Before the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development concerning FY 2016 Budget Hearing – Federal Aviation Administration

As prepared for delivery.

Good afternoon, Chairman Diaz-Balart, Ranking Member Price, and members of the subcommittee. Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 budget request for the Federal Aviation Administration.

The FAA’s 2017 budget request is for $15.9 billion to support the FAA’s mission to run the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world while continuing to transform our airspace through NextGen. These budget priorities are important to us, and they also play a larger role in the long-term health of our nation’s economy.

We continue to make strides deploying key elements of our NextGen air traffic system while also welcoming new users into the nation’s airspace. NextGen is no longer some nebulous and futuristic aspiration; it’s happening today.

When I spoke to you last year, I told you we were almost finished with the installation of our En Route Automation Modernization System, or ERAM. It is now complete and is delivering the promised results as the backbone of our NextGen technology transformation. Similarly, the ground infrastructure for ADS-B is finished, and ADS-B traffic and weather broadcasts are now available across the country.

As we complete this foundation, our engagement with industry is yielding real benefits. Last week, the NextGen Advisory Committee and the FAA met in Atlanta to discuss our accomplishments and to outline our next steps. We have made significant progress in four NextGen priorities areas, including Performance-Based Navigation and DataComm. We are replacing old flight paths with more efficient satellite-based procedures, and DataComm technology is giving pilots and controllers a new, more efficient way to communicate critical safety information.

For the Operations budget, the FAA is requesting $10 billion in 2017 for day-to-day operations of our nation’s aviation system. This represents a 1 percent increase above the FY 2016 enacted level and includes the costs of providing safe, secure, and cost-effective air traffic services to commercial and private aviation.

This budget will strengthen our safety and security programs, hiring 16 new safety critical staff for the integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). We’ll also hire 13 new personnel in the Office of Commercial Space Transportation to support regulatory, safety, and airspace integration efforts. And we’ve boosted funding to improve the security of our most critical NAS facilities and protect the FAA from malicious insider activity.

For Facilities and Equipment – or F&E – the 2017 request of $2.8 billion maintains the capacity and safety of our nation’s airspace while we continue to modernize and transform it. The non-NextGen portion of our investment – representing almost $2 billion – will be to sustain current systems. This funding will be a down payment on our maintenance backlog, keeping systems operational and our employees safe. Further reducing the backlog will require continued commitment for several years.

Our Research, Engineering, and Development request of $167.5 million allows us to boost funding for the Continuous Low Energy, Emission and Noise (CLEEN) program to support the President’s plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 32 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. It also includes $8.4 million to meet the growing demand for unmanned aircraft systems.

Our Airports budget request is for $2.9 billion. This reflects our ongoing priority of focusing federal resources on projects of highest priority and greatest benefit to aviation at smaller commercial and general aviation airports.

At the same time, the budget would allow commercial service airports to increase non-Federal Passenger Facility Charges (PFC) from the current maximum of $4.50 to $8. The PFC level has not been increased in more than 15 years. Our analysis shows that, due to inflation, this higher PFC level is needed just to provide an equivalent level of buying power. This means that large hub airports will benefit from more direct and local control over their funding and improvements.

Before we turn to questions, I’d like to take a moment to address the upcoming debate over FAA reauthorization. Last month, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee unveiled a proposal for how air traffic control services could be provided in the future. We are open to having this discussion. We encourage Congress to work in a bipartisan way on FAA reauthorization, consistent with recent approaches on other transportation issues.

Civil aviation contributes $1.5 trillion annually to the national economy and constitutes 5.4 percent of the gross domestic product. Aviation also generates 12 million jobs. We share an enormous responsibility to protect this mode of travel and to shape and nurture its bright future.

Thank you. That concludes my opening remarks. I would be happy to answer your questions.

FAA Report

My remarks will be relatively brief this morning. I’ll begin with an overview of the agenda, and then provide brief updates on the 2017 budget, reauthorization, and some of our UAS efforts around UAS integration.

You’ll have noticed by now that there are multiple agenda items related to PBN. I want to spend a few moments putting these into context. 

It was exactly a year ago, in this same room, we started a discussion on a long-term PBN strategy that would provide a clear vision of GPS-based navigation as the basis for daily operations in our national airspace and how do we get to that point. As a result of that conversation, we took our internal work to the PARC, the Performance-based Operations Aviation Rulemaking Committee, and one year later we have that strategy. It lays out a consensus view of where the aviation community as a whole wants to go through 2030. I’ll yield time at the end of my remarks to Josh Gustin and Mark Bradley to walk us through that really excellent work that they have been leading. 

Out of that work came a NAC tasking on PBN Time, Speed, and Spacing, which is intended to inform a 15-year plan for the deployment of traffic flow tools that will complement the PBN Strategy. Importantly, this will explore where those capabilities should reside – on the ground or in the air. That task has just kicked off and we’ll hear from the leads how they are approaching that work.

We’ll look at our progress on some near-term PBN work when we review the status of our current NextGen Priorities plan, which continues to be a fruitful collaboration. Richard mentioned that we completed 29 commitments in our first year of execution. I’m happy to add that we’ve completed 13 more since October. DataComm is now in use in Salt Lake City, New Orleans, Louisville, Newark, Austin and the two Houston airports, and is coming soon to a tower near you, including right here in Atlanta. We implemented wake recategorization in Denver, and we’ve increased efficiency during instrument conditions at seven airports, by reducing the standard spacing for dependent parallel operations.

You’ll hear more from the focus area leads on these accomplishments, as well as on their preliminary efforts to roll the plan forward with new commitments for 2018 and 2019.

As we talked about this morning, the NAS operates pretty well on blue sky days. It’s in off-nominal conditions where NextGen provides opportunity for improvement. Bart Roberts of Jet Blue will tell us today how a PBN procedure, coupled with an agreement with the local facility, made all the difference for his operations during a JFK runway closure.

The final PBN item is an update from the Community Outreach task group. PBN changes, especially new routes, are among the few parts of NextGen that the general public can actually see, and these changes have caught the attention of underlying communities in various parts of the country. At the last NAC meeting, we talked about the need to more fully engage communities before we implement procedures, and the FAA is committed to being smart and thoughtful about educating, involving, and getting input from residents – building on good past practices and using new techniques. The NAC touched on this subject in earlier recommendations, and will amplify those thoughts through this new task. I look forward to hearing the update from that group today.

We also have a few non-PBN agenda items:

We remain focused on ensuring that NextGen is harmonized with modernization efforts across the globe and so it’s important for us to understand how other programs are progressing. Florian and Frank will talk to us about the European ATM Master Plan. We look forward to hearing from them on that.

We’ll hear from the Joint Analysis Team. The NextGen Priorities were chosen by industry and the FAA because they were deemed to be of high benefit.  We will be looking to the expertise of the Joint Analysis Team to assess their impact. The team’s work is intended to help us collectively understand the data and methodology that the FAA and industry use to examine changes in operational performance and to support a common approach. I understand that the team has had some insightful conversations and I look forward to hearing more about that today.

We’ve already heard some about that today. The Equip 2020 working group is continuing to work through equipage challenges in order to ensure that everyone meets the January 1, 2020 mandate, and Bruce DeCleene will walk us through the current state of affairs in that effort.

As Richard mentioned it is important to have visibility into fleet plans for ADS-B equipage in order to make sure that we are ahead of the mandate and that we can continue to make this transition as seamless as possible.

I would like to thank Delta and American Airlines for their commitment to provide this information. We look forward to receiving their data as well as the data from other carriers very soon.

Bruce will then be joined by Michele Merkle for our final presentation of the day, which you’ll see titled “the NextGen Vision.” Earlier I mentioned our PBN strategy, which outlines the way ahead for navigation through 2030. We have a complementary product that does the same for the full scope of NextGen. Consider this an update to the 2011 NextGen Mid-Term Concept of Operations. It reaffirms the FAA’s commitment to providing enhanced service delivery in decades to come. It also lays the groundwork for further discussions here at the NAC and is a suitable topic to conclude today’s meeting. The success we’ve had working on our near-term priorities gives me great hope for the possibility of making joint commitments that take us far into the future. 

Now I’d like to turn to a few other items of perennial interest and just give you a brief update:

The President released his budget earlier this month for Fiscal Year 2017. The budget calls for $15.9 billion dollars for FAA, including approximately $1 billion for NextGen. 

This budget, if enacted, would restore us to the funding levels needed to ensure that we are able to execute the NextGen Priorities as we have discussed. However, since this request is above the two-year budget agreement, we may continue to experience budget uncertainty. Given that, we must remain flexible as we execute our current plan and establish new priorities for 2018 and 2019, and align those plans with budgets as actually passed.

I also want to briefly, and I emphasize briefly, address the FAA reauthorization bill. As you are aware, earlier this month the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee unveiled a proposal for how air traffic control services could be provided in the future.

There is broad acknowledgment that FAA reauthorization offers an opportunity to ensure that the U.S. continues to lead the world in aviation safety and efficiency. FAA reauthorization will impact a broad and diverse array of stakeholders, and we want to make sure they are all heard throughout this process, which has just begun. We encourage Congress to work in a bipartisan way, consistent with recent approaches on transportation issues.

