FAA History Lesson -- May 21

From the FAA Historical Chronology, 1926-1996...

”May 21, 1958: Senator A. S. Mike Monroney (D-Okla.) introduced S. 3880, a bill "to create an independent Federal Aviation Agency, to provide for the safe and efficient use of the airspace by both civil and military operations and to provide for the regulation and promotion of civil aviation in such a manner as to best foster its development and safety." By the next day 33 Senators were listed as cosponsors of the bill, and Representative Oren Harris (D-Ark.) introduced the same bill as H.R. 12616.

On Jun 13, President Eisenhower, in a message to Congress, recommended early enactment of such legislation to consolidate "all the essential management functions necessary to support the common needs of our civil and military aviation." (See Aug 23, 1958.) ”

Fifty years is an anniversary that calls for a little reflection. Let’s review.

From yesterday’s entry, we know that The Air Commerce Act became law in 1926.

Then came the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938. This entry will highlight a disturbing trend in aviation history.

From the FAA Historical Chronology, 1926-1996...

”May 6, 1935: A Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA) DC-2 crashed near Atlanta, Mo., killing five of the eight persons aboard. Senator Bronson M. Cutting (R-N.Mex.) was among the fatalities. A Bureau of Air Commerce report cited the accident’s causes as the U.S. Weather Bureau’s failure to predict hazardous weather and misjudgments by the pilot and TWA ground personnel. In June 1936, however, a committee chaired by Sen. Royal S. Copeland (D-N.Y.) issued a report alleging that the tragedy was caused by malfunctioning navigational aides and voicing other criticisms of the Bureau of Air Commerce. The controversy gave impetus to legislative efforts that eventuated in the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938. (See Jun 23, 1938.) “

In 1940, the Civil Aeronautics Authority was reorganized into the the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB -- economic regulation and accident investigations) and the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA -- operations.)

After World War Two and the Korean War it was painfully obvious that there needed to be better integration between the military and civilian air traffic control systems. Back then, much like now, it was hard to find the time to focus on the problem and generate the political will needed to make the change. That is when history gets made.

”Jun 30, 1956: A Trans World Airlines Super Constellation and a United Air Lines DC-7 collided over the Grand Canyon, Ariz., killing all 128 occupants of the two airplanes. “

”Apr 21, 1958: An Air Force jet fighter collided with a United Air Lines DC-7 near Las Vegas, Nev., killing both occupants of the fighter and all 47 persons aboard the airliner. Another midair collision between a military jet and an airliner occurred on May 20 when a T-33 trainer and a Capital Airlines Viscount collided over Brunswick, Md. This second accident cost the lives of one of the two persons aboard the T-33 and all 11 aboard the Viscount. The twin tragedies spurred governmental action already underway to improve air traffic control and to establish a comprehensive Federal Aviation Agency. (See May 21 and May 28, 1958.) “

As the last entry notes, obviously Senator Monroney had been working on the bill to create the FAA for some time. You don’t write a piece of legislation that large overnight. In short, the problems in the National Airspace System were well known, solutions had been discussed, but the will to act couldn’t be found. Until the sky started falling.

If you took the time to click on the link for Senator Monroney above, you discovered he was called “Mr. Aviation.” There’s another Congressman that has earned the title now and he too has a bill that is awaiting action. We all recognize the problems we face. We may not agree on the solutions but we all know that what we’re doing right now isn’t one.

The airlines limp from one financial crisis to another. Pay, morale and experience are declining faster than their downward-spiraling profits. They can only afford one parachute per airline because it is golden. Unlike the captains of yore, it is the workers that are expected to go down with these ships.

The FAA is in shambles. A leaderless, mangy mutt -- suffering from a diet rich in pork but with little substance -- the citizens are left wondering if we should rehabilitate it or just shoot it and put it out of it’s misery.

History tells us that this will not end well. Either the citizens (that means you) will motivate their Congressmen to act or we’ll sit around and wait for Mr. Murphy to act -- thereby providing the needed motivation.

What’s it going to be ? Will you write your Representatives and your Senators and change history ? Or will history repeat itself ?

Don Brown
May 21, 2008