FlightCentral

July 9-The FAA is issuing an Airworthiness Directive (AD) that requires operators of Boeing 757, 767, and 777 airplanes to either inspect or replace certain flight deck windows. The AD only affects the forward viewing windows, not the side windows.

Operators have two options: Begin inspections within 500 flight hours and then continue at intervals that are specific for each of two window designs OR install a new, redesigned window. The inspection takes about an hour.

The AD is aimed at preventing smoke, fire or cracking of the inner layer of the forward viewing window caused by loose electrical connections that are used to heat the window to prevent ice.

Over the past two decades, there have been 11 reports of fire or flames on 757 (five events), 767 (three events), and 777 (three events) airplanes. Improper installation resulted in loose, improperly torqued or cross threaded screws that can contribute to overheating and arcing. The most recent incident was a May 16, 2010 emergency landing by a United 757 at Dulles International Airport.

The FAA proposed the AD in March 2008. The agency received extensive comments and determined additional 757 service information was needed from Boeing. That in-depth review identified unique issues on the upper electrical connections on 757s which will be addressed in a separate AD so as not to hold up the fix for the lower electrical connector issue which constitutes the majority of the service problems identified to date. Although there have been no fire events on 747s, the FAA plans to propose an AD this fall since those later model airplane windows are similar.
This AD affects 1,212 U.S. airplanes out of 2,619 worldwide. The estimated cost for the inspections is $103,020 total for U.S. operators. The window replacement is optional and would be an additional cost.

The AD is on display today at the Federal Today at http://www.ofr.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2010-17046_PI.pdf. It will be published on Tuesday, July 13, at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html.

July 8 - There is little more important to pilots than being up to speed on weather. FAA Safety Briefing dedicates its July/August 2010 issue to this crucial safety topic. Articles address obtaining and interpreting weather data, developing strategies for avoiding marginal or hazardous weather, and what services ATC can, and cannot, provide in adverse conditions.

In her article, "The Whither and Whether of Flying in Weather," FAA Safety Briefing editor Susan Parson discusses how to fine tune your weather knowledge and build a framework for sound go, no-go decisions in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). "Part of being proficient and safe in IMC is knowing and adhering to your individual personal minimums," says Parson. "One way to approach this is to consider how comfortable you are in each of the different basic weather categories in aviation - VFR, marginal VFR, IFR, and low IFR."

Check out the July/August issue at www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/.

WASHINGTON - The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing a $168,000 civil penalty against D & M Custom Injection Molding Corp. of Burlington, Ill., doing business as D & M Plastics, for alleged violations of Department of Transportation hazardous materials regulations.

D & M offered a five-piece shipment of approximately 2,000 Runyan Rapp E-Mysticks smokeless cigarettes to Federal Express for transportation by air from Indianapolis to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Aug. 14, 2009. Each smokeless cigarette contained alcohol, a flammable liquid, and a lithium battery, a hazardous material. Each box contained 400 E-Mysticks, including 7.6 kilograms of lithium batteries, exceeding the five-kilogram limit for shipment aboard passenger aircraft. Because the shipment was not packaged in accordance with regulations it was forbidden on all aircraft, including all-cargo flights.

As the flight approached Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, the FedEx flight crew received a fire warning on the instrument panel. The crew discharged the fire suppression system during the landing and taxied to the gate. The airport fire department responded and extinguished a fire in an LD3 cargo container. The fire was started by the lithium batteries in the shipment.

D & M offered the shipment for transportation by air when it was not packaged, marked, classed, described, labeled or in condition for shipment as required by regulations.

D&M has 30 days from receipt of the FAA letter to respond to the agency.

July 6 - The FAA has reached an agreement with Georgia Tech to research how the increased sophistication on the flight deck under the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) will affect flight crewmembers and controllers. The agreement is the first of several the FAA expects to announce in the coming months with universities that specialize in aviation-related human factors research. For the FAA, the work will be conducted by the Human Factors Research and Engineering Group, which is part of the Research and Technology Development Office.

