Letter to Ray LaHood, Secretary of the Department of Transportation

Letter

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar today called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to issue much-needed updates to airline safety standards combating pilot fatigue. The Federal Aviation Administration has failed to meet its deadline to update flight and duty time regulations, which are essential to preventing pilot fatigue. In a letter to Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Klobuchar pressed the department to update the rules immediately.

"We can never be complacent about air safety," said Klobuchar."Pilot fatigue can have tragic consequences, and we must ensure that the rules put in place to prevent this danger are up-to-date and consistent throughout our aviation system. I urge the Federal Aviation Administration to take immediate action to keep passengers safe during the holiday travel season."

Klobuchar was a strong supporter of the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Act of 2010, which passed Congress unanimously and required a consistent, national safety standard for the nation's aviation system. The law specifically required the FAA to update the flight and duty time regulations -- rules which have not been revised in decades -- by August, 2011, but the FAA has yet to issue a final rule.

Pilot fatigue has been on the National Transportation Safety Board's Most Wanted List, a list of recommendations and reforms to help improve passenger and airline safety, since 1990. It was a chief concern following the crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 that went down outside Buffalo, New York killing all 49 people on board and one man on the ground. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, in the past 20 years, more than two dozen accidents and more than 250 fatalities have been linked to pilot fatigue.

The full text of Klobuchar's letter is below.

December 06, 2011

The Honorable Ray LaHood

Secretary

Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

Washington, DC 20590

Dear Secretary LaHood,

As a member of the Senate Aviation Subcommittee, I have a great interest in the safety of the American flying public. After the tragic crash of Colgan Flight 3407, we saw the need for serious improvements in aviation safety. That is why I strongly supported the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Act of 2010, which required one level of safety for the nation's aviation system.

As you know, the law, which passed the Congress unanimously, requires the FAA to update the flight and duty time regulations, rules which have not been revised in decades. In fact, pilot fatigue has been on the National Transportation Safety Board's Most Wanted List since 1990. The law required final rules to be issued four months ago. I urge the FAA to issue a final rule without further delay. The American flying public and the pilots who keep us safe in our nation's skies deserve nothing less than the one level of safety required by the law.

Sincerely,

Amy Klobuchar

United States Senator

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