JUSTIN WASTNAGE / BRUSSELS
The US Federal Aviation Administration's new chief is focused on achieving common transatlantic operating standards
Marion Blakey is excited. She is due to give a speech to members of the European Aviation Club, but has delayed the start to enable her to indulge her passion for vintage aircraft, viewing exhibits at the Brussels Air Museum. This passion for aviation, combined with the pragmatism her role requires, is obvious.
"In the early days of aviation, the leaders were the ones who flew higher. Today, many of our leaders are in the boardrooms, at meeting tables and at aviation clubs, working to realise the benefits of aviation," she says. Since taking over from Jane Garvey as head of the US Federal Aviation Administration last September, Blakey has made it clear that she is on the side of operators, for the sake of continued growth in air traffic.
Her challenges in the four-year term ahead centre largely on defining common operating standards between the USA and other air traffic blocks, such as Europe. "Just yesterday I met the management board for the new European Aviation Safety Agency [EASA]. The FAA is a very strong supporter of EASA, which we believe can further our common goal of promoting safety and efficiency in global aviation," she told her audience.
The administrator expects the result will be that the best air corridors are designated "international air traffic routes", with a common global gate-to-gate traffic flow management system in use throughout an aircraft's entire journey. "The first step to achieving a common air traffic management [ATM] concept would be to agree on required navigation performance in aircraft," she says.
Blakey is mindful, however, of the rising burden constant avionics upgrades are on airlines, especially in the USA. The FAA has delayed a proposed controller-pilot datalink communications system at the request of struggling carriers in the USA and there are signs that the introduction of reduced vertical separation minima (RVSM) scheduled for 2005 may also slip as airlines concentrate on recovery. Rather than mandate yet more avionics, Blakey advocates restricting access to the best routes to those airlines with the most up-to-date equipment. "You should be rewarded for being an early adopter," she says.
Interoperable standards can only be achieved through open dialogue and Blakey promises that there will be "no surprises" at the International Civil Aviation Organisation conference in October, when harmonisation of programmes such as RVSM, wide area augmentation system and automatic dependent surveillance - broadcast (ADS-B) are scheduled to be discussed.
Blakey says she already has 11 July, the date of the appointment of EASA's chief executive, "ringed" in her diary and aims to arrange a meeting soon after to work out a joint position to take to the ICAO conference. She cites Boeing's announcement that it will co-operate with the Airbus-led Air Traffic Alliance to define common ATM standards as proof that nation-specific standards are unfeasible as airspace becomes more congested.
Despite welcoming the new agency, Blakey says the full transition period of 42 months should be used to ensure a smooth takeover from national authorities. "We need to make sure that the EASA approach to certification is well established before it takes over full control," she says.
During the four-year transition, which begins in September, the FAA will also seek to "streamline" Europe's certification process and bring it into "harmony" with the FAA's. Blakey points to the recent certification of the Bombardier Challenger 300 business jet, which was approved by the USA only three working days after the original Transport Canada type certificate. "The way we approach certification with Canada is a good example of how agencies can work together and share data. Today there are so many components on aircraft built by companies outside the lead manufacturing state, that joint certifications will become much more common," she says.
Blakey is also keen to allow EASA to establish itself before any EU-USA open skies deal comes into force. Blakey met the European Commission's vice-president and transport commissioner Loyola de Palacio last month, but says that she is "willing to be patient" over negotiations over bilateral air services agreements, which should include safety measures, replicating the Single European Sky initiative. "A lot of the interesting research being done in Europe will only be fully beneficial if the USA has common standards," she says.
Creating common standards with Europe on safety will be easier than on thornier environmental issues such as nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and noise levels, but Blakey hopes that by building the channels of communication, common ground can be found.
Blakey also has domestic battles to win, including the FAA's opposition to extending war risk insurance to manufacturers, on the grounds that many international conflicts are out of the control of the US government, which would nonetheless have to compensate airframers for lost deals. In this, Blakey proves again that she has a difficult path to tread between the functional aspect of her job and her passion for aviation.
Source: Flight International