Amy Pritchett, an associate professor in Georgia Tech's School of Aerospace Engineering, will lead a study of pilot response to alerts from the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) under NextGen. TCAS warns pilots about potential mid-air collisions and gives specific instructions on evasive action to both pilots. Pritchett's team will examine how pilots should respond to these alerts in the future, when the increased safety and efficiency that comes with NextGen's satellite-based technologies means that aircraft may be operating closer together.

Frank Durso, an Engineering Psychology professor, will lead a team exploring how flight crews and controllers interact with automation. Specifically, Durso's team will focus on how roles will evolve with NextGen technology. Durso will first lay the groundwork by examining how pilots and controllers work with today's automation. His team will then see how pilots and controllers in the future can use automation to manage their workloads and to improve their situational awareness and performance. Research results will also help FAA develop guidance for aviation safety oversight of NextGen operations.

Georgia Tech, which has conducted important aviation-related human factors research for the FAA and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, was chosen after the FAA conducted a thorough market survey of schools with expertise in this area. In addition to an outstanding staff and students, the school has a wide range of aviation research capabilities including air traffic control simulators and an Airbus flight deck simulator.

The research done by Georgia Tech will be shared with the public through presentations of research findings at national and international symposia in order to foster a broad understanding of how NextGen will enhance the ability of pilots and controllers to effectively use new technologies and procedures.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has selected Stewart International Airport, in Newburg, NY and Sacramento Mather Field Airport in Sacramento, CA, to participate in the 2010 Military Airport Program (MAP), which uses federal funds to convert former military airports to civilian or joint-use airports. The MAP funding, a set aside of the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), provides a boost to civilian aviation capacity by upgrading former military airports.

The airports selected this year have participated in the program before and remain committed to ensuring that critical airports projects are completed so their respective airports can operate safely and efficiently as civilian or joint military-civilian use facilities.

Stewart International Airport, a commercial service airport, will participate in the program for only one year. The MAP funds will allow the airport sponsor to complete the replacement of the aging former Air Force airfield power circuit. The existing cable is old and unreliable, and the replacement of this cable, along with those projects already completed, will bring the airport to current civil design standards.

Sacramento Mather Field Airport, a commercial service airport, will receive funds for an additional three years to complete more projects. The projects to be completed include the demolition and paving of former military fueling pits, removal of the military pavement markings and restriping of the cargo apron, and demolition of former Air Force buildings that have no civilian use.

The MAP funding set aside for fiscal year 2010 is approximately $27 million. The type of projects that compete for MAP funding include building or rehabilitating parking lots, fuel farms, hangars, utility systems, access roads, and cargo buildings.

Background

A total of 15 airports may participate in the program at any one time, including one general aviation airport. Airports may be selected or reselected to receive financial assistance for up to five years.

Since 1990, the FAA has provided airport sponsors approximately $587 million for a variety of projects such as building or rehabilitating surface parking lots, fuel farms, hangars, utility systems, access roads, and cargo buildings. Many of these projects are not normally eligible for AIP funding, but projects for MAP-designated airports have unique eligibility rules to convert the airports to civilian or joint use.

Airports already participating in the program include:

• Plattsburgh International Airport, Plattsburgh, NY
• Jose Aponte de la Torre Airport at Roosevelt Roads, Ceiba, PR
• Griffiss Airpark, Oneida County, NY
• Okaloosa Regional Airport, Valparaiso, FL
• March inland Port, Riverside, CA
• Chippewa County International, Sault Ste Marie, MI
• A.B.Won Pat International Airport, Agana, GU.
• Alexandria International Airport, Alexandria, LA
• Phoenix/Mesa Gateway, Mesa, AZ

July 1-The FAA announced today a number of changes to the restrictions governing the Special Flight Rules Area surrounding the nation's capitol, effective September 1.