We continue to believe that any proposal should support our core reauthorization principles. These principles include maintaining the safest aerospace system in the world, modernizing the FAA’s air traffic control system—including stable funding for air traffic control operations, NextGen, and the efficient recapitalization of aging facilities—and enabling the integration of new users into the NAS. Other principles include allowing better alignment of resources with the needs of the NAS and securing appropriate funding for the nation’s airports. These principles are intended to guide reauthorization to improve safety, make our airspace more efficient, and improve service for air travelers and other stakeholders.  

Finally, on UAS, as many of you may know, the FAA has been working hard to safely and effectively integrate UAS into our airspace.  This remains a significant challenge.

But, in December, we made great strides toward this goal by creating a web-based registration process for owners of small drones.

We are requiring the owners of small unmanned aircraft, weighing more than half a pound to register their drones. To date more than 350,000 have done so, giving us the opportunity to work with a whole new group of aviators.  There are now more unmanned aircraft registered in the US than there are traditional aircraft.

We established a task force, wrote and implemented the interim rule for the registry, and stood up a registry website, all in two months.

The speed with which we were able to roll this out is a testament to the invaluable input we received from the diverse task force of stakeholders we brought together to work on this issue. And it’s further proof that when government and industry partner, we can innovate, cut through red tape, and use technology to tackle emerging risks.

This is essential with UAS because of how quickly this field is evolving. Almost on a daily basis, we’re seeing proposals from operators who’d like to use unmanned aircraft to do everything from package delivery and pipeline inspection to newsgathering and real estate photography.

Meanwhile, we are continuing to work on the final rule for small UAS and we plan to publish that in late spring.

This week we also announced that we are going to establish an aviation rulemaking committee to develop recommendations for operating micro unmanned aircraft.

The committee will begin its work in March and will make recommendations for how to safely operate drones over people who are not directly involved in the operation of the aircraft.

There has been widespread interest in creating a separate micro UAS category.  As part of the proposed rule for small UAS, we asked for comments on a “micro” classification.  Based on the comments, the FAA has decided to pursue flexible, performance-based requirements that address potential hazards, instead of a classification defined by weight and speed. We expect the ARC to issue its final report in April. 

The fast turnaround again demonstrates our commitment to being flexible in our regulatory approach so that we can accommodate innovation while maintaining our high level of safety.

We will start working on the rule once we receive the committee’s recommendations.

Before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee concerning Transportation and Public Assets Subcommittee Hearing

As prepared for delivery.

Chairman Mica, Ranking Member Duckworth, Members of the Subcommittee:

Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today on the issue of oversight of aviation credentials. I know this issue is of significant interest to Chairman Mica because we’ve appeared before Congress on this issue under Mr. Mica’s leadership in 2013.

The mission of the FAA is ensuring the highest levels of safety for the millions of passengers traveling across our airspace system every day. The Agency is charged with the oversight of airlines and aircraft manufacturers, the safety of our nation’s airports and the training of our air traffic controllers. Taken together, we operate the safest and most efficient airspace system in the world.

The FAA issues 23 different types of airmen certificates, including those to pilots, mechanics, dispatchers, flight attendants, and air traffic controllers. There are more than 800,000 active pilot certificate holders alone. A pilot certificate is a credential, attesting to the training and competence of the pilot. It is the same as a lawyer who must have evidence of admission to the bar; a doctor who is board certified in a specialty; or even a beautician who must meet state or local licensing requirements. In all these cases, the credential is not used as identification media and it does not impart security access to court rooms, to operating rooms or to airports. A pilot never uses his or her pilot certificate to gain access to airport areas. Instead, he or she uses the security credential issued by the airport as required by TSA.

Since 2002, the FAA has taken actions to enhance the security of pilot certificates. We require pilots to carry a valid Government issued photo I.D., in addition to a pilot certificate, whenever they are flying. This allows an FAA inspector, or others to confirm both the pilot’s identity and his or her pilot qualifications.

The FAA phased out paper certificates by incorporating tamper- and counterfeit-resistant features including micro printing, a hologram, and a UV-sensitive layer. In 2010, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to require a photo on all pilot certificates and to improve the process for getting a student pilot certificate.

While we were preparing that Final rule, the FAA Modernization and Reform Act required that the pilot certificate accommodate fingerprints and iris, and comply with specific security standards. Unfortunately, our 2010 proposal did not include these security requirements. To allow pilots to comment on the full statutory mandates we needed to draft a new proposal.

However, the security and intelligence communities determined that allowing student pilots to operate an aircraft as pilot in command in the national airspace system prior to being vetted, was an unacceptable security risk.The Administration committed to closing that security gap andlast month the FAA published a final rule requiring student pilots to appear before an FAA inspector or other authorized designee to verify the student's identity. The student pilot certificate will be issued once TSA completes its vetting.

We recognize that the 2012 legislation included specific direction to improve the airman certificate and we regret that we are not further along in the rulemaking process to implement those provisions. But as our 2013 Report toCongress outlined, there are major challenges to implementing the Congressional direction. While the National Institute for Standards and Technology has issued standards for the collection of iris images, there are no GSA-approved products for the collection or use of iris biometrics. Before we require collection of biometrics, we need to understand where and how they would be used.  

There are no requirements that airports use iris or other biometric information for authorizing access at airports. Neither the FAA nor TSA has estimated the cost to develop and install such an infrastructure at the nearly 550 airports eligible for Federal grant funds, or the more than 5,000 airports that are open to the public. As part of our rule to require biometrics,we’ll have to estimate what the cost of that system will be to the airports and to the taxpayer.

In our Report to Congress and the preliminary work we have done on the rule, we estimated new certificates will cost more than $1 billion over 12 years. As Congress and this Administration are committed to minimizing the costs to the public of Federal actions, that cost estimate alone may be our biggest challenge.

The reality is that to include biometric information on pilot certificates drives cost and may not be the most effective way to meet our security objectives. I can assure you that pilots are properly trained. We rely on TSA and the intelligence community to address security risks.

The FAA has worked with TSA to develop options to accomplish the Congressional direction. We will work to get a proposal—although demonstrating benefits to justify a billion or more dollars in costs will be difficult. We will keep the Congress informed of our progress.

That concludes my prepared remarks and I will be happy to address your questions.

Ensuring Safety, Encouraging Innovation

Remarks as prepared for Delivery

Thank you, George.  I’m happy to be back here today.

I spoke at this conference two years ago.  At that time, I had barely been at the agency six months – I joined in June of 2013. 

It has been an extraordinary couple years since then – both in Commercial Space and at the FAA.

The year before I joined FAA, there were only three licensed launches in the U.S.  Since then, this industry has completed 50 operations. 

FAA has also driven a lot of change of the past few years.

When I joined, my primary responsibility – what I was hired for, principally – was NextGen.  NextGen, as many of you know, is a huge infrastructure project to modernize the nation’s airspace system.

• NextGen is what I spoke about when I was here two years ago.
• We’ve made a lot of progress on that in the last couple years, and I will talk a bit about that today.

But part of my role at FAA is to lead efforts to integrate new users into our airspace.  This includes commercial space operators.  President Obama strongly believes that commercial space transportation is vital to America’s future. 

Integrating new users also includes unmanned aircraft – what we refer to as UAS, and more commonly known as “drones.”  There has certainly been a lot of activity in this area over the past two years.  I will draw some parallels between Commercial Space and the integration of UAS.

So let me begin by talking about some important changes – or shifts in emphasis – that have taken place at the FAA over the last few years, and how that impacts our approach to integrating new users in the airspace.

There are really two shifts I want to talk about – and they are related. 

• One is the migration to a risk-based decision making approach to ensuring safety.  And how that approach leads us to look for performance-based standards rather than prescriptive regulations.
• The second is an increased focus on including stakeholders in the regulatory process – not through the traditional and sometimes long rulemaking process, but through more nimble means that better allow us to keep pace with innovation.

The theme with both of these shifts is that we want to apply the right amount of regulation to ensure public safety, but not unnecessarily interfere with innovation.  That is the balance we are trying to strike.

 First, risk-based Decision Making.  As you know, traditionally aviation regulations grew out of accident investigations.

• It was a forensic approach to regulation.
• An accident would happen – an investigation would ensue, and we would find the various causes of the accident.
• I say causes because invariably there would be a series of causes that lined up in an unfortunate but perfect way to result in an accident.
• Then we would issue regulations to mitigate safety risk – new training, changes of procedures, or equipment changes, or perhaps other changes based on insights into human factors.

And unfortunately, if you go back 20 years or so, there were plenty of commercial accidents to work with to find safety improvements.

As time passed, though – through technology improvements and a concerted effort between FAA and the airline industry – the commercial accident rate was reduced to a very low level.

So with that good news, and few or no commercial accidents to investigate in a given year, our approach to safety shifted to analyzing data.

