Far tougher flight-time requirements for new pilots

[FayeforCure]

Mica had been under pressure from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University â€" a widely respected aviation school in his district â€" to ease the 1,500-hour requirement. Flight schools say the new requirement ( up from 250) would be so daunting that it would drive away potential students and possibly put some university aviation programs out of business.

But the pressure from the flight schools could not match the pressure from the families of those who died on Continental Connection Flight 3407, which crashed in Clarence Center on Feb. 12, killing 50 people.

Frustrated that Mica and other lawmakers were discussing changes to the legislation to address the aviation schools' concerns, the Flight 3407 families late Wednesday issued a statement lambasting Mica.

"It is extremely disappointing to watch Congressman Mica stand up at the press conference, wave the letters from our family group, take the credit, and then turn around and not represent the position that our group stands for," said Susan Bourque of East Aurora, who lost her sister, 9/11 activist Beverly Eckert, in the crash.

Upon seeing Bourque's statement, Mica issued a statement of his own, saying, "I support" the requirement of 1,500 flight hours.

"Unfortunately, representatives of the Families of Flight 3407 did not have accurate information relating to my position," said Mica, who called Bourque to explain his position.

Afterward, Bourque said: "I was very pleased that he called. .‚.‚. He wanted to make clear that he was in support of the provision."

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved the air safety bill in late July, but the concerns raised by the flight schools have slowed the bill's progress since then.

However, Mica and Rep. Jerry F. Costello, D-Ill., chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee, "seemed to reach an agreement in principle" late Wednesday to address those concerns and then move the bill forward, said Jim Berard, a spokesman for the committee.

Details of that agreement are still being worked out, and it remains unclear how the changes can satisfy the flight schools without lowering the (new) limit of 1,500 flight hours for new pilots.

http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/814614.html

Well, let's see if "People over Profit" for once wins out over "Profit above People."

It's still unclear how an "agreement" could have been reached that could make the flight schools happy without lowering the new flight limit.

Something to keep an eye on.

[FayeforCure]

Air Safety Initiatives Run Into Opposition from Republicans

By Sholnn Freeman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, October 1, 2009



Federal efforts to improve U.S. aviation safety after a deadly regional plane crash in February have hit major obstacles, sapping momentum for a reform effort that enjoyed broad political support earlier this year.

A number of aviation safety proposals have been filed in Congress this year in response to the Feb. 12 crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 outside Buffalo. The crash killed 50 people, making it the deadliest U.S. transportation accident in seven years.

In preliminary hearings and reports, the National Transportation Safety Board has exposed a number of safety issues, including lax pilot hiring practices, problems related to training and fatigue and superficial regulatory oversight by the Federal Aviation Administration.

In three days of hearings in March, the NTSB released cockpit voice transcripts from the accident, and the plane's co-pilot can be heard expressing fears about poor training and her inadequacies as an entry-level pilot. The safety board's revelations were followed by a wave of news conferences, news releases and congressional hearings in which lawmakers demanded action.

Action appears to have been stymied on a number of fronts, however. Objections from U.S. aviation colleges have slowed House legislation intended to improve safety. The schools are fighting a provision that would require all airline pilots to obtain airline transport pilot certificates from the FAA, substantially boosting the flight time of entry-level pilots. Under current regulations, only senior pilots must have the certificates, which require 1,500 hours of flight time.

The flight time requirement is a big problem for the colleges, which tend to graduate pilots who have 250 to 350 hours. Pilots from the schools have been able to move quickly to entry-level jobs at regional airlines as junior pilots. The new rule would force graduates to spend an additional year or more acquiring the required flight hours.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the country's largest aviation school, has emerged in recent weeks as a major opponent of the provision. The school's Daytona Beach campus is in the district of Rep. John L. Mica (Fla.), ranking Republican on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which oversees aviation.

Tim Brady, dean of Embry-Riddle's College of Aviation, and other aviation educators said the provision would spur aspiring airline pilots to fulfill the flying time requirement by piloting crop-dusters and towing banners.

