Bedford Says Additional Training And STC Modifications Worthy Of Scrutiny
National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Kristie Greco Johnson asked FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford about concerns with the FAA’s recent decision to rescind the single-pilot exemption that permitted single-pilot operations in certain legacy Cessna Citation jets originally certificated for two pilots.
In an interview with Johnson at the NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Bedford said the decision followed the agency’s review of training compliance concerns and accident data indicating that aircraft operating under the exemptions had an accident rate more than twice that of comparable dual-pilot operations.
“In order to achieve any exemption, the FAA asks one question: Can we find an alternative that will give us an equivalent level of safety?” he added. “If we can’t get to at least an equivalent level of safety, we shouldn’t be entertaining it.”
Johnson stressed NBAA’s commitment to enhancing safety while seeking workable solutions for operators affected by the decision. She pointed to ongoing collaboration with the Citation Jet Pilots Association and potential resolutions such as additional training or supplemental type certification (STC).
“We all stress that collaboration is key to safety, and that open dialogue is important,” Johnson said. “We believe that there’s some compelling data that might provide a path to allowing single-pilot operations with some training, with an STC.”
Bedford welcomed continued discussions, calling the STC approach “an interesting process” that was “worthy of scrutiny.”
Photo courtesy NBAA
FMI: www.nbaa.org
By TBH.EXPRESS
