the system forward safely and efficiently.”
“Michael Huerta has also shown leadership by engaging very effectively across all facets of aviation as evidenced by his recent participation in industry events such as NATA’s Aviation Business Roundtable,” added Hendricks.
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On November 28, U.S. Representative Bill Shuster (R-PA) was selected to chair the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Shuster follows long-standing Chairman John Mica (R-FL) who has reached his six-year term limit as either chairman or ranking member as stated in the House Republican Conference rules. In his press release, Shuster stated that the focus of the committee this coming session will be “strengthening America’s transportation networks to make us more efficient, more competitive, and more prosperous.” Shuster has been a member of the committee since 2001 and is the current chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials.
For the 113th Congress, Shuster has an active agenda for the committee, including reauthorization of the federal passenger rail and surface transportation programs, as well as starting work on the next FAA reauthorization bill. The current FAA reauthorization bill, signed into law on February 14, 2012, expires at the end of fiscal year 2015.
NATA President and CEO Tom Hendricks welcomes the news of Shuster’s new position. “We look forward to working with Chairman-elect Shuster and the committee on what is to be a busy year for transportation,” Hendricks stated. “Aviation is a vital asset to our nation’s transportation infrastructure, and NATA will continue to work on a bipartisan level with Congress and industry leaders to ensure that we are investing in transportation solutions that enrich our industry and nation.”
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| Standardization Rulemaking Committee Issues Report To FAA |
Last week, the Consistency of Regulatory Interpretation (CRI) Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC), which was responsible for making recommendations to address the lack of FAA regulatory interpretation consistency, issued its final report to the agency. The CRI ARC determined that to achieve any type of standardization of regulatory interpretations the FAA’s Flight Standards Service (AFS) and Aircraft Certification Service (AIR) should “review all guidance documents and interpretations to identify and cancel outdated material and cross-reference (electronically link) material to its applicable rule. Further, the CRI ARC recommends that the FAA expand its current Aviation Safety Information Management System (AVSIMS) initiative to consolidate the service organization-level libraries into a single AVS master electronic database resource, organized by rule, to allow agency and industry users access to relevant rules and all active and superseded guidance material and related documents.”
“It was clear from the beginning of the ARC’s exhaustive review that standardization cannot be achieved unless the FAA and industry are singing off the same sheet of music,” stated Eric R. Byer, National Air Transportation Association vice president of government and industry affairs and CRI ARC industry chair. “We firmly believe that consolidation of all guidance documents and interpretations that are then organized by rule and housed in one electronic database is the linchpin to any success in resolving the lack of standardization of regulatory interpretations.”
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Last week, the FAA completed its rulemaking project expanding the scope of pilots that are eligible to perform updates to avionics databases with the issuance of a final rule. Under current regulations, the updating of avionics databases is categorized as preventative maintenance. This classification allows pilots to update these databases on aircraft that are operated under Part 91; databases on aircraft operated under Part 135 and Part 121 can only be updated by authorized maintenance personnel. The final rule issued last week, Pilot Loading of Aeronautical Database Updates, allows air carrier pilots to perform these updates under certain circumstances.
NATA supports this expansion of authority because of its safety and efficiency benefits and provided comments to the agency on the proposed rules last year. This final rule addressed all of the concerns raised in NATA’s comments. The association has produced a Regulatory Report that further outlines the details of this final rule. This final rule becomes effective on January 28, 2013. Any Part 135 operator considering implementing pilot updates of avionics databases is encouraged to begin reviewing internal policies and procedures as soon as possible in order to be able to take advantage of these rule changes on their effective date.
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| President Obama Seals Deal On U.S. Exemption From EU-ETS |
On November 27, President Obama signed a bill shielding U.S. airlines from paying a tax for each ton of carbon their planes emit while flying into and out of Europe. Passage of S. 1956, the European Union (EU) Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Prohibition Act of 2011, comes just after the European Commission proposed to halt EU-ETS implementation for aviation temporarily to allow time for a global agreement to be reached through the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
“NATA looks forward to working with Congress, the administration and national and international organizations to ensure that progress is being made in creating and agreeing upon a global solution for managing aviation’s carbon emissions,” stated NATA President and CEO Tom Hendricks.
For more information on EU-ETS, visit NATA’s Issue Page on the NATA website.
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| Aviation Subcommittee Holds Hearing On Airport Passenger Security |
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation heard testimony on November 29 discussing the impact that the current regulations and policies of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have on passenger experiences and the flow of aviation commerce. Witnesses from the Department of Homeland Security and the Government Accountability Office, as well as industry officials from the International Air Transport Association, the Association of Flight Attendants and the Consumer Travel Alliance testified before the subcommittee. The TSA was invited to attend, but declined to participate.
In a press release, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica (R-FL) and Subcommittee on Aviation Chairman Tom Petri (R-WI) expressed concern for the TSA’s lack of participation but urged the remaining witnesses that the subcommittee, and ultimately the full committee, is dedicated to ensuring that aviation and passenger travel, which contributed $813 million to the U.S. tourism industry in 2011, remains a top priority in continued safety fair regulations. The committee encouraged the TSA to move towards a risk-based approach in its efforts to improve screening efforts and high-risk passengers. Chairman Petri urged the agency to “work with aviation stakeholders and seek more input from a variety of groups on how the security process can be improved.”