Staff members in Mica's office have been working on a compromise with FAA officials and committee Democrats.

Jim Berard, a spokesman for the House transportation committee, said he is confident that the group could reach "an amicable solution." But a compromise could alienate other House Democrats, families of crash victims and pilot union members who back reforms.

"Any attempt to decrease the qualifications below the level of an airline transport pilot license is watering it down," said Capt. James Ray, media chairman of the U.S. Airline Pilots Association, which represents 5,200 US Airways pilots and has been a strong backer of the bill.

Meanwhile, other efforts to improve aviation safety have foundered. In the Senate, action on aviation safety legislation has taken a back seat as key lawmakers grapple with health-care reform.

Separately, an FAA initiative to extract voluntary commitments from the aviation industry to improve safety has drawn sharp criticism from Democrats. In June, FAA Administrator J. Randolph Babbitt wrote dozens of airlines and eight labor unions asking them to upgrade safety practices and report back to him on their progress.

Rep. Jerry F. Costello (D-Ill.), chairman of the House aviation subcommittee, credited Babbitt with starting a rulemaking process aimed at addressing pilot fatigue this year. But Costello said that the FAA had failed to impose firm deadlines and that data from the voluntary initiative are "raw and incomplete."

The FAA has said 69 of 98 airlines and three of eight aviation unions have responded. Babbitt vowed last week to publicize the names of unresponsive airlines and unions.

"While we haven't heard from everyone at this point," Babbitt said at the hearing, "I will use my bully pulpit going forward."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/30/AR2009093003002_pf.html

Yup, why Republicans still believe in "voluntary" regulation boggles the mind.

I wonder how Mica is going to balance one of his top campaign contributer needs ( Embry Riddle) with the safety of passengers.

[CS Foltz]

There is no substitute for "Stick Time"! Airline pilots must be annually certified, and they are, they must also be what is called type certificated for the aircraft in which they are flying. There is a very large difference between single engine land and multiengine jet and rightfully so. More time should be required not less!

[FayeforCure]

Sure enough, John Mica back stabs the Families who lost loved ones on Flight 3407

Chooses to work for his campaign contributors instead!

Oct 4th, John Mica assured the families he would stand with them:

Frustrated that Mica and other lawmakers were discussing changes to the legislation to address the aviation schools' concerns, the Flight 3407 families late Wednesday issued a statement lambasting Mica.

"It is extremely disappointing to watch Congressman Mica stand up at the press conference, wave the letters from our family group, take the credit, and then turn around and not represent the position that our group stands for," said Susan Bourque of East Aurora, who lost her sister, 9/11 activist Beverly Eckert, in the crash.

Upon seeing Bourque's statement, Mica issued a statement of his own, saying, "I support" the requirement of 1,500 flight hours.

"Unfortunately, representatives of the Families of Flight 3407 did not have accurate information relating to my position," said Mica, who called Bourque to explain his position.

Afterward, Bourque said: "I was very pleased that he called. .‚.‚. He wanted to make clear that he was in support of the provision."

Now, he's done an about face:

House vote set today on training for pilots
But new provision revises flight hours
By Jerry Zremski
News Washington Bureau Chief
Updated: October 14, 2009, 8:55 AM /

WASHINGTON â€" The House is expected to vote today on new airline safety legislation â€" but because of a backroom deal among lawmakers, the measure is not quite as tough as the families of Flight 3407 victims would have liked.

The final version of the bill, unveiled Tuesday, includes an entirely new section aimed at placating collegiate aviation programs. The provision allows an undetermined amount of university class time to be counted toward the 1,500 "flight hours" the bill would require before a pilot could join a passenger airline.

The requirement still would rise sharply from the current 250 hours.

But the behind-the-scenes addition of that new language â€" included at the request of a powerful Florida lawmaker whose district includes a prominent flight school â€" didn't exactly thrill those who lost loved ones in the February crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 in Clarence Center.

"This is kind of out of the blue," said Susan Bourque, whose sister, Beverly Eckert, was among the 50 people who died in the crash.

