Service Difficulty Reporting Rules Delayed Again

Implementation of amendments adopted in September 2000 revising the service difficulty reporting (SDR) rules have again been delayed. After several previous implementation delays, the new rules had been rescheduled to go into effect on January 16. But the FAA is delaying the effective date of the rules one year to Jan. 16, 2004. In the interim, the agency said it would publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to address industry concerns about the final rule. Among the controversial revisions, the new rules mandate more detailed data than previously required. By some estimates, the revised rules will generate four times as many SDRs as are generated now.