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United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Safety Briefing

Compliance Program

The FAA’s Compliance Program constitutes a major cultural change with respect to how the agency goes about ensuring regulatory compliance. It is an important step towards fostering an open and transparent exchange of safety information and obtaining a higher level of safety and compliance with...

Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM)

The General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC) contends that many general aviation (GA) accidents stem from inadequate Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) and resource management skills. This fact sheet will discuss what ADM is and how the 3-P Model can help you integrate ADM principles...

Pilots and Medication

Impairment from medication, particularly over the counter (OTC) medication, has been cited in a number of accidents in general aviation. In a 2011 study from the FAA’s CAMI Toxicology Lab, drugs/medications were found in 570 pilots (42%) from 1,353 total fatal pilots tested. Most of the pilots...

Best Glide Speed and Distance

The General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC) has determined that a significant number of general aviation fatalities could be avoided if pilots were better informed and trained in determining and flying their aircraft at the best glide speed while maneuvering to complete a forced...

Angle of Attack Awareness

The General Aviation Joint Steering Committee’s (GAJSC) loss of control workgroup believes that a lack of awareness, with respect to angle of attack (AOA), has resulted in the loss of aircraft control and contributed to fatal GA accidents. The GAJSC also maintains that increasing a pilot’s...

Aircraft Performance and Calculations

Accident investigations have discovered causal factors resulting from unreasonable expectations of aircraft performance – especially when operating at the edges of the aircraft weight and balance envelope. That’s why the Loss of Control Work Group suggests improvement in pilots’ understanding...