• We have a huge amount of data in the airline industry. And we were able to create more data by encouraging voluntary disclosure of operational anomalies – without fear of reprisal in most cases.
• Now we rely on this data to find anomalies or unsafe conditions, and go to the root causes of potential accidents before they happen.

There are many manifestations of this new approach to improving safety.  The Safety Management Systems which are now mandated at airlines and airports are a good example.

Another example is the new compliance philosophy Administrator Huerta announced last fall in a speech to the Aero Club here in Washington.

• The new Compliance Philosophy is a significant change at FAA, and recognizes that punitive enforcement action against airmen or operators sometimes is not the right tool.  Sometimes it is!  But not always.
• Instead we are focused on the goal, which is to find problems in the National Airspace System, and find them before they result in an incident or accident.
• To accomplish this, we must maintain an open and transparent exchange of information and data between the FAA and industry. 
• This approach recognizes the importance of operators voluntarily complying with the regulations, but it also recognizes that sometimes even the best operators make honest mistakes.
• We still have to address these mistakes; unintentional errors also threaten safety. 
• But we want to use the most appropriate tool for the problem, and monitor the situation to ensure it doesn’t recur.

The new Compliance Philosophy makes it clear that compliance is the primary goal.  Enforcement is still available as a tool when necessary, but the focus is on compliance.

As I said, this is a big change for the agency.  But this approach is also critical to integrating new technologies into the system.

• New technologies inevitably generate challenges that we had not envisioned when the process began.
• We need data to understand that.  And we need a collaborative and open dialogue with industry to understand that.

The second shift you will see at the agency is a focus on stakeholder engagement, and here the example I will use is NextGen.  We have made quite a bit of progress with NextGen over the last few years.  We’ve reached a point where the foundational phase of NextGen is nearly complete.

• We have replaced the automation systems in our 20 high altitude air traffic control centers, as well as most of our approach facilities.
• We have completed the installation of the ADS-B ground stations, the network of satellite-based GPS that replaces radar for primary surveillance.
• And we have incorporated the ADS-B feed into the Air Traffic Control Centers.

But NextGen is a very complex project – often referred to as a system-of-systems – and as we deploy the capabilities of NextGen – as we move past the installation of the foundational technologies and into capabilities – we must have intensive input from the users of the system to ensure effective deployment.

• So in 2013, we formally reached out to the aviation industry through the NextGen Advisory Committee and asked them to help us prioritize NextGen improvements so we could deliver the greatest benefit in the near term.  We asked for their engagement in setting schedules and milestones to deploy these NextGen improvements.
• This  structured engagement does a number of things:
• It ensures the successful deployment of the new complex air traffic technologies and procedures, including getting the users to actually adopt these innovations.
• It provides assistance in resolving technical issues that arise in complex deployments.
• It helps get industry buy-in for the approach and the schedule for the deployment.
• And, it educates industry, which helps them articulate the benefits they receive.
  
• We have seen a lot of success with this approach.
• One example of that success is our outreach to industry to ensure that the users of the system will be fully equipped with ADS-B technology by 2020, in order to ensure NextGen stays on schedule.
• We now have confirmation from all the major airlines that their fleets will be equipped by 2020, and we are working closely with GA to ensure that fleet is equipped as well.
  
• The industry engagement model has been one of the keys to our success in moving NextGen forward.

So what does all this have to do with Commercial Space?

• This same philosophy of industry engagement drives our work in integrating new users into the airspace.
• That engagement happens at events like this, but also through the efforts of the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee; the Commercial Space Industry Day held at the FAA’s Command Center; working through groups like the RTCA; and operational demos with companies like Space X, which I’ll talk about in a moment.
• In other words, if you have thoughts or ideas on how we can go about safely integrating Commercial Space operations into the airspace, we need to hear about them.

But of course Commercial Space is not the only new user we are working to integrate.  The proliferation of drones, both recreational and commercial, has exceeded anyone’s expectations.

• There are now nearly as many drone users registered in the United States as there are traditional civilian aircraft.
• It’s hard to think of any other industry that’s experienced the phenomenal growth of unmanned aircraft during the past couple of years.
• Safely integrating all unmanned aircraft operations – both commercial and hobbyist–into the national airspace system is one of our top priorities.
• But again we also want to encourage innovation.  Safe integration and fostering innovation must go hand in hand.

Here again, we are using these two tools – risk-based decision making and intense industry engagement – to achieve this integration.

For example, last year we put out a very elegant – elegant as far as rules go – proposed rule governing operations of small UAS – those under 55 lbs. 

• It is a simple rule that defines when and where the aircraft can be operated, and those rules of operation provide the safety envelope. 
• The rule does not specify how the aircraft must be equipped or designed, other than an ability to operate within certain parameters.

We received over 4500 comments on the rule, and the final rule should be out this spring.

Likewise, we have relied on intense industry engagement to allow this sector to continue innovating while reducing risk to people and property.

One of the risks we were seeing was drones operating near airports and aircraft.  The majority of those incidents we believe are the result of operators not realizing that they are part of our shared airspace.

When you open a gift box with a new drone, you have just become a pilot and part of a complex air system.  Thus, our focus has been on educating users. 

To accomplish that, we initiated a process to require registration.

• Registration gives us an excellent opportunity to educate new airspace users, who may have little or no experience with aviation.
• It also helps instill in them the safety culture traditional aviation has relied on for more than a century.

We did not accomplish this alone.  We convened a task force of diverse stakeholders – manufacturers, retailers, tech companies, as well as existing users of the system.

• That task force, in 30 days, developed a consensus recommendation.
• 30 days later, we issued a rule requiring registration, along with a website to accomplish that.
• In the next 30 days, we had over 300,000 UAS users registered.

This is a real shift in how the FAA does business.

The innovations we’re seeing in commercial space are equally breathtaking.

• I mentioned that in 2012 there were three licensed or permitted commercial space operations.
• This year, we expect there to be 38-50 launches and reentries.  Within several years, we could see an average of one launch daily in the U.S. alone.
• Already this year we witnessed Blue Origin make history, with a second successful launch and landing of their New Shepard rocket on January 22, marking the first time that the same rocket was reused.
• This is tremendous progress.  At the FAA, we want to see it continue.  We’re doing it through:
• A combination of risk-based decision making, and
• Greater collaboration between the FAA and the commercial space industry.

Let me talk about how we are approaching this.

The FAA currently “accommodates” space operations by blocking off, or “sterilizing,” a large amount of airspace.

• This approach works today because there are so few operations and most take place from only a couple of coastal locations. 
• But as space operations increase, this has the potential to create lengthy delays or reroutes for other aircraft. 

In this regard, we're partnering with Space X and using their launch data to conduct an operational demo for a tool called the Space Data Integrator, or SDI.

• SDI will help us to safely reduce the amount of airspace we block for commercial space operations and more efficiently release the blocked airspace so it's available for other users.
• This tool will help us automate the operational procedures air traffic controllers currently use for space operations.

We hope to conduct the operational demo in the next couple of months when the Space X's Dragon spacecraft comes in for its reentry mission.

• The demo's goal is to show us how much airspace we have to block off in advance to ensure a safe operation. The tool will enable us to adapt to contingencies. For instance, if we know that a reentry is coming in off course, we can block off new airspace and release the old airspace.
• When we have launch data in real time–and we can block off less airspace–it increases our ability to enable and approve more launch operations. And the more we know about an operator's capabilities and flexibilities, the better job we can do to meet the needs of all airspace users.
• It is an important step toward integration.

As with unmanned aircraft, we need to identify the right balance of regulation so that we ensure the safety of the airspace system while facilitating the growth of this industry.We’re going to have to move from accommodation to integration, meaning that we take into account the needs of all airspace users – just as we are doing with unmanned aircraft.

As with any growing industry, we have faced significant challenges in this process.

• In 2015 there were three major accident investigations of missions slated to deliver cargo to the International Space Station. Understandably, this generated congressional concern.
• Even though the FAA is not developing commercial space regulations during the legislatively-declared "learning period," we are conducting safety oversight, and we are doing a lot of internal prep work so we're not behind the curve when operations start to accelerate.

Industry engagement will be the key to successfully accomplishing this integration.

• We've set up a Commercial Space Integration Team. Through this team, we will seek engagement and input from the commercial space industry.
• We're looking at how we can incorporate the commercial space industry into the FAA's Collaborative Decision Making process–or CDM.
• Currently with CDM, we communicate several times a day with aviation stakeholders and take their interests into account as we manage the flow of daily air traffic.
• As commercial space operations increase, we see a need to have your industry involved in the CDM process.
• And we're developing a Commercial Space Integration Roadmap that will define changes in policy, regulation, procedures and automation capabilities. The Roadmap will also define the schedule by which these changes will be made.

That's an overview of some of the changes to the approach we are taking at FAA, as we use risk-based decision making and industry collaboration to encourage innovation to safely integrate new users in the airspace.

• I want to close by referring to Administrator Huerta's speech last year–about the need for us to consider together the appropriate transition to a framework that involves performance-based standards.
• We need to have a thoughtful discussion across government and across industry about safety risk, and about the balance between innovation and regulation.
• Thank you again for inviting me to speak today.

