An official website of the United States government
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
Read the Noise Policy Review Federal Register Notice, Foundational Elements of the FAA Civil Aircraft Noise Policy, and Summary of Comments Received on the Federal Register Notice.
Noise Policy Review – Recent Developments and Next Steps
Recognized globally for its commitment to safety, the FAA helps the world’s aviation community build and maintain safety in order to strengthen the flying public’s trust. We do that in part through our extensive outreach and training programs for foreign civil aviation authorities, air navigation service providers, regional safety oversight offices, and others. Working together, we can ensure that the international aviation network provides the maximum safety and benefits for the traveling public and the citizens of the world.
Jim Spillane is Acting Director, ICAO and International Training, Office of International Affairs, and has overall responsibility for the FAA’s engagement with the International Civil Aviation Organization, as well as the primary focus for the Agency’s international outreach and training efforts.
Mr. Spillane’s aviation career has spanned more than 32 years, including 8 years abroad as the FAA’s Senior Representative where he managed two portfolios. In his position in Singapore, he was responsible for promoting the agency’s bilateral efforts with 11 states in Southeast Asia and multilateral efforts with international organizations such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to improve aviation safety, system efficiency, and harmonization. As the FAA Sr. Representative to the Pacific Rim in Tokyo, he was responsible for managing the FAA’s bilateral relationships with 18 countries in a geographic area that included Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and the Pacific Islands.
Previously, Mr. Spillane held technical and managerial positions in various operational air traffic management and safety oversight roles with civil and military air navigation service providers and regulators in the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
Mr. Spillane is also a Mansfield Fellow, completing a two-year program where he studied Japanese language and culture, and spent one year working inside the Japanese Ministry of Transport and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, where he focused on air transportation modernization issues.
He holds a Bachelor of Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and a Master of Science in International Relations from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
Chris Carter has served as the Director of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 
Asia-Pacific Region, located in Singapore, since June 2021. In this role, Chris provides leadership and promotes US interests advancing civil aviation safety and efficiency in the Asia-Pacific Region. He leads a staff of twenty people located in offices in Beijing, New Delhi and Tokyo as well as Singapore and Washington, DC. His office acts as liaison to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Prior to this appointment, Chris served as the Deputy Executive Director for Strategic Initiatives in the Aircraft Certification Service (AIR) of the FAA’s Aviation Safety (AVS) Line of Business. In that role, he oversaw a transformation of AIR that included a complete reorganization of a workforce of 1,300 employees as well as an improvement in the aircraft certification process. He also collaborated with industry stakeholders, international regulators and across AVS to more fully integrate the certification and operational aspects of an aircraft lifecycle.
Chris joined the FAA in 2004 as a manager in the Aircraft Engineering Division. Prior to joining the FAA, Chris spent 18 years in the aviation industry, starting as an aircraft technician in the UK. After earning his engineering degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, he worked as an engineer and a Designated Engineering Representative (DER) for several years. He has held various management positions in the aircraft modification and interior completions sector of the industry where he managed programs; negotiated supplier agreements and oversaw regulatory and safety compliance. Chris also holds an MBA from Webster University and a Professional Engineers License.
The FAA is a global leader in assessing and mitigating aviation threats, such as from risks posed by conflict zones, through the Agency's Chapter 31 Crisis Response Working Group (CRWG) to safeguard civil aviation. Employing a variety of tools and methodologies, FAA collaborates with U.S. interagency, foreign counterparts, and industry partners to mitigate risk and raise the international baseline or aviation safety and security, particularly for operations in/near conflict zones.
...
The Global Strategy and Mission Support Division (APX) in the FAA’s Office of International Affairs leads the FAA’s agency-wide international strategic planning and manages all of API’s organization-wide mission support functions, including developing orders, establishing and managing internal process and procedures, and coordinating data analysis and office-wide functions.
APX partners with API management and workforce to provide critical mission support in the following...