WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held an Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security Subcommittee hearing today on Aviation Safety: One Year After the Crash of Flight 3407. 

Witness List:

The Honorable Deborah A.P. Hersman, Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board

Ms. Peggy Gilligan, Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, Federal Aviation Administration 

Key Quotations from Today’s Hearing: 

“The facts that have emerged over the last 12 months about this crash raise several serious concerns about the safety of regional air carriers and the commercial airline industry. It is clear from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) that we need to take urgent steps to improve pilot training, address flight crew fatigue, and reform air carrier employment practices. The travelling public’s safety is at stake.”

Chairman John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV

“We’ve just observed the one-year anniversary of the tragic crash in Buffalo, New York. This crash has really crystallized a number of the issues that we have to address in aviation safety. Specifically, we need to make certain that the pilots of regional airlines have the training, rest, and experience required to operate as safely as the major airlines. It has become clear to me over the past year that Congress and the industry need to take major steps to ensure there is one level of safety throughout the entire commercial aviation industry. The Aviation Subcommittee’s work over the past year has raised significant concerns with regard to the adequacy of pilot training, flight crew fatigue, pilot compensation, and commuting practices in the industry.”

Senator Byron L. Dorgan, Chairman, U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security

“The tragic crash of Flight 3407 brought the world’s attention to the seriousness and complexity of maintaining safety in a transportation industry that continually evolves. If we are serious about aviation safety, we must establish a system that minimizes pilot fatigue and ensures that flight crews report to work rested and fit for duty. We must also have a system in which we are steadfastly confident that all of our commercial pilots are proficient and well-trained.”

The Honorable Deborah A.P. Hersman, Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board

“Our efforts will not stop or even slow down just because the final report on the Call to Action was issued. We have been gratified with the response to this effort. We believe that the collective efforts of FAA, the airlines, labor unions and, of course, Congress, will continue to result in implementing best practices, transferring pilot experience, and achieving an overall improvement in safety. Safety is at the core of the FAA’s mission, and we will always strive to make a safe system safer.”

Ms. Peggy Gilligan, Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, Federal Aviation Administration

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