Consumer Electronic Press Event

Remarks as prepared for Delivery

This is my first visit to CES and as I walked through the convention center floor, I was really struck by the incredible breadth of products that are on display. It’s truly remarkable – and it’s a reminder that we should never underestimate the transformative power of technology.

If you’re around my age, you probably knew someone who, 30 or so years ago,  scoffed at the idea that people would ever have a need for personal computers. And just a couple of years ago, few people envisioned the growth we’re seeing today in the recreational use of unmanned aircraft.

We’ve heard various estimates about the number of small drones that would be sold for recreational use this past holiday season. While the numbers vary, it’s clear that retailers expected to sell a significant number. Safely integrating all of these new pilots into our National Airspace System is one of the FAA’s top priorities – to protect manned aircraft, to protect people on the ground, and to protect innovation.

This is not going to be a finite process, where one day we sit back and say OK, we’re done. Maintaining the highest levels of safety requires us to constantly evolve in our approach, whether we’re talking about commercial aircraft like Boeing 747s, or unmanned quadcopters that weigh a few pounds.

Over the past year, working with our government, industry and model aircraft community partners, we have made very significant progress on this front. And the coming year is going to be an exciting and challenging time as we continue to support existing initiatives and implement new ones while leveraging our partners’ energy and creativity to identify even more integration strategies.

We reached one of our most significant integration milestones just before Christmas when we implemented an easy-to-use, web-based drone registration system. The system went live just two months after Secretary Foxx and I announced the initiative.

The speed with which we were able to roll it out is a testament to the commitment and hard work of the diverse task force we set up to help design the system. It’s proof that government, working with private industry, can innovate, cut through red tape, and use technology to tackle emerging challenges.

Four of our task force partners are with us here today. Their collaboration is critical to our ongoing efforts to get the word out about the registration requirement and in promoting safe flying practices.

Simply put, registration is all about safety. It provides us with a key opportunity to educate the new generation of airspace users that as soon as they start flying outside, they’re pilots. There are safety implications to how they fly, and there are rules and regulations they must follow. It also will help them become part of the safety culture that has been deeply embedded in traditional aviation for more than a century, while still allowing for the recreation and innovation that are staples of American aviation. And, when necessary, registration will help us track down people who operate unsafely.

Registration is simple – and it’s mandatory for aircraft that weigh between 0.55 pounds and 55 pounds. You enter basic information – name, address and email address – into our online system, and read and acknowledge our basic safety guidelines. Then you pay $5 – the fee will be refunded if you register by January 20^th – and get a registration number. Your registration is valid for three years, and you can register an unlimited number of aircraft that you intend to use for recreational purposes.

We’re offering live registration at our UAS booth on the convention center floor in the unmanned systems marketplace, so I encourage you to pay a visit down there.

We’re encouraged by the registration numbers we’re seeing so far. As of today, about 181,000 aircraft have been registered. But this is just the beginning. Now that we have set up the registration system, our challenge is to make sure everyone is aware of the requirement and registers.

Our partnerships – such as Know Before You Fly – are critical.

Know Before You Fly began just 13 months ago as a partnership involving the Association of Unmanned Vehicles International, the Academy of Model Aeronautics and the FAA. Today, it has expanded to include more than 50 members – including 20 that joined in November and December alone.

I want to stress how important this campaign is in spreading the word about safe flying – and the addition of new partners continues to add to its value and reach.

But we also must constantly evolve in our approach and identify new methods of reaching all the new airspace users out there – and new methods of making the registration process even easier for consumers.   For example, we are working to support potential third-party applications, such as smart phone apps, that could enable manufacturers or retailers to scan a code on a drone and automatically register it.

You may also be aware that we have been working for the past several months on our own smart phone app, B4UFLY, which tells people about current or upcoming restrictions where they want to fly their unmanned aircraft. We introduced B4UFLY last August for limited beta testing, and we made a number of enhancements to it based on our testers’ feedback.

I am pleased to announce that later today, an updated iOS version of B4UFLY will be available for the general public, free of charge. We’re also going to release an Android version today for beta testing, as we did last year for the iOS version.

The app provides clear direction with a status indicator, which tells the user “Proceed with Caution”, “Warning – Action Required” or “Flight Prohibited.” The app also features a planner mode that allows the user to see if there are any restrictions at a different time and location for an upcoming flight.

Like UAS registration, we expect that B4UFLY will help heighten public awareness about what it means to operate unmanned aircraft safely.

A number of other important developments around education are occurring with our partners that you might not be aware of.

Additional companies are including Know Before You Fly materials in their packaging – joining DJI, Parrot and Yuneec, which began doing so last year.

Retailer Best Buy put Know Before You Fly information on the receipts of everyone who bought drones this past holiday season.

The Consumer Technology Association is leading an effort to standardize unmanned aircraft serial numbers to make it easier to identify specific aircraft. The idea here is to enable a computer app to scan an aircraft serial number and automatically populate the registration file with make, model and serial number without anyone having to manually enter the number into the system.  Google and Parrot are partners in this initiative. This might not be glamorous work, but it’s an important part of our work to safely integrate drones.

The FAA also issued important guidance last month to states and municipalities that are considering laws or regulations addressing UAS use. Our guidance explains that any local laws should be consistent with the extensive federal regulatory framework for aircraft and airspace use. It explains that a consistent regulatory system ensures the highest level of safety for all aviation operations.

A lot of our recent public focus has been on recreational drones, but we’ve also been working on a rule that will allow routine, safe commercial and other non-hobby operations of small unmanned aircraft. We expect to finalize the rule in late spring of this year.

Meanwhile, we have authorized more than 3,000 commercial operators on a case-by-case basis, ranging from movie filming and smokestack inspections to aerial photography and land surveying. While we have streamlined the current authorization process, the rule will greatly decrease the need for case-by-case approvals, increasing commercial operators’ ease of access to the National Airspace System.

We’re also going to continue working with our Pathfinder Program industry partners to explore unmanned aircraft operations that go beyond those proposed in the rule. We’re going to take every opportunity to promote our pre-flight safety checklist. And we’re going to do more outreach that is targeted to drone pilots so they’re aware of No Drone Zones for specific events and conditions, such as the Super Bowl and upcoming wildfire season. We want to give pilots the ability to fly safe and smart so they can enjoy all the benefits of their unmanned aircraft.

No initiative is going to be the single solution when it comes to safely integrating unmanned aircraft – be they for commercial or recreational use – into our National Airspace System.

Our job is to create a new culture in aviation so that all users, old and new, understand the importance of operating safely, and know what their responsibilities are. I am confident that, working together with our partners in safety, we will succeed.

Working Together to Foster Safety

I am honored to be here with you tonight, and I appreciate the hospitality and spirit of partnership you have extended to me during my visit to your beautiful country.  I am especially in awe of this wonderful—and appropriate—venue for tonight’s gathering.

I want to thank Civil Aviation Authority of Israel (CAAI) Director General Joel Feldschuh and his team for hosting us here tonight and for being such great partners, which I plan to speak more about. The Peres Center for Peace is truly inspiring.  And I could look out at this view of the Mediterranean Sea for hours.

For those of us in this room, aviation is not just a profession; it is a passion.  We are fortunate to live in a time when we can do what mankind has imagined since the days when this part of the world was young.  We don’t have to wonder; we know what it is like to mount up on wings as eagles.

For us, the world is a much wider place.  Yet, at the same time, it has never been smaller.

We think nothing of boarding a modern airliner and safely disembarking a few hours later, an ocean or more away. Aviation has become the international language of commerce, and runways have enabled inland cities to become vibrant ports.  It has helped foster an intellectual and economic prosperity that’s unparalleled in human history.

As stewards of this industry, we share an enormous responsibility to protect this mode of travel and to nurture its future.  Every day, we ask ourselves, how can we make flying safer?  How can we be more efficient?  What else lies over the horizon?

Since the beginning of manned flight, aviation has been the catalyst for international relationships.  I can’t think of anywhere this has been truer than the deep, unbreakable bonds that have grown between Israel and the United States.

In January of this year, Nancy Spielberg and Roberta Grossman released a documentary, “Above and Beyond.”  It tells the story of a group of American fighter pilots who volunteered to fly in combat for the State of Israel during the War of Independence in 1948.  It’s a historical account that isn’t so well known in my country, even though many of these men were heroes here in Israel.

They were acting on their own at the time, but these intrepid Jewish aviators heralded the beginning of what today is one of the United States’ strongest common bonds with Israel.

We are tied together culturally.  We are tied together economically.  We are tied together by aviation.

From the earliest days of flight, aviation has presented us with an ever-changing slate of opportunities and challenges.

For example, we are able to fly longer distances in greater safety and comfort than ever before, making almost any two points on the planet reachable in a single flight.

At the same time, the worldwide security environment and ongoing regional conflicts have added new concerns that extend far beyond questions about aerodynamics and fuel calculations.

