Federal Aviation Administration Requirements Research Articles

Examining How Breakdowns in Pilot Monitoring of the Aircraft Flight Path

Aircraft accident and incident data reveal that serious safety consequences can arise when flight crewmembers fail to properly monitor the aircraft flight path. This research study reviewed human factors literature to better understand why pilots fail to properly monitor, and analyzed accident and incident data. Recommendations for improving monitoring performance were formulated, which may be useful to air carriers in implementing a new Federal Aviation Administration requirement that calls for specific training in monitoring.

Federal Preemption of State Regulation Over Air Ambulances

Federal Preemption of State Regulation Over Air Ambulances

Current Status and Future Perspectives for Unmanned Aircraft System Operations in the US

An aircraft (manned aircraft) may enter safely and legally into the US National Airspace System if and only if it has an airworthiness certificate complying with Federal Aviation Administration requirements. Although corresponding requirements, procedures and regulations for unmanned aircraft are in early development stages, they are expected to be similar to those set for manned aviation. This paper presents a brief overview of current airworthiness certification procedures and requirements for manned aviation, followed by a survey of the current status of Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) regulations in the US but also internationally. Future perspectives of UAS regulation are discussed along with a proposed UAS classification for certification purposes, presentation of a possible certification roadmap, as well as regulatory paths for ultra-light UAS.

Fire response and mechanical behavior of polysialate syntactic foams

Abstract This investigation evaluates the compressive strength and the fire performance of two different types of syntactic foams made by embedding randomly dispersed spheres in fire-resistant, polysialate matrix. The first type of foam utilized ceramic spheres with densities ranging from 0.40 to 0.48 g/cm 3 , while the second type incorporated expanded polystyrene beads with a density of 0.025 g/cm 3 . These syntactic foams were subjected to the Ohio State University (OSU) heat release rate test and the NBS smoke burner test as specified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The influence of the polysialate matrix on the fire response and compressive strength of the foams were evaluated and the experimental results are presented. The syntactic foams passed the FAA requirements and the proportions of inorganic matrix, ceramic spheres, and polystyrene spheres can be tailored to achieve desired densities and compressive strengths.

Use of Inorganic Polymer to Improve the Fire Response of Balsa Sandwich Structures

The study presented in this paper deals with the fire performance of balsa sandwich panels made using inorganic Geopolymer resin and high-strength fiber facings. A thin layer of a fire-resistant paste composed of Geopolymer and hollow glass microspheres was applied to the facings to serve as a protective fire barrier and to improve the fire resistance of the sandwich panels. Using 17 sandwich panel specimens, the primary objective of this program was to establish the minimum amount of fireproofing necessary to satisfy the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements for heat and smoke release. The influence of this fireproofing insulation on the increase in mass of the panels was also evaluated. The system is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and a 1.8-mm-thick layer of fireproofing satisfies the FAA requirements for both heat release and smoke emission.

Test-suite reduction and prioritization for modified condition/decision coverage

Software testing is particularly expensive for developers of high-assurance software, such as software that is produced for commercial airborne systems. One reason for this expense is the Federal Aviation Administration's requirement that test suites be modified condition/decision coverage (MC/DC) adequate. Despite its cost, there is evidence that MC/DC is an effective verification technique and can help to uncover safety faults. As the software is modified and new test cases are added to the test suite, the test suite grows and the cost of regression testing increases. To address the test-suite size problem, researchers have investigated the use of test-suite reduction algorithms, which identify a reduced test suite that provides the same coverage of the software according to some criterion as the original test suite, and test-suite prioritization algorithms, which identify an ordering of the test cases in the test suite according to some criteria or goals. Existing test-suite reduction and prioritization techniques, however, may not be effective in reducing or prioritizing MC/DC-adequate test suites because they do not consider the complexity of the criterion. This paper presents new algorithms for test-suite reduction and prioritization that can be tailored effectively for use with MC/DC. The paper also presents the results of empirical studies of these algorithms.

Prediction of transient engine loads and damage due to hollow fan blade-off

The loss of a fan blade causes serious damages on an engine and can endanger the aircraft integrity and the safety of passengers. Commercial aircraft engines must then meet the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and JAA (Joint Aviation Authorities) certification requirements concerning the fan blade containment. The certification is validated through a Fan Blade-Off (FBO) test on a whole engine. The success in this test requires destructive and expensive development tests performed at the different stages of the design process. To reduce the number of these experiments and thus, the costs and the time of development, the engine behaviour under FBO can be understood and even predicted thanks to finite element (FE) analysis. This paper shows a comparison between a FBO simulation of hollow blades, computed with an explicit integration FE code, and experimental data obtained during an intermediate FBO test carried out by Snecma Moteurs. The results of the load levels and the similarity on the sequence of e...

Evaluation of Aging Pilots: Evidence, Policy, and Future Directions

Current Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations require that pilots of large commercial passenger and cargo aircraft be under age 60. However, the requirement does not apply to other pilots and the courts have ruled that mandatory retirement of test pilots at age 60 violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. FAA medical standards establish three levels of medical qualification, which require certain age-specific screening tests. This paper reviews the epidemiologic and clinical evidence relevant to the evaluation of aging pilots. This evidence is compared and contrasted with the current FAA requirements and past recommendations of the American Medical Association, the Institute of Medicine, and the Office of Technology Assessment. An opportunity exists to assess the class I examination and other tests through the consent decree covering aging test pilots. Another course of action would be to implement special issuances for older pilots.

Use of seasonal Ldn for airport noise compatibility planning

The differences between Ldn from yearly average operations and Ldn from busy day or seasonal operations are examined. Civil and military airports are considered. For civil airports, the issue of seasonality is addressed as it relates to the Federal Aviation Administration's requirements under FAR Part 150. For both civil and military airports, current examples are discussed. The environments of civil and military airports are also examined in the context of EPA Task Group 3's recommendations about seasonality [“Impact Characterization of Noise Including Implications of Identifying and Achieving Levels of Cumulative Noise Exposure,” for Environmental Protection Agency Aircraft/Airport Noise Report Study, Task Group 3, Henning von Gierke, Chairman, Washington, 1 June 1973.] Methods for developing seasonal noise exposure are examined.

Flame-Resistant Wool/Nomex Blends

Results of experiments on a lightweight fabric consisting of 80% wool and 20% polyester (or 20% Nomex) indicate that when the wool portion is treated—for example, with potassium fluorozirconate—the amount of flame-resistant, synthetic fiber can be reduced, yielding a product of appropriate fabric strength, while still meeting the U. S. Federal Aviation Administration requirements. '