Hearing on Flight Safety Technology Set for S.D.
A House subcommittee will convene a field hearing in San Diego on Saturday to evaluate technologies developed to prevent midair collisions and improve safety during landings and takeoffs at U.S. airports.
Rep. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad) is the ranking Republican member of the Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee of the Science and Technology Committee and was responsible for bringing the hearing to San Diego.
On Sept. 25, 1978, a Pacific Southwest Airlines jet and a small, private Cessna airplane collided above North Park, killing 144 people in the worst midair crash in history.
“This is a vitally important concern for all San Diegans. Our people have been touched by the tragedy of midair collisions, and these hearings are an important step toward avoiding future accidents in the air,” Packard said, adding that midair collisions have increased in frequency since the 1978 disaster.
The central topic of discussion at the hearing, which will begin at 9 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors chambers at the County Administration Center, is a Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), which is being tested by the Federal Aviation Administration. In addition, testimony will be taken concerning a Microwave Landing System that would allow pilots to land more safely in inclement weather. The public may attend the hearings but will not be allowed to testify.
Packard said Monday that he recently saw demonstrations of two FAA airplanes equipped with TCAS. “I could see their potential effectiveness,” Packard said. “The current technology tells pilots whether they should go up or down--this equipment would allow them to be told whether they should turn left or right as well.”
Within several months, Packard said, Piedmont Airlines will begin testing the equipment as part of the FAA’s research. “After the hearing and an analysis of Piedmont’s testing, we can begin to evaluate how soon we might want this technology implemented on commercial airlines,” Packard said.
Among those scheduled to testify are Capt. Kenneth Pettigrew of the PSA Airline Pilots Assn.; James Burnett, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board; Neil Blake, the FAA’s deputy associate administrator for engineering, and Councilman Ed Struiksma, representing the San Diego Assn. of Governments.