As you all know, we experienced this first-hand on July 22, 2014, when a rocket from Gaza landed approximately a mile from Ben-Gurion Airport, prompting FAA to issue a Notice to Airmen that prohibited U.S. carriers from using BGA for a period of time.  We viewed the suspension of flights as a temporary but necessary pause while we assured ourselves of the safety postures of both the United States and the Government of Israel. 

As a result of this incident, the FAA and the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel (CAAI) began an in-depth exchange that allowed the FAA and CAAI to establish new mechanisms to improve coordination.  These are greatly assisting our communication and interaction on a number of fronts, and are helping us remain prepared for a range of contingencies.

Up to this point, we have focused mainly on coordinating internal processes between the FAA and the CAAI.  I hope in the future we can expand this cooperation to entail working together with U.S. and Israeli companies to find new, innovative technologies for the aviation sector.

The FAA’s primary concern is the safety of civil aviation anywhere American passengers travel around the world.  We constantly monitor world events and work with our international partners to take the appropriate actions with the best interests of travelers foremost in our minds.  This is another common bond we share with you.

When you think about it, as a sovereign nation, Israel has been around for only about 60 percent of the history of manned flight.  Yet, during that time, this country has emerged on many fronts as a leader on the world aviation stage.

Just in October, your flag carrier, El Al Israel Airlines, announced the largest fleet-renewal program in the airline’s history.

El Al placed orders for nine new Boeing 737s and 787 Dreamliners.  The airline also said it planned to lease an additional six Dreamliners and was taking options for the purchase of another 13.  All told, the deal is valued at roughly $3.4 billion.

Today, almost five years to the day since the U.S.–Israel Open Skies Agreement went into force, El Al is unquestionably a top-notch competitor in a region that continues to set new standards for passenger comfort and aircraft amenities.

International carriers such as United Airlines have benefited from the growing demand from the tech industry.  United is scheduled to begin direct service from Tel Aviv to San Francisco this coming March and Delta will also expand its direct service to New York in 2016.

The recent discovery of vast fields of natural gas under the Mediterranean promises even more future demand for air travel in this region.

In the manufacturing arena, Israel has become an important supplier to many of the world’s leading aerospace companies. Components made in your factories are incorporated into the newest generation of modern jetliners and fighter jets.  Indeed, one of the premier business jets in its class, the Gulfstream G280, was certified by the FAA in 2012 and is built by Israel Aerospace Industries, not far from where we are tonight.

The Civil Aviation Authority is a valuable partner to the FAA, and we were pleased to work with the Government of Israel during its efforts in 2011 to update its aviation law. Today, Israel enjoys a Category 1 safety rating – the highest possible under the FAA’s rating system.  We continue to work with the CAA, both directly and through international safety committees, to address the pressing issues that face this industry.

This afternoon, I visited Israel Aerospace Industries, where we engaged in constructive conversations about the strides the company has also made in the growing field of unmanned aircraft.

As you have probably seen, the subject of small, unmanned aircraft has consumed a great deal of the FAA’s time in recent months. We are working to implement regulations that will enable us to safely integrate this promising segment of aviation into the world’s busiest and most complicated airspace system.

Meanwhile, the industry itself is growing at a pace unlike anything we’ve seen since the dawn of the Jet Age.

We learn every day about new and creative uses for these aircraft, whether it’s to deliver packages or enable companies to accomplish tasks such as remotely monitoring miles of railroad or pipeline. 

At the same time, these small aircraft—we call them Unmanned Aircraft Systems, you call them Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, but the rest of the world knows them as drones – are becoming the latest craze among tech-savvy consumers.

Retailers estimate that as many as 400,000 small unmanned aircraft will be sold during the holiday season in the U.S.  Most will be piloted by operators who have little or no experience in aviation.

We have already had several hundred instances in the U.S. in which pilots have reported these small aircraft have come into close proximity to manned flights.  Many of them have been in airspace near airports, while a number have been at altitudes ranging from 1,500 feet to as high as 10,000 feet.

As you might imagine, we are working to eliminate the likelihood of an unfortunate incident or accident.  We are using every method at our disposal to engage these new aviators – and they are aviators.  As we do so, we value the advice and experience of our international partners here in Israel and elsewhere.  We recognize that we are all embarking together into yet another new age in the constantly changing world of aviation.

As regulators, airline operators and business leaders and aviators, we are constantly called upon to make flying even safer.  We have achieved an amazing track record together.

One of the most important factors in the worldwide aviation safety record is the free exchange of information. We realized in the late 1980s and early 1990s that the industry would need to focus on intense data analysis to detect risk and prevent accidents or incidents from occurring.

The industry adopted a wide array of programs that encouraged aviation professionals–be they pilots, flight attendants, mechanics or air traffic controllers–to voluntarily report safety events without jeopardizing their careers.

Airlines and government safety authorities around the world used that information to jointly develop new safety protocols. We improved not only training, but the technologies we rely on to keep us safe as we jet from place to place at almost the speed of sound.

As a result, we have all but eliminated the most common causes of commercial accidents – controlled flight into terrain, weather, wind shear and failure to complete checklists.  All told, our Commercial Aviation Safety Team reduced the risk of fatalities in U.S. commercial aviation by 83 percent over 10 years.

We continue to work through the world’s international safety organizations to make flying safer, no matter where the wheels touch down.  The path to success depends upon the free exchange of safety information and the willingness to always look for the next improvement.  We are pleased to join you on this journey.

Many people outside our industry probably aren’t aware of it, but some of the most valuable lessons about flying were learned in this part of the world.  Antoine de St. Exupery, known to many as the author of the children’s book, “The Little Prince,” was actually a pioneering aviator who spent much of his time flying the airmail throughout the Middle East.

He wrote an award-winning book, “Wind, Sand and Stars” in 1939, inspired by a plane crash that almost claimed the lives of St. Exupery and his navigator.

St. Exupery offered several observations about flying under trying conditions.  Back then, he was in open-cockpit biplanes.  Most often, those flights occurred at night.  Navigation was best accomplished by following the stars. As anyone who has spent any time in the desert knows, a sand dune in a sea of sand dunes makes a poor reference point.

He writes about the loneliness of the desert and the importance of friendship and of gaining new perspectives.  One of the more inspirational passages of the book includes this line:  “The airplane has unveiled for us the true face of the earth.”

I think that’s something on which we can all agree. These machines in which we fly from place to place to make money, to visit relatives or to see the wonders of the world, truly do force us to look beyond ourselves and our immediate surroundings.

As we have seen in recent weeks, no place in the world is immune from acts of terrorism. Whether it’s Paris, Baghdad, Nigeria, Colorado Springs, San Bernardino, Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, hardly a day goes by without some sort of senseless violence.

It is up to the people in this room – and across the international aviation industry –to take steps to guarantee our air transportation system is robust and reliable, no matter what lies over the horizon.

As I close, it occurs to me that the mission statement of the Peres Center for Peace—to “promote lasting peace and advancement in the Middle East by fostering tolerance, economic and technological development, innovation, cooperation and well-being”—is one that could apply across all borders and cultures.

I mentioned earlier that the U.S. and Israel are tied together by aviation.  The world is tied together by aviation. Because of this, we are all neighbors, separated only by time and distance.

Small Unmanned Aircraft Registration Rule Press Call

Thank you Secretary Foxx.

Safety is at the core of everything we do, and safely integrating unmanned aircraft into the National Airspace System is one of our top priorities.

For decades, the only people who had access to our airspace were highly trained pilots who came from a culture where safety was deeply embedded. But as the Secretary mentioned, thousands upon thousands of brand new users are starting to fly. While we’re confident that the vast majority of these people care about safety and want to operate safely, the reality is that most have little to no aviation experience.

So our challenge is to educate these new operators that as soon as they start flying, they’re pilots. They have the responsibility to fly safely. And there are rules and regulations that apply to them.

We’re working aggressively to spread our safety message to as many people as possible. This requires us to constantly evolve and be flexible in our approach, and ceaselessly search for new opportunities to educate this new generation of airspace users. The unmanned aircraft registry is a key step in this process.

Tomorrow marks a key milestone as we will publish the interim final registration rule in the Federal Register. The rule tracks closely with the recommendations of the task force. 

The rule will require registration of drones weighing between 250 grams – that’s a little more than half a pound – and 55 pounds. Registration will be simple: it will be done through a website that will go live next Monday, December 21st. After the initial 30-day free period, registration will cost $5 and it will be valid for three years.

Once the owner enters the required information, they will receive a registration certificate that they can print out. The certificate will include a registration number that must be marked on the aircraft. For model aircraft operators, there will be no limit to the number of aircraft that can be registered under that number. So they will only pay $5 once to register all of their model aircraft.

I want to take a moment here to thank the registration task force again for its work. The group provided us with thoughtful and comprehensive recommendations, and we incorporated the vast majority of them into the rule. We accepted the recommendations on minimum registration age and information that owners should be required to provide; we excluded unmanned aircraft weighing less than half a pound from the registration requirement; and we are allowing people to register multiple aircraft under one registration number.

