The history of aviation has come a long way since Orville and Wilbur Wright made their historic first flight off the sandy beaches of Kittyhawk, North Carolina in 1903. Although their first flight lasted only for 12 seconds, they managed to fly the world's first powered aircraft a distance of 120 feet. From that moment on, the world would never be the same; aviation had been born. The early days of aviation was greatly influenced after the first World War. Many pilots who had flown in combat over the skies of France and such, returned home to put their skills to use as barnstormers, crop dusters, and even running illegal alcohol shipments during prohibition. A major stepping stone in the development of aviation was the creation of the U.S. Air Mail Service in the early 1920's. In those days, what is now known as the FAA wasn't even in existence. Aviation did not have many, if at all any regulations or laws in effect as we see today. In fact, in the early days of flying, all a pilot had to do to be declared a competent pilot was to successfully fly a plane, perform a few simple maneuvers, and land without crashing the aircraft.
By 1925, the United States government began to truly catch on to the success and potential of flying. Congress created the Air Mail Act of 1925, which allowed the Post Office Department to transfer air mail service to private operators. By 1926, with the passage of the Air Commerce Act, power was given to the Department of Commerce to establish the Aeronautics Branch of the agency. This was another stepping stone as it was a step towards regulating and promoting aviation. This legislation was the first instance in which pilots and mechanics required certification. As aviation grew, it was deemed that more regulation was necessary. In 1938, the Civil Aeronautics Authority was created from the Civil Aeronautics Act. The CAA was the pre cursor to what is now the FAA of the today. It was responsible for overseeing route certification, airline tariffs, and air mail rates. A separate office within the CAA was charged with overseeing the civil airways, navigation facilities, and air traffic control. A separate aeronautical agency was created in 1940 under the Reorganization Act of 1939, this was known as the Civil Aeronautics Board. As the earliest variation of the NTSB, the CAB was responsible for regulatory and investigative matters involved with aviation. After World War Two, aviation boomed with the passenger service air travel and not long after, the entry into the jet age. As a result, aviation accidents continued to rise. This led to the Federal Aviation Act in which the Federal Aviation Agency was created. The Federal Aviation Agency assumed many duties of the CAA and CAB, such as promoting air commerce, regulating safety, future ATC and navigation systems, and airspace allocation and policy. The CAB continued on as a separate agency but was primarily used for accident investigations. The FAA enacted several safety regulations such as minimum standards for the design, performance, and materials of aircraft, aircraft and engine inspection criteria, establishing the maximum number of hours or periods of service for pilots and other aviation employees, and other safety regulations promoting the safety and security of air commerce. It wasn't until 1966 when the Department of Transportation was formed, that the Federal Aviation Agency was renamed the Federal Aviation Administration that we all know today. The NTSB was also created during this time and assumed accident investigation responsibilities from the CAB. Throughout the years, these and many other Congressional Acts have allowed the FAA to establish regulations in which the FAA has and continued to help create the safest, most reliable, most efficient, and most productive air transportation system in the world.
Commercial Aviation Safety 4th ed.
Alexander T. Wells & Clarence C. Rodrigues
By 1925, the United States government began to truly catch on to the success and potential of flying. Congress created the Air Mail Act of 1925, which allowed the Post Office Department to transfer air mail service to private operators. By 1926, with the passage of the Air Commerce Act, power was given to the Department of Commerce to establish the Aeronautics Branch of the agency. This was another stepping stone as it was a step towards regulating and promoting aviation. This legislation was the first instance in which pilots and mechanics required certification. As aviation grew, it was deemed that more regulation was necessary. In 1938, the Civil Aeronautics Authority was created from the Civil Aeronautics Act. The CAA was the pre cursor to what is now the FAA of the today. It was responsible for overseeing route certification, airline tariffs, and air mail rates. A separate office within the CAA was charged with overseeing the civil airways, navigation facilities, and air traffic control. A separate aeronautical agency was created in 1940 under the Reorganization Act of 1939, this was known as the Civil Aeronautics Board. As the earliest variation of the NTSB, the CAB was responsible for regulatory and investigative matters involved with aviation. After World War Two, aviation boomed with the passenger service air travel and not long after, the entry into the jet age. As a result, aviation accidents continued to rise. This led to the Federal Aviation Act in which the Federal Aviation Agency was created. The Federal Aviation Agency assumed many duties of the CAA and CAB, such as promoting air commerce, regulating safety, future ATC and navigation systems, and airspace allocation and policy. The CAB continued on as a separate agency but was primarily used for accident investigations. The FAA enacted several safety regulations such as minimum standards for the design, performance, and materials of aircraft, aircraft and engine inspection criteria, establishing the maximum number of hours or periods of service for pilots and other aviation employees, and other safety regulations promoting the safety and security of air commerce. It wasn't until 1966 when the Department of Transportation was formed, that the Federal Aviation Agency was renamed the Federal Aviation Administration that we all know today. The NTSB was also created during this time and assumed accident investigation responsibilities from the CAB. Throughout the years, these and many other Congressional Acts have allowed the FAA to establish regulations in which the FAA has and continued to help create the safest, most reliable, most efficient, and most productive air transportation system in the world.
Commercial Aviation Safety 4th ed.
Alexander T. Wells & Clarence C. Rodrigues
No comments:
Post a Comment