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FAA security recommendations for schools

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FL000

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 26, 2001
Posts
1,577
This is pretty soft language for the FAA. Hopefully they realize how ridiculous the media and general public are being, and are just trying to appease them without doing any real harm to the schools. I say good for them. There is no penalty for non-compliance, but schools are expected to observe the suggestions.


The 11 measures recommended by the FAA are:

-- Flight instructors should use a different ignition key from the door lock key. The instructor would provide the ignition key when he or she arrives at the aircraft.

-- Student pilot access to aircraft keys should be limited until the student is in later stages of training, for example, until the successful completion of the pre-solo written test.

-- Before a student pilot is allowed to fly an aircraft solo, he or she should be under the supervision of a flight instructor at all times, regardless of the student's age.

-- Airports should consider requiring student pilots to check in with a designated flight school employee before being allowed to access parked aircraft, or to sign or initial a form, along with a management official, before the being given aircraft keys.

-- Airports should establish positive identification of any student pilot before every flight lesson.

-- If a student pilot is not yet a legal adult at time of enrollment, the enrollment application should be co-signed by a parent or legal guardian. -- Airports should consider requiring medical certificates from student pilots before they begin flight lessons. Currently a medical certificate is required only when the student pilot begins solo flying. (A medical certificate will be denied if the individual has a disqualifying mental condition.)

-- To prevent unauthorized use of aircraft, airports should take extra steps to secure unattended aircraft.

-- Airports should consider having an instructor or other school employee open the aircraft door and retain possession of the key during the student's preflight inspection.

-- Airports should place a prominent sign near areas of public access warning against tampering with or unauthorized use of aircraft. They should clearly post emergency phone numbers, such as police, the FBI, the fire department.

-- Employees should be trained, as well as pilots, to look out for suspicious activity, such as transient aircraft with unusual or unauthorized modifications; loitering; pilots who appear to be under the control of another person; people wanting to rent aircraft without proper identification; people who present credentials but don't show a corresponding level of aviation knowledge; any pilots who make threats or unusual statements; or events or circumstances that do not fit a pattern of lawful, normal activity at an airport.
 
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I applaud the FAA in not overreacting on this issue. However, having instructed at a small grassroots of aviation type airport, I see a problem with this one...

Employees should be trained, as well as pilots, to look out for suspicious activity, such as transient aircraft with unusual or unauthorized modifications;
Like duck tape on the wings and other "mods"?
loitering;
You mean around the airport coffee and donuts?
pilots who appear to be under the control of another person;
Like the wife you're going flying to get away from for a while?
people wanting to rent aircraft without proper identification
How many times have you instructors out there tried to explain to someone (unsuccessfully)why it really is important that thier certificates are with them and why you won't rent them a plane without them.
people who present credentials but don't show a corresponding level of aviation knowledge;
Especially during BFRs.
any pilots who make threats or unusual statements;
Refer back to the ones who get irate when you won't rent them a plane even though they "forgot" thier medical at home. Add the ones irate over the last $0.10 increase in the fuel price.
or events or circumstances that do not fit a pattern of lawful, normal activity at an airport.
Well that really depends what kind of airport we're talking about here, doesn't it?
:D
 
"Security" measures

I appreciate Ifly4Food's comments. :)

Seriously, most of these measures are common sense. Especially the one about airport personnel being trained to watch out for suspicious activity. These shouldn't require the force of rulemaking. That would be an overreaction.

I always thought solo students are always to be under an instructor's supervision. After seven years of instructing, have I missed something here? :rolleyes:

I think some of the key measures are an overreaction. Once again, this whole business with this kid sounds like an isolated incident.

I'm surprised that schools don't require parents to cosign enrollment apps for minor students. Of course, under the law a minor can have a contract set aside. A business that lets a minor sign a contract would deserve to have it set aside for being so imprudent.

Just another two-center.
 
I don t know if this could help but I have euoropean and american licence and when I did start to fly in Euorope I had to get a medical and a psycological test (several) are part of it,plus you need to present a criminal back ground certificate issued by the police dpt before you can get any pilot licence!
Maybe those kind of precautions should be applied by the FAA.
Cheers Juve
 
juventus said:
I don t know if this could help but I have euoropean and american licence and when I did start to fly in Euorope I had to get a medical and a psycological test (several) are part of it,plus you need to present a criminal back ground certificate issued by the police dpt before you can get any pilot licence!
Maybe those kind of precautions should be applied by the FAA.
Cheers Juve

Thank you for reminding me why I'm glad to be an American.
 
European Flight Restrictions

Hopefully "juventus" is following this thread because I would appreciate any comments he may have about GA flying in European airspace. Perhaps he can enlighten us first-hand about ICAO-style restrictions. We would never want such restrictions foisted on us.

The restrictions of which I am aware from reading and studying and from my Alitalia students from eleven years ago include prior permissions for takeoff and landing, filing flight plans for all flights, low "transition levels," meaning positive control is required above, say FL 060, and takeoff and landing fees. I remember clearly how my Italian students always had their logbooks rubber-stamped by some local official at each airport. I'd bet there are other restrictions.

I must reiterate my .02 opinion that the system works most of the time. It will continue to work. Let's not abide any tinkering with it.

I'll get off my soapbox.
 
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I know that Swiss students at FlightSafety have to carry this recording box with them (can't remember the name of the thing) It records changes in barometric pressure on ticker tape. Kind of looks like an EKG read out. The purpose of it is to provide a record of flight time and in particular touch and go's. I quess there was too many ball point pilots over Switzerland.
 
I would like to make my last post more clear saying that I agree with everyone about the awful restriction for GA in Europe but my point was to find solutions about safety for everyone involved in aviation and that 2 suggestions that I posted came from the last government regulation about Pilot identification back ground check (finger tip screening etc.),so I just thought that this could be done at the begining of an individual aviation career,at least for Commercial licence applicants.Anyway this was just an opinion and I really enjoy the freedom and quality of the American aviation system and I hope it would remain as free as possible for long time.
Bye juve
P.S.: Bobstandt where did you teach alitalia student?
 
Issue

The fact is that suicide is a mental health issue. Should we regard this any differently than if the young man had taken his families car and driven into a truck, taken a gun etc.

We cannot see intent nor write rules that govern the minds of men. We cannot ask a flight instructor to know what a person is thinking if his own family cannot.

While sad, we cannot protect our lives from people who do not value their own.

The "so--called"security I faced the other day will only drive away those legitimate paying passengers who will soon wain from being screened by people who they would not let near them otherwise. While they may catch the occassional nutcase, they are certainly no match for a professional weapons expert.

At this point, the terrorists are not hurting our industry, we are.
 

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