The most significant change will affect pilots who lose radio contact with controllers while flying under visual flight rules after departing from an airport located within the Special Flight Rules Area (a circle of airspace extending 30 miles out from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport). Under the current rules, those pilots must squawk 7600 on their transponders and immediately leave the Special Flight Rules Area by the most direct route. The new rule will allow pilots to return to their departure airport if it is closer than the Special Flight Rules Area boundary. This means pilots might not have to fly longer distances to airports outside the Special Flight Rules Area. Pilots who lose radio contact after departing from an airport located within the Flight Restricted Zone (an inner ring extending 15 miles out from National Airport) may return to that airport if it is within five nautical miles. If neither condition applies, pilots must leave the Special Flight Rules Area by the most direct route.

To improve safety, the FAA added a speed limit of 180 knots within the Special Flight Rules Area for aircraft flying under visual flight rules. This will complement the existing 230 knot speed limit for aircraft flying under visual flight rules in airspace extending 30 miles beyond the outer ring of the Special Flight Rules Area.

The agency made several clarifications to make it easier for pilots to file flight plans and understand radio requirements. The FAA added a phone number (866-225-7410) for pilots to call to file flight plans for the Flight Restricted Zone. Pilots will be asked to use their confidential pilot identification codes or their waiver numbers.

The FAA also clarified that aircraft flying within the Special Flight Rules Area must be equipped with a functioning two-way radio capable of communicating with controllers on the appropriate frequencies or UNICOM. The agency strongly recommends that pilots continuously monitor VHF frequency 121.5 or UHF frequency 243.0 for emergency instructions while flying in the Special Flight Rules Area.

To view the Notices to Airmen regarding these changes, see http://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_0_9477.html and http://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_0_9463.html.

WASHINGTON - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing civil penalties totaling $422,500 against two Indian companies for violation of U.S. Department of Transportation hazardous materials regulations.

The FAA alleged that IIS & Allied Services, and its freight forwarder, Gallant Freight & Travels Private, Limited of Mumbai, India, offered a shipment containing depleted uranium, a radioactive material, to British Airways for air transport from Mumbai to Boston, June 7, 2008, without declaring the hazardous nature of its contents. The shipment flew as cargo on a passenger-carrying flight. British Airways employees at its cargo center in Boston discovered the radioactive material June 16 when the bottom of the outer packaging failed and separated from the rest of the crate.

The companies allegedly offered the hazardous material for transportation when it was not packaged, marked, classed, described, labeled or in condition for shipment as required by regulations. Radioactive materials, with some exceptions, may not be shipped as cargo aboard passenger aircraft.

The proposed civil penalty for IIS & Allied Services is $227,500; and for Gallant Freight, $195,000.

IIS and Gallant have 30 days from receipt of the FAA letters to respond to the agency.

WASHINGTON - The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing $2,476,075 in civil penalties against Trans States Airlines and GoJet Airlines of Bridgeton, Mo., for violation of various maintenance procedures and operating nine jets on 320 revenue passenger flights when the aircraft were not in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulations.

Trans States Airlines and GoJet Airlines are both owned and operated by Trans States Holdings. Trans States Airlines performs maintenance and training on GoJet aircraft.

The proposed civil penalties involve seven GoJet+ Canadair Regional Jets and two Trans States Embraer 145 regional jets. The FAA alleges Trans States and GoJet operated aircraft when maintenance had been carried out incorrectly, and that the company failed to complete required maintenance record-keeping.

The FAA alleges Trans States and GoJet violated a number of maintenance regulations and procedures, including use of outdated manufacturers' maintenance instructions to perform repairs; failure to connect a wing flap actuator to its torque tube, rendering the flaps inoperative; failure to document an inspection after an aircraft was damaged by severe turbulence; failure to document and carry out proper repairs after aircraft warning systems identified problems; improper repair of an engine oil leak and failure to comply with minimum equipment list regulations.

"Air carriers cannot ignore maintenance requirements or allow employees to take a pass on following regulations," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. "Safety depends not only on maintenance work being done correctly, but also being recorded properly."

Trans States and GoJet have 30 days from receipt of the civil penalty letters to respond to the agency.

New proposed rules would boost safety standards for the toughest icing conditions.

