FAA Launches New Accident Prevention Office
As part of a strategy to reduce emerging aviation risks using national safety data, the FAA’s Office of Aviation Safety launched a new Accident Investigation and Prevention Service that integrates the work of the Offices of Accident Investigation and Safety Analytical Services.
The new organization will consolidate resources so the FAA can better understand current and emerging risks across the aviation community through the use of data from accident and incident investigations, historical accidents and incidents, and voluntarily submitted information from industry programs such as Aviation Safety Action and Flight Operational Quality Assurance programs.
The Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing program combines information from industry and government data sources to provide new insights into potential safety issues.
The program has matured to the point that the FAA can now look at data from more than 73 percent of current U.S. commercial operations and identify emerging vulnerabilities and trends. Safety improvements are made not only through FAA regulations, but also through the Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST).
The new service will provide an independent review of agency recommendations from the Safety Issues Reporting System, FAA Safety Hotline, FAA’s safety recommendations, and National Transportation Safety Board recommendations. The Service Director will report to the agency’s Chief Counsel and will have direct access to the FAA Administrator.
The Accident Investigation and Prevention Service will be headed by Jay Pardee, who most recently was the director of the Office of Safety Analytical Services. Pardee is recognized as a leader in safety data analysis.
He has been a leader in CAST, which won the 2008 Robert J. Collier Trophy for achieving an unprecedented level of safety in U.S. airline operations. He is also the agency’s lead to assure that the Next Generation Air Transportation System provides enhanced levels of safety. Tony Fazio, who most recently was director of the FAA’s Europe, Africa and Middle East Office in Brussels, will serve as deputy director.