As Secretary Foxx noted, education is a paramount goal here.  Registration provides us with an opportunity to educate unmanned aircraft users about how to operate safely. This means:

• Fly below 400 feet altitude.
• Keep your unmanned aircraft in sight at all times.
• Stay away from manned aircraft.
• Never fly over groups of people, stadiums or sporting events.
• And, when you want to fly within five miles of an airport, contact the airport or control tower beforehand.

We’re going to be pushing out information about the registry regularly through faa.gov and through Facebook and Twitter. We also are committed to working with our government, industry and model aircraft community partners to identify new opportunities to ensure that all new users are aware of the registration requirement and fly safely. We’re confident that, working together, we will succeed.

Remarks to ICAO

I always welcome the opportunity to speak to ICAO, but it’s a particular pleasure to do so in New Orleans, a city that has made a remarkable recovery from the tragedy that devastated it 10 years ago.

After Hurricane Katrina hit this city in 2005, most of the city was under water or cut off by floodwaters, including much of the central business district where we’re meeting.  The airport itself was closed to commercial traffic for more than two weeks, and it took a long time for airline flight schedules to return to their pre-Katrina levels.  In fact, it wasn’t until last year that passenger numbers surpassed the 2004 totals.

But New Orleans is back and vibrant and proud.  I might add, it is also a gateway to a number of Caribbean cruises and flights.  So it’s very appropriate that we meet in this city to discuss how we can improve aviation safety and efficiency throughout the region, particularly the eastern Caribbean.

While we're talking about the tragedy and recovery in New Orleans, I want to acknowledge that this group has not been without its trials.  Nearly six years ago, Rosemond James and Gregory McAlpin of the ECCAA lost their lives during the earthquake in Haiti.  We honor them and their legacy by continuing in their footsteps to increase aviation safety in the Eastern Caribbean." 

There’s no question that the Caribbean is enjoying remarkable growth in flights and passengers, particularly from the United States.  Last year, more than 7 million passengers who began their trips in the U.S. flew to the Caribbean. That’s more than any other international destination from the U.S. except for Europe – more than to Mexico, and about twice as many as go to Canada.

When Americans are looking to get away for a tropical escape, they look to Antigua, Barbados, the Cayman Islands and Puerto Rico, among others.  You may not have thought of “The Pirates of the Caribbean” movie as a travelogue, but it certainly showcased the beautiful islands, beaches and waters of the Caribbean.

Many Americans know that the last battle of our War of 1812 was fought only a few miles from here.  But few Americans know that the last battle of our Revolutionary War was fought on St. Kitts.  I know it, because I worked on a USAID project on St. Kitts and Nevis earlier in my career.  The people there make sure you know that fact. They also want you to know that one of our founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton, was born on Nevis.  I remember those facts.  I also remember that it’s a wonderful place.

While we think of the Caribbean as a major destination for vacationers, the region is also a major trading partner for the United States.  Having spent that time in the Eastern Caribbean, I can vouch for the strength of those economic ties.  We expect the amount of business conducted between the U.S. and the Caribbean nations to keep increasing.

For good reason, we think that passenger traffic between the United States and this region will outstrip growth in most other areas.  We expect air traffic in the Caribbean to grow 5 to 6 percent over the next two decades, second only to the Middle East in rate of growth among the various regions of the world.

All those passengers require a lot of airplanes to carry them.  We have more than 900,000 flights a year crisscrossing the seven adjacent flight information regions in the Central American and Caribbean region. Again, we can only expect that number to go up.

You may have seen Boeing’s prediction last month that airlines serving the Caribbean and Latin America will need to buy 3,050 new airplanes at a cost of $350 billion over the next 20 years.  While Airbus’ most recent projections are slightly less optimistic, the manufacturers agree that the Caribbean and Latin American will show healthy growth.  Many of these aircraft will be replacement airplanes, but maybe two thirds of those airplanes will be for growth.

For the manufacturers, of course, it means that the region will need a lot more airplanes.  For those in charge of handling all those flights like you and me, it means that we have to stay ahead of the growth to make sure we can safely and efficiently manage the additional air traffic.

We can probably agree that we’ve done a good job to this point, but we can always do better.  We are concerned about congestion and bottlenecks.  We are concerned about elevating safety.  It’s in the FAA’s interest as well as yours to resolve these issues.

That’s why we’re working together throughout the region to improve such areas as air traffic control, aerodrome safety and the other elements of aviation safety and efficiency.

In 2013, all of the members of ICAO’s North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACC) Region signed the Port of Spain Declaration in Trinidad.  The document set priorities for regional implementation of ICAO standards.  We’ve set the bar high; now we need to work together to push that implementation along.

Last month during a meeting of NACC Region directors general in Jamaica, the United States presented a working paper encouraging NACC states to take a fresh look at the regional performance targets in the Declaration and take actions to meet those goals.

We all should ask ourselves: What can we do by next year to make real progress on the goals?

That paper strongly encouraged the ICAO Council, through application of its “No Country Left Behind” initiative, to do what it can to help the region’s members.

In particular, it puts a priority on goals for aerodrome certification and air navigation improvements.  Those should be a major focus for us.

We’re focusing on aerodrome safety matters as we seek a safe airfield environment for aircraft.  Certificated airports have higher levels of oversight and thus higher levels of safety.  As part of that, we have to reduce the potential for runway excursions, for example.

The Port of Spain Declaration included a performance target to increase the number of certified aerodromes in the region to nearly half of the airports by the end of next year. We need to make more progress on reaching that goal, and the FAA is ready to assist.

In addition, the implementation of Aviation System Block Upgrade-related technologies and concepts has been slow in many areas.  The FAA manages a large portion of Caribbean airspace and we have had our own challenges implementing all the improvements that we and our air carrier stakeholders would like us to put into place.

But the key will be to ensure we are working together, coordinating across airspace boundaries and assisting each other where possible to provide users with a safe, seamless, and sustainable airspace in the Caribbean.

I spoke earlier about the effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans. The nations of the Caribbean are well aware of the impact of hurricanes. Airports there deal every year with hurricanes, as well as tropical storms and other highly variable weather that add to schedule uncertainties and delays.

The more we can work together, the better we can handle all the challenges that are thrown our way.  The FAA remains a strong advocate for the global implementation of Collaborative Decision-Making within an integrated Air Traffic Flow Management system.  The development of a regional network in collaboration with ICAO and industry partners would contribute to greater operational efficiency in the Caribbean Region.

If we can meet those goals, it will improve aviation on a system-wide basis throughout the region and, ultimately, contribute to a more effective global aviation system.

On all these matters, we look forward to our conversations about how we can move this process along.  From our standpoint, the status quo is not acceptable.  It is in none of our interests to say that we’ve done enough.  We owe it to the millions of people traveling to, from and within the Caribbean region to do what we can to make sure they get there safely and efficiently.

I want you to know that we at FAA are fully committed to work together with you to improve air traffic flow management and enhance safety throughout this important and growing region.  We want to partner with governments, authorities, and industry in the region to achieve these twin goals of raising safety levels and efficiency performance to the next level.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to welcome you to this Eastern Caribbean meeting.  We look forward to making progress on our common goals.  I hope you enjoy your time here.  However, most of all, I hope you leave with a shared commitment to work with us to make the Caribbean region an example in the aviation world of how partnership can raise the bar in safety and efficiency to the benefit of all our citizens.

Remarks to NBAA 2015

One of the best parts of my job is getting to travel the country and visit people like all of you. You may say you’re here because it’s your business. But I suspect for many of you, this is your business because flying is your passion.

Think about it: When you were a kid, did you ever imagine that you’d be where you are today, getting paid to be around airplanes and people who love them? We are truly fortunate, and I don’t think we can remind ourselves of this too often.

Like many of you, my fascination with flying started with my nose pressed against a chain link fence. My newspaper delivery route in my hometown in Southern California took me past the local airport, and I loved to stop and watch the takeoffs and landings.

Now, I always meant to get the paper delivered on time, but more than a few times my customers on the other side of the airport were wondering where the paper boy was. I had airplanes to watch.

It occurs to me as I look out on the audience that if anyone has any doubts about the strength of Business Aviation, all they would have to do is come to Las Vegas. You’ve filled all three halls of the convention center, and so many beautiful jets are on the ramp at Henderson that the locals must be wondering whether there’s a title bout this weekend.

It’s encouraging to see this segment of the aviation industry recovering economically after some rough years. A few months ago, I had a chance to visit a couple of manufacturers in Wichita, Kansas, where some amazing techniques and materials are being used to build the next generation of airplanes. It’s a testament to ingenuity and dedication that manufacturers have continued to innovate, making their aircraft not only more functional and comfortable, but safer as well.

While safety might be the FAA’s mandate, it is far from unilateral. The responsibility for our record of safety and consistency is shared by everyone who works in aviation – from manufacturer to mechanic, and from pilot to executive.

A day doesn’t go by that I don’t talk about collaboration, between the FAA and other agencies, with industry, with other countries – and perhaps most important of all, with the people here in this room who make aviation a daily part of their lives and livelihoods.