Chairman Ortiz, Congressman Forbes, Members of the Subcommittee:

Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. My name is Nancy Kalinowski and I am the Vice President of System Operations Services for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). In that capacity, I am charged with overseeing the process by which we evaluate the impact of proposed construction on the navigable airspace. Any proposed structure that could potentially interfere with navigable airspace must be evaluated by my office. The evaluation results in an agency finding of whether the proposed structure is a hazard for air navigation. During the evaluation, our Obstruction Evaluation Services office works with the individual or entity that submits the proposal, as well as other interested FAA offices and government agencies, as required. In recent years, as the need for alternative energy has become a major focus of government and industry, the volume of proposed wind turbines submitted to the FAA for review has increased dramatically. As such, it is certainly fitting to discuss how we review these proposals to understand the process and evaluate potential improvements.

The FAA is vested with broad authority to manage the navigable airspace and develop plans and policies for its use. Whether by regulation or agency order, the FAA ensures the safety of aircraft and efficient use of the airspace. Navigable airspace is a limited national resource and the FAA's primary mission in this context is to preserve that resource for aviation; however, we are also called upon to negotiate equitable solutions to conflicts over the use of the airspace for non-aviation purposes. There is a statutory requirement that a person or entity (a "proponent") give adequate public notice of the construction, alteration, establishment or extension of any structure when such notice would ensure the safety of air commerce as well as the efficient use and preservation of navigable airspace and/or airport capacity. Generally, public notice is required if the structure is more than 200 feet in height above ground level, near or on an airport (military or public use) or heliport, or if such a notice is specifically requested by the FAA. The notice provides the FAA with the opportunity to identify the potential aeronautical hazards to minimize any adverse affects to aviation. It is the proponent's responsibility to propose mitigation in response to identified hazards. If the FAA can take action to address the hazard, that action can be part of the mitigation plan, but the cost of mitigation, including upgrading navigational aids, if required, is borne by the proponent. Mitigating actions could also include revising published data or issuing a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) to alert pilots to airspace or procedural changes made because of a structure. In addition, mitigation could include recommending appropriate markings and lighting to make the structure visible to pilots or depicting structures on aeronautical charts to inform pilots and improve safety.

Structures that require notice may include buildings to antenna towers - essentially anything that meets the criteria noted above. This would include wind turbines and the new generation of wind turbine generators, which can be more than 400 feet in height and have blades that spin up to 200 miles per hour. Each wind turbine is evaluated separately, but the cumulative effect of the wind turbines on navigable airspace will obviously be more significant based on the total number of turbines grouped together. The number of wind turbine cases handled by the FAA has increased from 3,030 in 2004 to 25,618 last year. To date in 2010, we have 18,685 wind turbine cases. One concern that the wind turbines raise is that the blade tips rotate above the radar, thus affecting the capability of the target to be received on the radar equipment. Additionally, they reflect radio waves, and exceed the line of sight protection criteria. To give you an idea of the impact of wind turbines on long range radar, there is a radar cross section spectrum that identifies how clearly a range of objects are picked up on the radar. Insects and birds are at the low end. Conventional cruise missiles are in the mid range. Most aircraft are a little higher in the spectrum, with large aircraft (e.g., a Boeing 747) and the space shuttle at the highest end of the spectrum. Wind turbine blades spinning, in some instances, at more than 200 miles per hour are picked up by radars with a signal strength greater than a Boeing 747. Because the radar repeatedly sees this large return, the radar will not pick up actual aircraft in the same area.

The clutter that is created by wind turbines can result in a complete loss of primary radar detection above a wind farm. When that clutter occurs, it appears at all altitudes, so simply directing the aircraft to a different altitude does not solve the problem. Similarly, on the Next Generation Weather Radar (NEXRAD), wind farm activity looks remarkably like storm activity, thus complicating the communication of precise weather information by controllers to pilots. (Wind turbine impacts on NEXRAD, which are owned and operated by the National Oceanic and Atomospheric Administration, are not currently considered in FAA's evaluation process.) Existing FAA radars have limited capability to filter out clutter. The radar can be modified by increasing the sensitivity to reduce clutter from the wind turbines, but in doing so, what the radar can see is also reduced, to the point where actual aircraft targets can drop off. Consequently, there are real and significant issues that must be evaluated by the government prior to the approval of wind turbines.

