Safe Landings Act
Bill: H.R.6976 | Sponsor: Rep. DeSaulnier, Mark (D-CA)
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
Safe Landings Act
This bill addresses technology needs and safety risks in the aviation industry.
Among other things, the bill

To improve technology and address human factors in aviation safety, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safe Landings Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Given that the United States enjoys an exceptionally 
        safe aviation system with an exceedingly low frequency of 
        airline accidents, efforts to improve aviation safety should 
        examine nonaccident safety incidents for all possible insights.
            (2) Aviation safety should not be taken for granted, and 
        even with so few accidents, the U.S. Aerospace System should 
        proactively address safety concerns that emerge from our 
        dynamic and evolving economic conditions, technology, aviation 
        industry, and other factors.
            (3) Preventing accidents from occurring in the airport 
        runway environment remains an objective requiring continued 
        effort, and incidents of runway confusion, defined as the 
        subset of runway incursions in which an aircraft 
        unintentionally takes off or lands on a taxiway or incorrect 
        runway, should be carefully monitored, reviewed, and studied 
        for insights to improve safety.
            (4) While technology continues to advance and new 
        opportunities to use technology to address safety risks in 
        aviation are examined and pursued, the evolving role of 
        technology and the expanding use of automation should not be 
        used as justification to diminish attention to and 
        prioritization of the human contribution to aviation safety. 
        The aviation industry and the Government must ensure that 
        training programs for flight crews and other personnel are 
        appropriately evolving, that training standards and 
        expectations remain rigorous, and that risks and concerns 
        associated with the interaction between humans, technology, and 
        automated systems are identified, studied, and addressed in a 
        timely manner.

SEC. 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF NTSB RECOMMENDATIONS.

    (a) Navigational Radios.--The Administrator shall implement the 
recommendation of the National Transportation Safety Board numbered as 
A-18-23 and issued on October 11, 2018, with respect to the tuning of 
navigational radios to assist flight crews in managing the flight path 
of aircraft on visual approaches. The Administrator shall work with 
part 121 air carriers on implementation of this recommendation, and, 
not later than 1 year after the enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator shall issue to Congress a report on air carrier 
compliance rate.
    (b) NTSB Recommendation.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator shall implement the 
        recommendation of the National Transportation Safety Board 
        numbered as A-18-25 and issued on October 11, 2018, and, not 
        later than 1 year after the enactment of this Act, the 
        Administrator shall issue to Congress a report on the status of 
        the implementation.
            (2) Consideration.--In implementing this recommendation, 
        the Administrator shall consider any relevant findings 
        identified pursuant to section 334 of the FAA Reauthorization 
        Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-254).
    (c) Pilot Alerts.--The Administrator shall--
            (1) collaborate with aircraft and avionics manufacturers, 
        labor organizations representing pilots operating under part 
        121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, and software 
        developers to develop the technology for a cockpit system that 
        provides an alert to pilots when an airplane is not aligned 
        with the intended runway surface;
            (2) once such technology described in paragraph (1) is 
        available, establish a requirement for the technology to be 
        installed on aircraft operating under part 121 of title 14, 
        Code of Federal Regulations, landing at airports within Class B 
        and Class C airspace and certified under part 139 of title 14, 
        Code of Federal Regulations;
            (3) in establishing the requirement as described in 
        paragraph (2), consider any relevant findings identified 
        pursuant to section 334 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 
        (Public Law 115-254); and
            (4) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, issue to Congress a report on the progress of the 
        work described in paragraph (1).
    (d) NTSB Recommendation.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator shall implement the 
        recommendation of the National Transportation Safety Board 
        numbered as A-18-27 and issued on October 11, 2018, and, not 
        later than 1 year after the enactment of this Act, the 
        Administrator shall issue to Congress a report on the status of 
        the implementation.
            (2) Consideration.--In implementing this recommendation, 
        the Administrator shall consider any relevant findings 
        identified pursuant to section 334 of the FAA Reauthorization 
        Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-254).

SEC. 4. INVESTIGATIONS FOR COVERED EVENTS.

    (a) In General.--Once implementation of section 3(b) of this Act is 
complete, the National Transportation Safety Board may initiate 
investigations of covered events to determine risk factors specific to 
the airport at which such an event occurred and other elements of the 
National Airspace System that may contribute to the cause of the event. 
The National Transportation Safety Board may also elect to consider 
multiple events in a single report as part of a special investigation 
or study to examine safety factors contributing to these events.
    (b) Additional Investigative Information.--In addition to any 
investigation that the National Transportation Safety Board is 
conducting with respect to any specific covered event, the NTSB shall 
utilize voluntarily provided safety information in its evaluation of 
associated risk in the National Airspace System and protect such 
information from public release in accordance with section 1114(b)(3) 
of title 49, United States Code.
    (c) Content.--The review and analysis shall examine factors present 
at the time of any covered event at such airport, including--
            (1) challenges pilots perceive when flying into and out of 
        the airport;
            (2) challenges that air traffic controllers face when 
        working at the airport;
            (3) characteristics of the communications among and between 
        groups of personnel whose work relates to the movement of 
        aircraft into and out of the airport including pilots, air 
        traffic controllers, maintenance workers, dispatchers, and 
        airline airport operations personnel; and
            (4) physical characteristics of the airport and its 
        facilities, such as the configuration of runways, runway 
        lighting, and construction activity.