Indeed, even some of the bill's co-sponsors â€" such as Rep. Chris Lee, R-Clarence â€" did not know the changes had been made.

"I'm a little mystified," Lee said. "I'm always surprised with the ways of Washington."

Lee and the Flight 3407 families stressed, though, that even with the changes, the bill represents an extraordinarily strong effort to bolster flight safety.

The legislation also would impose stringent training requirements to make sure pilots know how to operate stall recovery systems and would force airlines to develop fatigue risk management systems for pilots.

Democrats and Republicans on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee worked together on the bill, which the committee approved unanimously July 30, just a day after it was introduced.

But Embry-Riddle University and other universities with aviation programs later complained that the 1,500-flight-hour requirement would cause prospective students to shun them in favor of local flight instructors who offer plenty of hands-on experience.

In response, Rep. John L. Mica of Florida â€" the top Republican on the committee, which oversees aviation, and the congressman from the district that includes Embry-Riddle's campus â€" went to work.

Negotiations with Rep. Jerry F. Costello, an Illinois Democrat and chairman of the aviation subcommittee, produced the compromise, which allows the head of the Federal Aviation Administration to decide how much classroom time can be counted as flight time under the 1,500-hour requirement. The classroom time would have to "enhance safety more" than would additional hours in the cockpit, the insertion says.

FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt and other pilots who testified at a House hearing last month voiced strong support for a 1,500-hour fight-time requirement, which has reduced the concerns of the Flight 3407 families.

"I'm a little bit nervous about this," said Mike Loftus, a former Continental pilot whose daughter, Maddy, died in the crash. "If it were anybody other than Randy Babbitt in that job, I would be worried" that the flight-hours requirement would be genuinely weakened.

Only two weeks ago, Mica called Bourque to reiterate his support for the 1,500-hour flight time requirement.

Neither Justin Harclerode, Mica's spokesman, nor Tim Brady, dean of Embry-Riddle's College of Aviation, returned calls seeking comment on the new language in the bill.

The provision raises a key question about the legislative process: Can senior lawmakers insert language into a bill that has already been approved by the committee?

"In essence, yes," said Jim Berard, a spokesman for the Transportation Committee.

Such last-minute insertions are not unusual. Lee cited that fact, and the flight-safety insertion, as reasons for his push to require that all legislation be made public 72 hours before a final vote.

The new provision conflicts with legislation introduced last week by Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., which does not give the flight schools a break on the 1,500-hour flight time requirement.

"There is no question that we should be raising the training requirements for commercial pilots," Schumer said. "The Senate's version of this legislation goes right to the heart of the problem, and I will work with the conference committee to put the Senate's stronger language in the final bill."

The Flight 3407 families will push for that, said Kuwik, who called the insertion of the new language into the House bill "our introduction to politics."

jzremski@buffnews.com

John Mica,...... your corporate servant at work! Pandering to campaign contributors.

[CS Foltz]

Well Faye.........I don't think adding language to something that has been through committee is right but I do agree with the increase in flight time requirements! No substitute for stick time and no substitute for the experience..........class rooms can not make up for that.

[Overstreet]

The added 1200 hours will add significant cost to the student trying to get an airline flying job through a civilian education tract. Which will make military pilot training  more attractive to both the airline and individual.

[BridgeTroll]

Seems to me Mica did his job well.  If the previous standard was 250 flight hours and isnow 1500 or slightly less if comparable "classroom" is substituted then this is a significant increase in training requirements.  Faye seems to be saying that Embry-Riddle and other civilian aviation schools should not have a say or their concerns are not valid.   The families of Flight 3407 have earned a major victory that should benefit the flying public.  Mica stabbed no one in the back.

[Clem1029]

Seems to me Mica did his job well.  If the previous standard was 250 flight hours and isnow 1500 or slightly less if comparable "classroom" is substituted then this is a significant increase in training requirements.  Faye seems to be saying that Embry-Riddle and other civilian aviation schools should not have a say or their concerns are not valid.   The families of Flight 3407 have earned a major victory that should benefit the flying public.  Mica stabbed no one in the back.