Although not an issue of consideration in the evaluation process, another issue of some concern is that there is competition for the land which both the radars and the wind turbines need to occupy. Lease holders who currently have primary radars are now being offered substantial financial incentives not to renew their leases with the FAA and instead, lease to companies that want to install wind turbines. This puts the FAA in the undesirable position of having to condemn property at fair market value to avoid losing the use of the navigational aid. The call for the FAA to simply move its radars to accommodate requests to install wind turbines fails to take into account that this is not a realistic option for a number of reasons. The FAA cannot take down a radar without an unacceptable loss of coverage. Even assuming an acceptable, alternate site could be identified, the radar could not simply be moved. Rather, a new radar would have to be installed at the new location. The reality is that the FAA does not have extra radars available for replacement and there are no spare long range radars. Even if a new radar were available, moving the radar site would require changes to the national airspace system. Airways, reporting points, and airspace fixes are parts of the airspace system that could be impacted. Depending on the situation, such changes could require regulatory action. The bottom line is that moving radars around the country is a costly, disruptive, unacceptable, and unworkable proposition. It may sound simple, but in fact, it is not something the FAA can accommodate or the taxpayers can afford.

So having set forth the complexity and concerns of locating wind turbines near primary radars, let me now turn to how we attempt to strike the balance between the need for an uninterrupted radar signal and the clean energy that wind turbines supply. The current regulatory requirement is that the proponents must file notice with the FAA as early in the planning process as possible, but no later than 30 days prior to the date the proposed construction is expected to begin. The 30 day timeframe has been in place for 45 years and was appropriate for single, stationary structures that the FAA largely dealt with at that time. Wind turbines have a cumulative effect, so the evaluation of their impact is significantly more complicated than single, stationary structures.

Ninety-seven percent of the notices the FAA receives are sent electronically, where the proponents simply fill out a form online. The FAA acknowledges receipt of the notice and, after an initial study, issues a determination of whether or not a hazard exits. The initial study normally takes 30 days, but as noted, a wind turbine's cumulative implications can require more extensive evaluation within the FAA, the Department of Defense (DoD), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Each time the status of the applicant's proposal is changed, the applicant will be notified by FAA of the change. The initial evaluation includes review by FAA's Offices of Airports, Flight Standards, Frequency Management, and appropriate military organizations. The offices typically respond online with whether they have an objection and what the objection is. It is then incumbent on the proponent to propose mitigation.

The FAA's authority to issue hazard determinations is limited to the scope of Part 77 of Title14, Code of Federal Regulations. The FAA lacks the authority to evaluate impacts to airspace not within our jurisdiction. For example, if wind turbines are located more than 12 miles offshore and, therefore, are not in U.S. territorial waters, the FAA lacks the authority to declare them a hazard, even if the military has concerns with the placement or cumulative impact of those wind turbines.

Our role in making hazard determinations can require the FAA to facilitate the exchange of information between the proponent and the objecting governmental entity. This process can take a considerable period of time depending upon how well negotiations proceed between the parties.

In conclusion, the FAA has an efficient means of processing wind turbines proposals, which includes evaluating all valid aeronautical comments, reviewing all pertinent analytical reports, and issuing determinations that take into account all comments and findings. Although we believe the process works well, we are always considering potential improvements and modifications, including whether the 30 day review is realistic when considering the latest highly complex structures, a grouping of which can have an unwanted cumulative effect. We are open to discussion of how to improve the process.

Thank you for the opportunity to describe FAA's role in this very important process. This concludes my statement. I will be happy to answer your questions at this time.

OKLAHOMA CITY - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced today that Metron Aviation, Inc., of Dulles, Va., and Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., of McLean, Va., received contracts as the final part of a set of landmark awards to perform engineering work that will help transform and modernize the nation's airspace into the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen).

The $1.15 billion contract awarded to Metron Aviation for 10 years is one of the largest ever awarded by the FAA to a small business. The announcement was made at the FAA's Small Business Conference at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center.