To view a list of witnesses and for more information about the hearing, click here.
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| Weekly Regulatory Update |
Relevant updates from the FAA, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Homeland Security are compiled each day from the Federal Register. The latest notices, rules and proposed rules can now be found in a single source by clicking here.
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NATA’s State Advocacy Network (SAN) is an effort started in January 2012 that aims to increase awareness of state and local issues impacting the general aviation industry and highlights ongoing state legislation, events and opportunities for NATA members to raise issues or pose questions or concerns for association and industry assistance.
As you know, aviation businesses are confronted with a host of issues including airport and land use, security, taxation, aircraft noise and emissions, and other priorities that arise. Volunteers of the network will play an important role in the association’s efforts to stimulate and encourage greater involvement among its members with the goal being to build a strong network to defeat unwarranted policies. The network’s website has been used as a platform to gain awareness and support for issues facing members and their businesses and provides news and updates on ongoing state legislation.
If your business or state is experiencing local industry problems that require the association’s support, to view a list of SAN volunteers, or if you hear of problems that may arise and need more information, contact the State Advocacy Network via email at SAN@nata.aero or by calling (800) 808-6282.
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| Tackling Supervisor Challenges Webinar –December 13 |
As a new supervisor, you want to shine from the beginning. You put in extra hours, work hard, demonstrate unending enthusiasm, but there are still issues to resolve. Learn about the challenges that come with having to manage employees who not too long ago were your peers. These are the peers with whom you used to hang out, go to lunch, talk on the phone regularly or grab a beer after work. Is it any wonder that these same employees don’t take you seriously when you start to assign work, much less try to manage their performance?
This is one of many challenges new and experienced supervisors face as they try to create, maintain and improve their team. This webinar will address some of the challenges faced by supervisors and provide tools for overcoming and tackling them.
Do you experience challenges as a supervisor? Come listen to Bob Hobbi share the many challenges experienced by the supervisors with whom he has worked. You’ll quickly learn that you are not alone while picking up good tips on how not only to survive, but also create a great team.
Speaker: Bob Hobbi, Founder, President and CEO ServiceElements
When: December 13 from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. eastern time
Click here to order.
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| Aircraft Flight Coordinator Training – Discount Pricing Ends Soon |
NATA will soon be offering a new online training program geared towards schedulers, dispatchers, flight crews and other employees with operational control. Aircraft Flight Coordinator Training (AFCT) is a certification program that provides core flight coordinator knowledge with an emphasis on safety.
There are countless technical factors that can affect a flight, so it is essential for a flight coordinator to have a strong understanding of the operational environment. AFCT includes training on weather, regulations, airport limitations, maintenance requirements and much more to keep employees in critical positions as educated and up to date as possible. AFCT is available online anytime and provides self-paced, consistent training. This program allows you to reduce training time and paperwork while increasing productivity and profit.
AFCT is being offered at a pre-sale price of $935 for NATA members and $1105 for non-members, through December 21, 2012. The price will increase to $1100 for members and $1300 for non-members after this promotion. Don’t miss this chance to save 15% on important training for your business.
Click here for an AFCT order form. Completed forms can be faxed or mailed.
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NATA Business Management Committee Meeting To Take Place In January
Notice: Date Changed to Tuesday, January 22 |
The NATA Business Management Committee’s first meeting of 2013 will take place on January 22 in conjunction with the NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference. All NATA committee members are invited to attend this meeting as guests and attend the reception with the NATA Board of Directors that immediately follows the meeting. To register for the meeting and reception, please complete this form and fax to 703-845-8176 or email to cclark@nata.aero.
NATA Business Management Committee Meeting and Reception
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Meeting: Noon – 5:00 p.m.
Reception: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Marriott Rivercenter, 101 Bowie Street, San Antonio, TX 78205
Meeting Room: Conference Room 8
Reception Location: Conference Room 11
Housing arrangements may be made through the NBAA website under events for the NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference, January 22-25, 2013.
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| Workers' Compensation Insurance Program Fact Of The Week |
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| Jet Edge International Joins Air Charter Safety Foundation |
The Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) is pleased to announce that Jet Edge International is the newest charter operator to join the ACSF. Along with 96 other companies, Jet Edge now supports the ACSF's vision to enable on-demand air charter providers and fractional program managers to achieve the highest levels of safety in the aviation industry.
"Jet Edge has the shared attitude among our team members that safety, above and beyond what is considered regulatory, must be a core value of our industry," stated Jet Edge International President Bill Papariella. "We are extremely proud of our employee commitment to safety and quality, which is integrated throughout our company's charter management and maintenance facilities."
Click here to read the full Press Release.
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NATA E-Learn Webinars
Click here to view a listing of archived webinar recordings.
NATA is the National Air Transportation Association
Founded in 1940, NATA aggressively promotes safety and the success of aviation service businesses through its advocacy efforts before government, the media and the public as well as by providing valuable programs and forums to further its members' prosperity.
National Air Transportation Association
4226 King Street
Alexandria, VA 22302
Phone: 800-808-6282
Fax: 703-845-8176
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