But BT...logic has no place here. Haven't you realized yet that apparently every time Mica draws a breath, God kills a puppy?

[FayeforCure]

compromise, which allows the head of the Federal Aviation Administration to decide how much classroom time can be counted as flight time under the 1,500-hour requirement.

Well, yeah, who needs laws anyway,............if we can have ONE person have the power to waive the fight time requirement.

How the heck can classroom time be an equivalent substitute for flight time anyway?

All logic is lost,.......it's like going through the motions.

Make-believe laws that have no enforcement potential. All for the benefit of industry at the expense of our safety!!!

It's a total farce.

But sure,.........if a corporate servant came up with this compromise, it must be good for us 

[BridgeTroll]

Are you saying the schools should not be represented?  Do you not think an increase from 250 to 1500 hours is enough?  Where did this number (1500) come from?  Classroom time may very well mean simulator time which for simulating and practicing procedures in flight emergencies is MUCH more valuable training than cruising around on autopilot.

THINK Faye!

[BridgeTroll]

Additionally... if an increase in hours from 250 to 1500 is safer than why not 2500 or 5000 hours?  If the comromise had been from 2500 hours to 1500 would you still be on MIcas case?

[FayeforCure]

THINK BT THINK!

We have a congressman here who promises a 1500 fight hour requirement to the Families who've lost loved ones on the Continental flight, and then he turns around and inserts a last minute provision that completely undermines the 1500 flight hour requirement, making the whole legislative exercise for naught.

Flight simulators are expensive. you'd have to have one for each type of aircraft, cause remember you have to be certified for a specific aircraft.

Nothing can really take the place of airflight hours.

Thank goodness we have Schumer in the Senate, who won't stand for such nonsense. So the Senate version will have a REAL 1500 hour flight time requirement!!

Granted many Democrats are Corporatists as well, rather than representing the people, but Republicans like Mica are such loyal lackeys they don't blink an eye, saying one thing to the Families and then single-handedly undermining a good bill.

[BridgeTroll]

It completely undermines nothing.  Looks to me like the 1500 number was pulled out of thin air without consulting the people who actually train pilots or certify them.  A "feel good" number designed to "do something".  I have no problem at all with raising the standards... which they clearly have... and by a huge margin.  BTW Embry Riddle is hardly a "corporatist"... Whatever the hell THAT is...

Oh... and it looks like a democrat was involved in Mica's compromise...

Negotiations with Rep. Jerry F. Costello, an Illinois Democrat and chairman of the aviation subcommittee, produced the compromise, which allows the head of the Federal Aviation Administration to decide how much classroom time can be counted as flight time under the 1,500-hour requirement. The classroom time would have to "enhance safety more" than would additional hours in the cockpit, the insertion says.

http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/827122.html

[Overstreet]

.......................The schools are fighting a provision that would require all airline pilots to obtain airline transport pilot certificates from the FAA, substantially boosting the flight time of entry-level pilots. Under current regulations, only senior pilots must have the certificates, which require 1,500 hours of flight time. ..........http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/30/AR2009093003002_pf.html
..........

Some one asked where the 1500 hours flight time came from. Essentially they are now going to require rookie pilots to have the same flight time experience that we've been requiring senior pilots to have. That won't necessarily translate into safer flying if the pilot has 1500 hours in a crop duster to fly a multiengine transport. It smells of knee jerk reaction politics.

[FayeforCure]

It completely undermines nothing.  Looks to me like the 1500 number was pulled out of thin air without consulting the people who actually train pilots or certify them.  A "feel good" number designed to "do something". 

Thanks Overstreet, for showing where the 1500 number came from. Mica was adamant to the Families that he supported the 1500 required flight hour number, yet he went straight to work to undermine it when industry complained:

But the behind-the-scenes addition of that new language â€" included at the request of a powerful Florida lawmaker whose district includes a prominent flight school â€" didn't exactly thrill those who lost loved ones in the February crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 in Clarence Center.

John Mica is the typical corporate servant. To heck with the people's safety.