SEC. 5. TASK FORCE ON HUMAN FACTORS IN AVIATION SAFETY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall convene an FAA Task 
Force on Human Factors in Aviation Safety.
    (b) Composition.--The Task Force shall consist of members appointed 
by the Administrator and having expertise in an operational or academic 
discipline that is relevant to the analysis of human errors in 
aviation. The number of members shall be determined by the 
Administrator to ensure sufficient representation of relevant 
operational and academic disciplines.
    (c) Duration.--
            (1) In general.--Members of the Task Force shall be 
        appointed for the length of the existence of the Task Force.
            (2) Length of existence.--
                    (A) In general.--The Task Force shall have an 
                initial length of existence of 2 years.
                    (B) Option.--The Administrator may exercise an 
                option to lengthen the duration of the existence of the 
                Task Force for a period of 2 years.
    (d) Disciplines.--For purposes of subsection (b), disciplines may 
include air carrier operations, line pilot expertise, air traffic 
control, technical operations, aeronautical information, aircraft 
maintenance and mechanics psychology, linguistics, human-machine 
integration, general aviation operations, and organizational behavior 
and culture.
    (e) Expertise.--
            (1) In general.--No less than half of the members shall 
        have expertise in aviation.
            (2) Additional expertise.--The Task Force shall include 
        members with expertise on human factors but whose experience 
        and training are not in aviation specifically and who have not 
        previously been engaged in work related to the FAA or the 
        aviation industry. The Task Force shall also include pilot 
        labor organization, certificated mechanic labor organizations, 
        and at least one member from an air traffic controller labor 
        organization.
    (f) FAA Members.--
            (1) In general.--Not more than 4 members may be employees 
        of the FAA and NTSB, excluding representatives of the labor 
        representatives of employees of the air traffic control system. 
        Not more than 2 members may be employees of the NTSB. The FAA 
        and the NTSB members shall be non-voting.
            (2) FAA employees.--Any member who is an FAA employee shall 
        have expertise in safety.
    (g) Duties.--In coordination with the Research, Engineering, and 
Development Advisory Committee established under section 44508 of title 
49, United States Code, the Task Force shall--
            (1) not later than the date on which the Task Force is no 
        longer in existence, produce a written report that--
                    (A) to the greatest extent possible, identifies the 
                most significant human factors and their relative 
                contribution to aviation safety risk;
                    (B) identifies new research priorities for research 
                in human factors in aviation safety;
                    (C) reviews existing products by other working 
                groups related to human factors in aviation safety 
                including the Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST)'s 
                work pertaining to flight crew responses to abnormal 
                events;
                    (D) provides recommendations on potential revisions 
                to any FAA regulations and guidance pertaining to the 
                certification of aircraft under part 25 of title 14, 
                Code of Federal Regulations, including sections related 
                to presumed pilot response times and assumptions about 
                the reliability of pilot performance during unexpected, 
                stressful events;
                    (E) reviews rules, regulations, or standards 
                regarding flight crew rest and fatigue, as well as 
                maintenance personnel rest and fatigue, that are used 
                by a sample of international air carriers, including 
                those deemed to be more stringent and less stringent 
                than the current standards pertaining to United States 
                air carriers, and identify risks to the National 
                Airspace System from any such variation in standards 
                across countries;
                    (F) reviews pilot training requirements and 
                recommend any revisions necessary to ensure adequate 
                understanding of automated systems on aircraft;
                    (G) reviews approach and landing misalignment and 
                make any recommendations for improving these events; 
                and
                    (H) identifies ways to enhance instrument landing 
                system (ILS) maintenance schedules; determines how a 
                real-time smart system should be developed that informs 
                the Air Traffic Control System, Airlines, and Airports 
                about any changes in the state of runway and taxiway 
                lights; and identifies how this system could be 
                connected to the FAA's maintenance system;
            (2) produce a written report to Congress not less than once 
        every 2 years that--
                    (A) summarizes new research developments on human 
                factors in aviation safety;
                    (B) to the greatest extent possible, identifies the 
                most significant human factors and their relative 
                contribution to aviation safety risk; and
                    (C) provides any recommendations for policy or 
                regulatory action; and
            (3) if the Secretary exercises the option described in 
        subsection (c)(2)(B), not later than the date that is 2 years 
        after the date of establishment of the Task Force, produce an 
        interim report containing the information described in 
        paragraph (1).
    (h) Applicable Law.--The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
App.) shall not apply to the Task Force.