"Small businesses generate some of our country's best ideas," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "The rollout of NextGen will give small businesses the opportunity to serve on the leading edge of this major transportation initiative."

The two contracts are the last of six awarded under an umbrella portfolio called System Engineering 2020 (SE-2020). SE-2020 was designed to encourage small business participation. It has a ceiling of $6.5 billion, making it the largest set of awards in the agency's history.

"Partnership is absolutely critical to our success in NextGen," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. "With these awards, we're partnering with some of the most qualified companies in the aviation community."

The work performed by Metron Aviation will complement work done by Boeing, General Dynamics and ITT under SE2020 contracts awarded last month. The firms will conduct large-scale demonstrations to see how NextGen concepts, procedures and technologies can be integrated into the current system.

The $711 million contract awarded to Booz Allen Hamilton for 10 years follows the first SE2020 contract awarded to CSSI, Inc., in April. Both companies will evaluate emerging procedures and technologies and perform systems engineering to determine the best way to deploy the NextGen initiatives on a wide scale.

SE2020 represents an innovative contracting vehicle that streamlines NextGen funding across the FAA, allowing work to be completed in an efficient and cost effective manner.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a significant expansion of its icing certification standards, including a new requirement that manufacturers show airplanes can operate safely in freezing drizzle or freezing rain, conditions that constitute an icing environment known as "supercooled large drops" (SLDs).

The proposed regulations would improve safety by mandating that new transport category aircraft most affected by SLD icing conditions meet expanded safety standards, including additional airplane performance and handling qualities. The rule also would require all new transport category designs be able to fly in conditions where supercooled liquid and ice crystals exist.

The FAA is also proposing changes that would expand the icing certification requirements for engines, engine installations and some airplane components (for example, angle of attack and airspeed indicating systems). These systems would need to be able to perform in freezing rain, freezing drizzle, ice crystals and combinations of these icing phenomena.

"These new icing standards are part of our continuing effort to make the world's safest aviation system even safer," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

"These regulations will help ensure future aircraft can operate safely in some of the toughest icing conditions," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

The proposed rule is based largely on recommendations from the FAA's Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The FAA tasked the ARAC to study how icing certification regulations should be expanded after the tragic 1994 icing-related accident in Roselawn, IL. The NTSB recommendations stemmed from the same accident.

Previously, the FAA issued 112 airworthiness directives for transport category aircraft related to icing. Of the 112 ADs, 21 were specifically related to SLD. The ADs require flight crews to exit icing conditions when they see visual cues indicating the conditions exceed the capabilities of the aircraft's ice protection equipment.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking can be found at: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/2010-15726.htm

Background

The United States' space program has three sectors - civil, military and commercial.The commercial sector was created in 1984 with the passage of the Commercial Space Launch Act. From this law, responsibility for licensing, regulating and promoting the private sector space industry was given to the Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST). Today, the office is one of the lines of business within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The 1984 law requires U.S. citizens to obtain a license prior to conducting the launch of a rocket. The only exception is for missions conducted by and for the government (such as NASA or the U.S. Air Force). For more than two decades, AST has issued licenses for over 200 launches and has also licensed the operation of eight spaceports throughout the country. A spaceport is a FAA approved launch site.

Commercial Human Space Flight

The Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act of 2004 established the regulatory framework for commercial human space flight. The law established an "informed consent" protocol for carrying space flight passengers and created a new experimental launch permit for test and development of reusable suborbital launch vehicles. The "Informed Consent" rules became effective in February 2007 and the experimental permit rules became effective in April 2007.

The rules require launch vehicle operators to provide safety-related information to passengers and to identify what rules an operator must follow in order to conduct a licensed launch with human passengers. All space flight passengers must be fully advised, in writing, of the risks associated with human space flight and they must agree to accept those risks. The protocols also include training and general security requirements for space flight participants.

As part of the measures, launch providers must also establish requirements for crew notification, medical qualifications, and training, as well as requirements governing environmental control and life-support systems. An operator must also verify the integrated performance of a vehicle's hardware and any software in an operational flight environment before carrying a space flight passenger.

