Of the more than 100 substantive comments submitted to the FAA on its proposal to increase the minimum cockpit voice recorder (CVR) time from the current two hours to 25 hours on new production aircraft, some 66 responses generally supported the proposal, while 38 were clearly against it. The comment period closed on February 2.
Airline passengers comprised the majority of responses in support of the rule change. Four business jet manufacturers and two GA associations also supported the proposed increase, but only if more installation lead time is provided, additional legal safeguards are incorporated to prevent the use of CVR data beyond safety purposes, and limiting it to aircraft weighing more than 27,000 kilograms (59,500 pounds).
The NTSB urged the FAA to mandate retrofitting the 25-hour CVR on all aircraft in the fleet required to have a CVR, in addition to newly manufactured aircraft. In its response, the Safety Board identified accidents in which a longer CVR recording may have helped investigators determine the cause and said a retrofit would apply to about 13,500 aircraft—fewer than half of the 29,561 the FAA estimated in its cost/benefit analysis.
Several pilot trade groups and union organizations strongly rejected the proposal, citing concerns of data being misused, invasion of privacy, and concerns that the extended recording time could create safety issues because some pilots commented that they would “self-censorship” themselves.