AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018 - 22

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the old one was no longer valid.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,

22 | AOPA PILOT December 2018

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

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

AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - December 2018