I recently spoke at the Aero Club of Washington, where I said that part of this industry’s DNA is a willingness to consider and embrace new ideas. We owe our present to those who came before us. They took a dream as old as humanity – of defying gravity, if only temporarily – and made it a daily reality.

They bestowed on us a responsibility to keep moving forward, to use aviation as a tool to make the world a better place – and to never let up in our quest to make flying safer and more efficient. I think our record speaks for itself. Aviation has never been safer.

But rather than congratulating ourselves, I have challenged the men and women of the FAA to reach into that same DNA to embrace new ways of thinking. I believe this is something that will be required as we continue to participate in the rapid changes occurring across the aviation landscape.

You are going to see this more nimble approach from the FAA in virtually every aspect of your dealings with us. We understand that in an industry where our customers have the ability to zip across the country at speeds of 500 knots or more, the FAA must respond in a timely manner while always keeping safety as our No. 1 priority.

As you know, the FAA is well into the rollout of NextGen, the wholesale modernization of the air traffic control system. Our critics – and, in some cases, our partners – have criticized the agency for moving too slowly. To some degree, this has been true in the past. But we’ve also been very intentional about getting it right.

I am happy to report to that we’ve made more progress than you might realize. Modern, GPS-based procedures now outnumber the old ground-based procedures. In major metropolitan areas around the country – including North Texas, Houston, and the Washington, D.C., area, just to name a few – we flipped the switch on hundreds of performance-based arrivals and departures.

System-wide, we’ve measured $1.6 billion in benefits to airlines and the traveling public from the NextGen capabilities we have already enabled. In the next 15 years, we estimate these changes alone will produce an additional $11.4 billion in benefits.

I’ll give you an example of how NextGen is affecting Business Aviation. When the FAA was looking for a partner to explore the potential benefits of data sharing and the future possibilities of NextGen, we were pleased when NetJets came to us with the idea of mining our NextGen data and taking on the analysis to help adjust their operations for greater efficiency.

In return, we get the results of those adjustments, plus feedback from the company’s fleet of 600-plus aircraft as they operate in the airspace every day. We have used some of this congestion data to mitigate traffic jams at smaller fields that cater to NBAA members.

Very soon, you will see additional improvements, such as takeoff and taxi clearances being delivered to the cockpit via text messaging. We’re calling it Data Comm, and it promises to ease congestion on our frequencies and reduce the potential for misunderstanding critical safety information. We have already deployed Data Comm in Newark, Memphis, Houston and Salt Lake City.

We’re on track to deliver Data Comm to more than 50 air traffic control towers and TRACONs in 2016, and we expect it will be in our large en route centers in 2019. It’s exciting stuff, and it’s going to make us all safer and more efficient.

It’s difficult to go more than five minutes inside the FAA anymore without somebody mentioning small, unmanned aircraft.

In fact, I think I just proved that point. It’s a subject that’s been on my mind lately.

Even a casual observer could look at the headlines in recent months and conclude that unmanned aircraft have become almost the definition of “disruptive technology.”  It’s our mission to make sure the disruption is the desirable type – in the sense that these small aircraft have tremendous potential for improving the way whole segments of the country do business.

Already, we are working with companies such as BNSF Railway in our Pathfinder research project to explore how unmanned aircraft can be used for such tasks as conducting aerial safety surveys of miles of railway lines through the most remote parts of the country. Meanwhile, insurance companies, real estate companies and local governments are putting unmanned aircraft to work in ways that previously were barely imaginable.

At the same time, we have seen a significant increase in reports from pilots who have reported unmanned aircraft flying in their vicinity. A number of these sightings have occurred on final approach to major airports, so close that controllers have been able to see the smaller aircraft from the airport control tower.

But we’ve also had a surprising number of sightings at altitudes of 5,000 and even 10,000 feet. In some cases, unmanned aircraft have interfered with emergency operations such as fighting wildfires or rescuing flood victims.

This is a troubling trend for us, for you and for the unmanned aircraft industry, particularly when one considers an estimated 700,000 new unmanned aircraft will be sold during the coming holiday season. Operators with little or no aviation experience will be at the controls of many of these aircraft. Many of these new aviators may not even be aware that their activities could be dangerous to other aircraft – or that they should even be considered aviators at all.

We are aggressively addressing this issue through a combination of education, outreach and, when necessary, enforcement.

We also are busy working on an unmanned aircraft registration system. A task force met two weeks ago to help determine what this system will look like. I expect the group to deliver its recommendations to me later this week.

In addition to promoting a sense of accountability among operators, we hope registration will instill a sense of responsibility and prompt owners to become more educated about safe flying. We believe a streamlined and easy registration process will also make it easier to find people who ignore the rules and operate unsafely.

I look forward to sharing more information with you and the public as we continue this important task of safely and quickly integrating these aircraft into our airspace.

I mentioned a couple of minutes ago about my experiences as a youngster and when I caught the aviation bug. I think these stories are important, and we should all share them as often as possible. We must continue to inspire young people – and young women, in particular – to pursue careers in aviation.

I want to leave you with a story about a girl named Katie, whose father is a pilot. She loved aviation as a child. She was one of the kids with her nose pressed to the chain link fence. All she could talk about was becoming a pilot.

But, as it happens so often to all of us, the realities and pressures of life intervened, and she took what she thought was the safe path. She decided to become a teacher, which is a noble calling. But it wasn’t her dream.

I’m happy to say the story doesn’t end there. At age 28, she listened to her heart and left the classroom to become a different kind of example to the third-graders she was teaching. She applied to the U.S. Air Force Academy and was accepted.

Over the next couple of years, friends and relatives rejoiced with her as she posted photos on her Facebook page, marking each milestone as she progressed from initial flight training to more and more complex aircraft.

One of her most recent photos is of her standing with a crewmate in front of her new ride, A KC-135 tanker. Her smile is something to behold.

It’s something that should be replicated in as many communities as possible across this great nation. I urge you to share your stories, to take the time to foster our young people’s dreams.

This is Las Vegas, and very few things that can ever be called a truly safe bet. But, from what I see here in the halls today, and the fleet of aircraft on display at the airport, I am certain that aviation continues to have a bright future.

Once again, thanks to the NBAA – and to all of you – for all you do for aviation. I wish you all the best of success at this year’s convention.

Safety and Security in the Air Cargo Industry

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

It’s always a pleasure to address ALPA, and I want to commend you for hosting a symposium on such an important topic.

Freight movement is essential to the health of the American economy, and aviation plays an essential role. U.S. airlines moved more than 23 million tons of freight around the world last year.

Today’s conference is tackling a number of pressing issues for the air cargo industry – from mitigating operational risks and human performance factors, to assessing infrastructure needs and safely transporting hazardous materials.

These are issues we obviously spend a lot of time thinking about at the Federal Aviation Administration as well. So today, I’d like to update you on some of the work we’re doing, and then I’ll be happy to answer a few questions.

First, I’d like to provide a brief update on NextGen.

As you know, NextGen is using innovative technologies and procedures to make flying safer, greener, and more efficient.

The air cargo industry has always been an important partner to the FAA as we’ve introduced NextGen capabilities, which makes sense –in businesses like yours, minutes count when customers are relying on your service.

I’m happy to report that the FAA has made tremendous progress in building the infrastructure that supports NextGen this year. NextGen is now delivering measurable benefits to consumers and aviation stakeholders across the country.

En Route Automation Modernization, or ERAM, is now installed and operational at all 20 of our planned en route control centers. ERAM is a faster computer platform that replaces our legacy system, which had its roots in the 1960s. It gives us a much bigger, richer picture of our nation’s air traffic –and allows controllers to better manage flights from gate to gate.

ERAM is also extremely reliable. It has been available more than 99.99 percent of the time since we completed the nationwide installation. On the very rare occasion equipment is unexpectedly out of service, we're able to quickly respond using backup systems and procedures.

The benefits of ERAM can’t be understated – particularly since it enables many other critical NextGen systems. ERAM links seamlessly with Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast, or ADS-B, to provide more accurate, satellite-based aircraft positions.

Last year, we finished the coast-to-coast installation of ADS-B, and ADS-B is now integrated at all of our en route centers.

ADS-B provides real safety benefits for pilots. It allows air traffic controllers to pinpoint aircraft with far greater accuracy – which is especially important in areas where radar coverage is limited. ADS-B also provides free weather and traffic updates that help pilots make better-informed decisions in the cockpit.

The full benefits of ADS-B require 100 percent equipage for aircraft flying in the designated airspace, and the FAA is committed to working with our stakeholders to ensure all aircraft are equipped with ADS-B out the January 1, 2020 deadline. Since our Call to Action last year, the number of equipped aircraft has more than doubled. Thanks to falling equipment costs, we expect to see equipage rates continue to rise.

Data Communications is another technology the FAA is using to modernize our airspace and make every phase of flight more efficient. It gives air traffic controllers and pilots the ability to transmit flight plans and other essential messages more efficiently than with today’s voice communications capabilities.

This switch from voice to text increases safety by reducing the chance of a read-back error while relaying information. It also allows controllers to send text instructions to several aircraft at once – a much more accurate and efficient process than having a number of serial conversations.

