Huerta: Collaboration Key in Reauthorization

In his final speech before an NBAA convention as FAA Administrator, Michael Huerta thanked the business aviation community for its collaboration throughout the years, but also appealed to the audience to be receptive to other viewpoints on issues such as FAA reauthorization. Huerta was among the keynote speakers who addressed the opening general session last week during NBAA 2017 in Las Vegas. His speech comes three months before his five-year term as FAA Administrator is set to expire in early January.

In prepared remarks, he praised the convention for serving as a reminder that general aviation (GA) has been at the forefront of innovation and noted the “tremendous role GA operators played” in hurricane relief areas. “In the days immediately following the storms, when vehicles couldn’t access hard-hit areas, GA pilots quickly swooped in to deliver countless tons of life-saving water and other supplies to storm victims.”

Huerta also launched into what he called the “800-pound gorilla” in the room: the future of FAA and reauthorization. “Today, a debate is raging in Washington about how the FAA should be structured and funded,” he said. “It is a conversation that is long overdue, and one in which all of those with a stake in the future of aviation must be included.”

Since joining the FAA, he said the government has been “shut down” twice and faced sequestration. In addition, the FAA has dealt with approximately two-dozen short-term reauthorization extensions. “That is not how the world’s best aviation system should be run,” he said.

Aviation is changing dramatically, particularly with small unmanned aircraft, Huerta said, adding, “Now is the time to have a meaningful discussion about how we can improve the services we deliver today, while preparing for an increasingly complex and growing set of users in the future.”

FAA reauthorization must enable the FAA to build on its safety record, continue modernization and ensure that the airspace remains available to all users, Huerta said.

“NBAA has not exactly been shy about expressing its position on this red-hot issue,” he added, but told the NBAA audience, “I want to encourage you and every other voice in this debate to carefully consider the many—and sometimes competing—viewpoints that are being expressed.”

Huerta further cautioned, “We must not allow ourselves to dig in so deeply to our own position that the debate becomes a volley of talking points that we lob past one another. This should be a conversation, not a team sport.”

Disagreement can produce positive results when each side collaborates “rather than draws lines in the sand,” he noted. Collaboration has been an important part of his approach to running the agency, Huerta said.

“It’s no secret that in the past, many people in the agency saw themselves as the aviation police, and those we regulated often regarded us with suspicion,” he said. “But over the years, the way we see our role—and the way we approach regulation—has dramatically evolved.”

The FAA now recognizes that a collaborative approach is necessary for a safer and more efficient system. This is the underpinning of the FAA’s compliance philosophy that is intended to foster an open dialog to fix safety problems rather than punish unintentional errors.

Huerta also pointed to collaborative efforts to bring down the fatal accident rate, which helped the industry achieve its goal of a 10 percent reduction three years ahead of the target 2018 date. “That’s a remarkable achievement, and it has taken all of our efforts to get there,” he said.

Further, general aviation has increased its participation in the Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing system (ASIAS), with 60 corporate/business participants joining the effort in the past four years. He praised NBAA members for embracing data-sharing, and credited the association for being a strong advocate for ADS-B equipage in advance of the Jan. 1, 2020 deadline.

Even so, too many general aviation owners are delaying these ADS-B upgrades, Huerta said, noting that only about 30,000 aircraft are in compliance. “Manufacturers are offering units for as little as $2,000. There is every reason to equip, and no reason not to,” he said.

Other areas of collaboration that Huerta highlighted included the new rule for rewriting the Part 23 certification requirements, which incorporates consensus standards and performance-based metrics. Noting the rule went into effect in August, he said, “It’s a powerful shot of adrenaline into the massive general aviation sector.”

Huerta called his seven years at the FAA “the most rewarding of my long professional life" noting that "we have accomplished so much together, under often challenging circumstances.” He concluded by thanking the NBAA audience "for your partnership.”