AVIA 3113 Chapter 1

Legal Philosophy

'I believe you find life such a problem because you think there are the good people and the bad people,' said the man [Vetinari]. 'You are wrong, of course. There are, always and only, the bad people, but some of them are on opposite sides.'

Trans Security Administration

2 months after 9-11, Congress enacted the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001, creating the TSA. Originally under the DoT, it has since been made a part of the Department of Homeland Security. Previously, operators of airports provided their own security. Now, TSA has taken over the security measures at airports.

Depart. of Homeland Security

24 federal agencies were brought under the Depart. of Homeland Security to protect against terrorist acts. Notable examples are the Secret Service, the Coast Guard, U.S. Customs Service, Immigration & Naturalization Service, TSA and the Plum Island Animal Disease Center.

Federal Aviation Administration

Congress made the FAA the agency primarily responsible for the regulation of aviation safety in the U.S. The FAA Administrator is the head of this agency and is appointed for a 5 year term.

Dept. of Transportation

DoT agencies having jurisdiction over various aspects of transportation include the Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Highway Administration, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Urban Mass Transportation Association, Maritime Association and St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.

Preemption

Federal regulations now prohibit all states (except Alaska) from regulating federally certificated airlines.

Cartography

Responsibility for production of government aeronautical charts was transferred from the Dept. of Commerce's National Ocean Service to the FAA's National Aeronautic Charting Service.

Flight Schools

The Aviation and Transportation Security Act was originally assigned responsibility for screening all aliens applying for training at U.S. Flight Schools. The DHS now limits foreign students to training on a/c with a max certified gross takeoff weight of 12,500 pounds.

Foreign Air Carrier Permits

The DoT issues foreign air carrier permits to foreign airlines who wish to provide services to the U.S. by treaty. The DoT consults with the State Department in the approval process. Permit issuance requires Presidential approval. The President may disapprove of a carrier only for foreign relations or national security reasons.

FAA Certification

The FAA certifies flight crew members including pilots, flight engineers, navigators, and ground support such as air traffic controllers, aircraft dispatchers, aviation maintenance technicians and repair specialists, repair stations, inspectors and parachute riggers. In addition to obtaining an operating certificate, each flight crew member, and air traffic controller must obtain a medical certificate from the FAA.

Investigation

The FAA investigates virtually all civil a/c accidents in the U.S. The NTSB has exclusive authority to make the federal government's official finding of the probable cause of a civil a/c accident. The Final report is called The Blue Book and is not admissible in civil lawsuits.

FAA Registration

The FAA operates a centralized registry for all civil a/c (and engines larger than 750 HP) at the FAA Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City. The files include the entire history of the a/c ownership and other legal interests in the a/c. All U.S. civilian a/c carry an"N" number signifying U.S. registry.

FAA Regulation

The FAA regulates aviation safety and to some extent (along with municipalities and the EPA) aircraft noise. The laws issued by the FAA are the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) and are found in Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations. The FAA has sole regulatory authority over suborbital spacecraft authorized under the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act of 2004.

ICAO

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is an organ of the U.N. headquartered in Montreal. It began in late 1944 at the Chicago Convention. It has at least 185 member nations. ICAO adopted technical Standards, and Recommend Practices (SARP's) are published in Annexes.

NTSB

The National Transportation Safety has the primary responsibility to investigate transportation accidents, determine the "probable cause" of the accident and to recommend appropriate measures to prevent such accidents in the future. Even if the FAA investigates the accident, the NTSB makes the official finding of probable cause.

Trans Sec Oversight Board

The Transportation Security Oversight Board is a high level panel comprised of the Secretaries of Homeland Security, Transportation, Defense, and Treasury; the Attorney General, the CIA director and a Presidential appointee representing the National Security Counsel. The TSOB was made responsible for the coordination and sharing of intelligence relating to all threats against transportation.

Air-Traffic Control

The system includes en route Air Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC) and Flight Service Stations (FSS). The FAA also operates a vast network of radio aids to navigation including radio beacons for guiding a/c over distance (such as VOR and VORTAC as well as landing systems such as ILS and MLS).

Funding

Under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) the FAA distributes federal matching funds for the construction of new airports, the improvement of existing airports and related airport planning.

Secure Flight

Under the Secure Flight Program, a "watch list" of known terrorist is used to identify those who should be prevented from boarding (the No Fly list) and those who should be required to undergo additional security scrutiny (the Selectee List).