Panel Proposes Air ‘Safety Czar,’ Scrapping FAA

A presidential commission, pushing for a “major overhaul” in the way the federal government oversees air safety, Monday urged that the Federal Aviation Administration be replaced by an independent agency, outside the Department of Transportation.

“The present safety regulatory structure is simply inadequate to deal with future growth and technological change (in the air transport system). . . (and) is not working effectively enough to ensure safety,” said Aviation Safety Commission Chairman John M. Albertine, vice chairman of Farley Industries in Chicago.

The panel’s proposed new “Federal Aviation Authority” would be headed by an administrator, who would oversee the operation of the air traffic control system and regulate the airline industry, as well as by a director of aviation safety. The latter would function as a so-called “safety czar,” who could veto any safety-related action by the administrator.

Both positions would be filled by the President for terms of seven years. A nine-member Board of Governors also would be appointed. The entire operation would be financed by user fees rather than through federal budget appropriations.

Elsewhere in its report, which was adopted unanimously after 10 months of research, the commission:

--Called for a beefed-up staff of inspectors to undertake expanded, surprise plane inspections to uncover problems commonly missed in scheduled, routine airline inspections and to combat what Albertine called “the potential complacency of the inspector work force.”

--Opposed tighter regulatory controls on the airline industry, asserting that “the safety record has continued to be excellent following deregulation” a decade ago.

--Urged that all planes--not just those operated by the airlines--be required to use “Mode C Transponders,” which allow air traffic controllers to track altitudes. Many general aviation aircraft do not have the transponders, raising the risk of midair collisions like the one over Cerritos, Calif., in 1986.

Setback for Burnley

The commission’s endorsement of a single, autonomous agency to oversee the aviation industry--on the heels of similar proposals from congressional leaders--marks a setback for the Reagan Administration’s transportation secretary, James H. Burnley IV.

In a tempered statement, Burnley hinted at his disapproval of the commission’s major conclusion. He said: “Safety regulation and enforcement must remain subject to strict control and oversight by the federal government. We cannot ‘privatize’ or give ‘independence’ to these critical responsibilities.”

A House aide said Monday that Congress will look closely at the accountability issue and the potential problems raised by the proposed independent agency, when it opens hearings on the proposed restructuring, probably in May.

The Senate already has begun hearings on a widely supported bill that would create such an independent agency to oversee and regulate the aviation industry.

Senator Backs Proposals

Sen. Wendell H. Ford (D-Ken.), who heads the Senate’s aviation subcommittee, voiced his approval of the commission’s proposals. “The message is loud and clear that the time has come for this much-needed change,” he said.

The American Transport Assn., the airline industry’s largest trade group, also applauded the commission’s proposals.

“Structural and procedural problems at the FAA are a major cause of airline delays and contribute to the capacity crisis developing within the nation’s air transportation system,” executive vice president Gabriel Phillips said in a statement. “A total reorganization of the agency is the only way to solve (the FAA’s) personnel, funding, procurement and leadership problems.”