AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2019 - 16

LETTERS
the wings and fuselage to block
signal from the single-antenna
installation, causing dropped
signal segments. My third was
a nice, level, straight flight at
altitude for the test duration
and I passed.
The NGT-9000 is fantastic. It's a lot of capability for a
172 but worth it for the ADS-B
In data.
Keith Lanning
AOPA 4743745
Everton, Arkansas

FLYING LIFE

The FAA: Naughty or nice?

BY NATALIE BINGHAM HOOVER

When the FAA really is here to help

NATALIE BINGHAM
HOOVER was
named the regional
FAA Safety
Representative of
the year in 2017.

IN MY HOME, we recently started watching The Andy
Griffith Show before bedtime. This might be because
there is no more Game of Thrones until next year, or perhaps there's just something about the wholesome town
of Mayberry that helps us all sleep a little better at night.
Whatever the reason, the show would not be complete
without Sheriff Andy's faithful sidekick, Deputy Barney
Fife. In one episode, Barney attempted to book a little
old lady for jaywalking, a grievous violation of the law.
Luckily, the ever-practical Andy was able to convince
Barney that perhaps they could let this infraction slide,
seeing as how there was no real risk to public safety.
As pilots, we tend to view the FAA as our own
Barney Fife culture, where operators are subject to
investigations and violations even when our unintentional mistakes have very little impact on public safety.
Take, for example, the sleep apnea regulation, which
has caused a financial and professional nightmare for
many pilots who have never had a problem with fatigue.
Add to that the unpleasant business of ramp checks and
incident investigations, and it can feel as if we have a
largely punitive system that does little to promote a
healthy relationship between pilots and their regulators.
The bureaucratic red tape is another common
complaint. One of my friends recently had a heck of a
time when he inadvertently let his aircraft registration
expire. The letter from the FAA stated that he would
have to reregister to receive a different tail number since
the old one was no longer valid. My friend tried in vain
to call various FAA phone numbers but simply could
not get anyone to help him find a solution that would
not require repainting his airplane. Finally, he checked
his mailbox one day only to find that he had received a
new registration certificate-with the original tail number! There was no other paperwork, no phone call from
a friendly customer service rep announcing the change,
just the renewed certificate. In the competitive business environment of the United States, where we are
accustomed to dealing with companies' "fully satisfied
or your money back" guarantees, it can be frustrating to
deal with an organization that doesn't always try to satisfy the taxpaying customer.
However, in that old Christmas spirit of letting
bygones be bygones, I wonder if we should consider
other factors before settling on an opinion of an organization that was created to help make us safer. Let's not
forget that many FAA employees are pilots themselves,

and they actually have walked in our shoes. A former
FAA inspector told me a story of a ramp check he conducted where the pilot could not produce his medical
certificate. Rather than issuing a violation, the inspector
verified that the pilot held a medical, then helped him
obtain a temporary copy of the certificate so he could be
in compliance for his next flight. Now that sounds a lot
more like the practical Andy Griffith than Barney Fife,
if you ask me.
The current generation of safety inspectors doesn't
seem to be out to get us. In 2015, the FAA rolled out plans
for a new compliance philosophy designed to make the
national airspace system safer by preventing accidents,
rather than focusing on punitive actions against operators
post-accident. Instead of primarily using enforcement
action-violations and revocation of certificates-the
FAA's focus is on open sharing of information that can
lead to "solution-oriented system improvements" such
as "on-the-spot correction, counseling, or additional
training"-good news for those of us who are genuinely
interested in making our industry safer.
As a member of the FAA Safety Team, I can attest
to the fact that the FAA promotes continuing education for pilots through various outlets such as the Wings
program, courses on www.faasafety.gov, and quarterly
seminars where people like yours truly speak on the
safety issues that are most relevant to local folks. We
also have NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System (see
"Flying Life: What are you afraid of?" September 2018
AOPA Pilot), which is a great, anonymous way to be part
of the data-sharing solution while potentially getting
some benefits. Also, as a designated pilot examiner, I frequently interact with the FAA and can honestly say that
most inspectors have a genuine desire to help operators
stay in compliance and operate safely.
While we've all had our run-ins with difficult inspectors, I think it's fair to say that in any organization, there
will always be certain individuals who just don't play
well with others. Yes, it can be frustrating that an understaffed and underfunded FAA has customer service
tactics that are less than helpful at times. But considering that we are lucky enough to operate in one of the
freest and safest airspace systems in the world, I'd say
the FAA is doing a tough job extremely well. Next time
you hear, "We're from the FAA and we're here to help,"
consider they might actually mean it.
AOPA
www.myaviation101.com