It’s not hard to see the benefits of this technology and in many aspects it sells itself. Carriers stay on schedule, planes get into the air and to their destinations more quickly, and packages get delivered on time.

In September, we started using Data Comm at three key site towers: Salt Lake City, and the major airports located in Houston. These sites are in addition to the highly successful trials we rolled out in Newark and Memphis. These trials wouldn’t have been possible without our partners in the cargo industry, including UPS and FedEx, and we are grateful for their support because we learned a lot pre-departure capabilities to save time and learn whether the system was doing what it was designed to do.

In 2016, we’re aiming to build on this momentum with an accelerated schedule that will deliver Data Comm services to more than 50 additional air traffic control towers.

Data Comm is just one example of the FAA’s larger shift toward reducing risk in our national aviation system.

Aviation has long been on the forefront of this kind of thinking in transportation – how we identify and mitigate risk –it’s unquestionably the future of our industry.

The FAA is embedding risk-based decision-making into every level of our business. When I became Administrator, I made this one of our top priorities. Risk management is critical to our mission of providing the safest and the most efficient aerospace system in the world. 

Twenty years ago, we and the industry operated under the philosophy that 100 percent compliance with safety regulations equaled 100 percent safety. What we all realized, however, this didn’t go far enough.  Not all safety issues are regulated, and several incidents in the 1990s led us as in industry to rethink this approach.

We knew that, as aviation became safer, we’d have less accident data to guide our efforts. We needed to focus in a forward thinking way of identifying areas of risk – and mitigating them before an incident occurred.

Thanks to our collaboration with airlines, manufacturers, labor, and others under the Commercial Aviation Safety Team, we reduced the risk of fatal commercial accidents by 83 percent between 1998 and 2008 –a stunning success – and since then we’ve continued to build on that accomplishment.

An important factor contributing to our ongoing improvement is the widespread adoption of Safety Management Systems.

The FAA finalized a rule this year requiring most U.S. commercial carriers to have Safety Management Systems in place by 2018. What this does is codifies the risk-based decision-making process that we’ve developed cooperatively with industry over the last decade-and-a half. It also puts us in line with internationally recognized safety best practices to ensure the highest levels of safety.

Additionally, this rule strengthens the safety partnership between industry and the FAA. We wanted to formalize what many carriers are already doing voluntarily basis, and bring those who aren’t already involved on board. 

When I talk about this evolution to using Safety Management Systems, what I want to emphasize is: this isn’t about the FAA stepping back from its regulatory role. It’s about creating a stronger, voluntary safety culture across the industry that will help us get us collectively to the next level of safety.

This is particularly important for cargo carriers, which have to contend with unique risks that aren’t as prevalent in passenger operations. Cargo operators are often flying at night, and may be transporting hazardous materials.

These types of operations require greater risk mitigations that sometimes go above and beyond what may be required in regulation.

For example, ALPA has joined the FAA in encouraging cargo operators to voluntarily adopt our Part 117 regulations for flight and duty rules. We hope to see carriers voluntarily put these standards in place to ensure pilots are well-rested for flight.

Partnership between government and industry is also important as we look to tackle emerging safety risks, like the transportation of lithium batteries.

We know what an incredibly complicated issue this is. Battery manufacturers around the world have products they need to get to market. It’s our job to work together and find ways to make sure that happens safely.

At the FAA, our actions are always grounded in data. Our Technical Center, under the leadership of Gus Sarkos, has done extensive research and testing that’s demonstrated the dangers associated with transporting lithium batteries.

Based on these findings, we recently recommended that ICAO adopt international standards that would ban the shipment of lithium ion batteries as cargo on passenger airliners until safe transport conditions can be developed and implemented.

While we were unable to come to an agreement on a ban in this round of talks, we continue to look for ways to mitigate the risks of battery fires in both passenger and cargo operations.

The ICAO Dangerous Goods Panel was able to reach consensus on implementing several key measures that will improve safety, including shipping batteries with a reduced state of charge. We’re very committed to working with our global partners to set transport standards that could reduce the risk of fires, such as improving packaging standards for air transportation. We also support better hazard communication so that pilots know what they’re carrying on board and can make better decisions in case of an incident.

As part of this overall shift to risk-based decision-making, our approach to compliance is evolving as well.

I recently announced the FAA’s new Compliance Philosophy, which cements what much of the agency has been doing for quite some time.

The goal is to find problems before they result in an incident, use the most appropriate tools to fix those problems, and monitor the situation to ensure they stay fixed.

This approach is based on an open and transparent exchange of information and data between the FAA and industry. We want to have safe operators, not operators who make an inadvertent mistake and choose to hide it because they're afraid of some retaliation.

If there is a failing, whether human or mechanical, we want to know about it, learn from it, and we need to make the changes necessary to prevent it from happening again.

This doesn't mean we’re going to go easy on compliance with important safety standards, or ignore minor issues, or let anyone believe they have a free pass. We'll have to continue to have zero tolerance for intentionally reckless behavior, repeat failures, or deviation from regulatory standards. We will vigorously pursue enforcement action in these circumstances and others as required by law.

In cases where we find flawed procedures, simple mistakes, a lack of understanding, or diminished skills, we will use tools like training or documented improvements to attain compliance.

There’s an important difference between accountability –which accepts responsibility and looks forward – and blame, which focuses on punishment for what’s already happened. The Compliance Philosophy is about accountability. It recognizes that all aviation stakeholders have a vested interest in the safety of our system.

I’d also like to briefly update you today on the actions the FAA is taking in one of the fastest changing areas of the aviation industry: unmanned aircraft.

The popularity of unmanned aircraft has increased dramatically in recent years. With this popularity has come, for all of us, growing concerns about the safe operations of these aircraft in our nation’s airspace.

In recent months, we’ve seen an increase in reports of unmanned aircraft coming too close to manned aircraft and airports. We've all read the stories about how they interfered with wildfire fighting in California, and one crashed into a stadium during a U.S. Open tennis match.

These incidents make it clear we must work harder to make sure a strong culture of safety and responsibility exists. There’s no single solution to how we do this. The integration of unmanned aircraft is multi-faceted, and our approach must be as nimble as the technology is itself.

One tool we’re using is registration. Transportation Secretary Foxx and I recently announced that the FAA is going to require operators to register their unmanned aircraft. The details are being worked out by a task force of government and industry stakeholders who will deliver their recommendations to us by November 20^th.

Registration will give us an opportunity to educate operators about airspace rules so they can use their unmanned aircraft and use it safely. It will also help us more easily identify and take enforcement actions against people who don’t obey the rules or choose not to operate safely.

Registration is an important step forward, but it's not the whole solution. Education also plays an extremely important role. The FAA, with its government and industry partners, continues to conduct outreach through the Know Before You Fly and No Drone Zone campaigns, making users aware of where they can and cannot fly.

For those who don’t follow the rules, we need to continue our enforcement efforts.

Last month, the FAA proposed a $1.9 million civil penalty against a company that knowingly conducted dozens of unauthorized flights over Chicago and New York despite warnings that this was not permitted.

This sends a clear message to others who might pose a safety risk: Operate within the law or we will take action.

As registration, education, and enforcement focus on enhancing safety around commercial and recreational use of unmanned aircraft, we’re also working to put in place a regulatory framework that keeps pace with commercial uses.

Earlier this year, we proposed a rule that would allow small unmanned aircraft operations we know to be safe, and we plan to finalize it by late spring.

While that work is ongoing, we’re using our authority to accommodate requests for commercial operations. To date, we’ve approved more than 2,200 exemptions that allow unmanned aircraft to be used for a variety of purposes, from inspecting aging infrastructure to monitoring crops and wildlife.

Finally, I want to address a topic on everyone’s mind and that's reauthorization of the FAA.

As you all know, Congress passed a six-month extension of the FAA’s authority last month. This buys Congress some time to enact a longer-term bill.

Discussions are likely to continue about the structure of the FAA and our air traffic operations. We’re open to having those conversations, but we must ensure that any potential changes provide long-term, stable funding for our air traffic operations and help us to maintain the safest airspace system in the world.

I am hopeful we will avoid returning to the days before our 2012 reauthorization, when we had 23 short-term extensions. We need a long-term bill that will provide stable, reliable funding for the critical projects we’re supporting and help us maintain America’s role as a global aviation leader.

We are going to continue to push for a long-term reauthorization bill, and we hope you will join us.

Before I conclude my remarks, let me leave you with this.

Today's symposium is covering a lot of different topics. But one idea is at the heart of all of them: how do we ensure the highest levels of safety.

I believe there’s never going to be a day when our aviation system is safe “enough.”  There’s always more we can do. In fact, the Commercial Aviation Safety Team has set another ambitious goal –to further reduce the risk of fatal accidents by an additional 50 percent by 2025.

If we’re going to accomplish this goal, government and industry must continue to work together.

That’s the value of meetings like this one. It gives the opportunity to come together so we can have spirited debates and find new and better ways to support the safest aviation system in the world.

Thank you for inviting me to be here today. I’m happy to take some of your questions.