Significant Milestones in Commercial Human Space Flight

• April 1, 2004 - AST issues the first launch license for a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) to Scaled Composites.
• April 8, 2004 - Scaled Composites' SpaceShipOne RLV completes the first private sector human commercial rocket launch.
• June 17, 2004 - AST issues the first license for an inland Spaceport to Mojave, Calif.
• June 21, 2004 - AST awards Mike Melvill the first commercial astronaut wings for his successful flight of SpaceShipOne.
• Oct. 4, 2004 - The XPrize, an international competition established to award private industry a $10 million award for completing two successful commercial human space flights in the span of two weeks, is awarded to Scaled Composites for its successful flights of SpaceShipOne. Brian Binnie, the pilot of the vehicle, is awarded FAA's second set of commercial astronaut wings.
• December 23, 2004 - Commercial Space Launch Amendments act of 2004 gives the FAA the authority to regulate commercial human spaceflight.
• June 12, 2006 - AST issues launch site operator's license to Oklahoma Spaceport at Burns Flat, Oklahoma.
• Feb. 13, 2007 - New FAA requirements take effect for crew and passengers involved in private space travel.
• April 6, 2007 - FAA finalizes the new guidelines for obtaining experimental launch permits. The permits allow vehicle developers the opportunity to experiment and test their vehicles prior to applying for an FAA launch license.
• December 4, 2008 - FAA issues amateur rocket regulations.
• December 15, 2008 - AST issues launch site operator's license to Spaceport America near Las Cruces, New Mexico.
• January 11, 2010 - AST issues launch site operator's license to Cecil Field in Jacksonville, Florida.
• April 7, 2010 - AST issues first-ever safety approval to the National Aerospace Training and Research Center (NASTAR) for equipment designed to replicate individual suborbital flight profiles.
• June 2010 - The Obama Administration outlines new National Space Policy that recognizes opportunities and advances in commercial capabilities. The 2010 policy lays out more specific ways for the government to purchase, modify, acquire and transfer to commercial capabilities compared to the earlier 2006 policy.

The Mission of AST is to ensure the protection of the public, property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial launch or reentry activities, and to encourage, facilitate, and promote U.S. commercial space transportation.

ATLANTA - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a civil penalty of $700,000 against Executive Airlines, Inc., The San Juan, Puerto Rico airline, which does business as American Eagle Airlines, allegedly operated eight of its ATR-42 twin-turboprop airliners when they were not in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulations.

The FAA alleges that when Executive Airlines did heavy maintenance checks on its aircraft in 2007 and 2008, mechanics did not perform and document required, detailed visual inspections to detect possible cracks on the aileron center hinge bearing fittings. Executive Airlines operated the eight aircraft on 6,479 flights between the incomplete earlier inspections and September 26-27, 2008, when the company completed the proper inspections and procedures.

"All maintenance procedures must be followed at all times. There are no exceptions when it comes to safety," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

Executive Airlines has 30 days from the date of receipt of the FAA's letter to respond to the agency.

FORT WORTH - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a $450,000 civil penalty against Dassault Falcon Jet Corp. and its completion center in Little Rock, Ark., for improperly plating certain parts and installing them on airplanes. Installation of improperly plated parts made the aircraft not compliant with Federal Aviation Regulations.

The FAA alleges that after receiving a warning notice on this issue in January 2008, Dassault Falcon approved 18 airplanes for return to service between March 2008 and April 2009. Those aircraft were outfitted with hundreds of parts electroplated by the company or its contractors, but the companies did not have the required FAA rating to perform such work. The electroplated parts included both decorative pieces and structural parts.

Electroplating uses electric current to deposit a thin coating of precious metal on the base metal of a particular part. Because of the precision and quality required, repair stations or their contractors must have a specialized service rating to perform the work. If the process is not completed properly, the base metal might be weakened by "hydrogen embrittlement," a condition that might lead to catastrophic failure of a part at stresses well below the metal's normal strength.

"All those performing maintenance on an aircraft must have the appropriate skills and credentials," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

Dassault Falcon has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA's enforcement letter to respond to the agency.