22 | AOPA PILOT December 2018

I read Natalie Bingham Hoover's "Naughty or
Nice" column and was reminded of an event a
few years ago in Longmont, Colorado. There was
a fly-in, and a temporary control tower had been
established. Many pilots did not read the notam.
The FAA inspector who was there could have
been walking around with a bunch of citations
to give out, but instead, he had a stack of NASA
forms, for pilots who landed without a clearance.

Brian Lewis
AOPA 568356
Alexandria, New Hampshire

More to the story

HANGAR TALK

Julie Summers Walker's 2018
article, "Dubious Honor," was
interesting but I believe in error
regarding Leslie Irvin and the
Caterpillar Club. While Leslie
Irvin did patent a heralded
static-line parachute in 1918, it
was my grandfather, (James)
Floyd Smith who in 1918 patented the free-type manually
operated (ripcord) parachute
that saved tens of thousands of
lives. That parachute and credit
to Smith are on display in the Air
Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Since the free-fall type parachute was his idea-and with
the support of Brig. Gen. Billy
Mitchell-Smith was appointed
as civilian head of an Army Air

Corps team to develop the
ripcord chute. Irvin was one
member of the team. Irvin is
remembered in history because
he was the first person to test
Smith's ripcord invention while
Smith made the error of flying
the airplane instead.
Following the successful demonstration, Irvin was
granted permission to leave
the service of the Army. He
then started his own parachute
company, the Irving Air Chute
Company. Smith's request was
refused, so Irvin got a head start

cashing in on the new invention. It wasn't long before Irvin
was claiming the ripcord as
his. Smith sued Irvin for patent
infringement and won the case,
but the damage had been done.
Bruce Smith
AOPA 406452
Vancouver, Washington

ERRATA

In "Memories from the
Superfortress" (December 2018
AOPA Pilot), a caption incorrectly identified the pilot in the
co-pilot seat as Jeff Travis. The
pilot pictured is Tom Travis, an

aircraft commander and B-29
instructor. Additionally, the
dome that was identified as used
for the top gunner was, in fact
used by the navigator. The central fire control gunner used a
dome aft of the tunnel pictured.
AOPA Pilot regrets the errors.
We welcome your comments.
Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation
Way, Frederick, Maryland
21701 or email (pilot@aopa.
org). Letters may be edited
for length.and style before
publication.

"I had never heard of the World War II Airborne Demonstration Team
before I saw some amazing photos posted to social media by my
friend Gary Daniels, a fellow aviation photographer and ADT's team
photographer," said Technical Editor MIKE COLLINS. He looked into the
organization, and went to Frederick, Oklahoma, for its October 2018
jump school (see "RE-LIVING HISTORY," p. 68). Collins was impressed
not only by ADT's organization and focus on safety, but by every member's commitment to honor and maintain the World War II Airborne
traditions. "Now I feel like I know the original 101st Airborne Division,
which differs considerably from the helicopter-based Air Assault division I once covered as a newspaper photographer," he said. "And it
was a special privilege to witness not only ADT's first-ever formation
parachute jumps, but the first jump from the Commemorative Air
Force's restored C-47 That's All, Brother-which led the 1944 D-Day airborne armada-since World War II." A video and
a slideshow with more photos can be found online and in the enhanced digital edition of the magazine.

16 | AOPA PILOT February 2019

http://www.faasafety.gov http://www.myaviation101.com

AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2019