SEC. 6. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM ON NEW APPROACHES TO DATA 
              ANALYSIS FOR AVIATION SAFETY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish a new research and 
development program to be undertaken by the FAA's Consortium in 
Aviation Operations Research (NEXTOR II) to investigate and develop new 
approaches to data analysis for understanding the factors in aviation 
safety incidents and identifying emerging risks of future safety 
incidents.
    (b) Approaches.--The approaches described in subsection (a) include 
the use of new algorithms for analyzing the text and audio of 
communications between flight crews and air traffic controllers and the 
use of machine learning or artificial intelligence methods for 
analyzing a variety of data sets, including, data on weather, 
performance of communication, navigation and surveillance equipment and 
facilities, flight delays, safety incidents, flight crew work 
schedules, and air traffic and crew member communications for detecting 
anomalies in the National Airspace System.
    (c) Collaboration.--In carrying out the research program 
established in this section, member institutions of the Consortium 
shall collaborate in the sharing of data for the purpose of testing and 
demonstrating the potential effectiveness of new approaches to 
analysis--
            (1) with each other;
            (2) with aviation industry partners;
            (3) with units within the FAA including groups within the 
        Air Traffic Organization, NextGen Office, Office of Airports, 
        and Aviation Safety; and
            (4) with the National Aeronautics and Space 
        Administration's Aviation Safety Reporting System.
    (d) Research.--
            (1) In general.--The research undertaken pursuant to this 
        section shall prioritize understanding the ways that various 
        forms of human factors contribute to aviation safety risk.
            (2) Factors.--The factors described in paragraph (1) may 
        include fatigue and distraction during critical phases of work 
        among pilots or other aviation personnel, tasks and workload, 
        organizational structure and culture, communication among 
        personnel, adherence to safety procedures, and any other 
        relevant factors that are the cause or potential cause of human 
        error in aviation operations.
            (3) Highly automated aircraft.--Research should seek ways 
        to improve the design of highly automated aircraft to reduce 
        instances of mode confusion and to combat problems of reduced 
        awareness of basic flight parameters resulting from complacency 
        about automated systems.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $20,000,000 for carrying out the program described in this 
section for each fiscal year from 2022 through 2027, including grants 
to participating research institutions, including the academic 
institutions that make up the FAA's Consortium in Aviation Operations 
Research, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the FAA's 
Office of Safety, the NextGen office, and units within the FAA's Air 
Traffic Organization that work on safety issues.
    (f) Sunset.--The program shall terminate on the date that is 6 
years after the date on which the program is established.

SEC. 7. USING INSTRUMENT APPROACH PROCEDURES AS BACKUPS TO VISUAL 
              APPROACHES.

    (a) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator shall issue a report to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
that uses a representative sample of part 121 and part 129 air carriers 
to review the current range of air carrier practices in requiring the 
use of instrument approach procedures as a backup system for visual 
approaches and the extent to which operators require pilots to use 
approach procedures.
    (b) Issuance of Guidance.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall review and analyze the 
collected data from the report described in subsection (a) and issue 
guidance to air carriers on the most effective techniques and 
procedures to use instrument approach procedures as a backup system for 
visual approaches. Such guidance shall encourage the use of instruments 
to provide vertical and lateral guidance to mitigate the potential for 
a wrong surface alignment and to provide flight crews with more precise 
vertical and lateral deviation information.

SEC. 8. NOTAM MODERNIZATION INITIATIVE.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator shall lead an effort to reform 
and update the ``notices to airmen'' (NOTAM) system to harmonize with 
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annexes and Standards 
and Recommended Practices (SARPS), including the existing methods of 
writing, formatting, and disseminating information under this system, 
for the purposes of improving these notices' clarity, user-
friendliness, and effectiveness in conveying priority, safety-related 
concerns.
    (b) Requirements.--In carrying out this initiative, the 
Administrator shall--
            (1) collaborate with airlines and labor organizations 
        representing pilots operating under part 121 of title 14, Code 
        of Federal Regulations, organizations representing general 
        aviation, air traffic controllers, airport operations 
        personnel, and the military on developing recommendations for 
        improving the user-friendliness of the content, style, and 
        formatting of NOTAMs, including any changes to existing 
        conventions for such items as abbreviations, punctuation, font, 
        and font size;
            (2) collaborate with avionics manufacturers and software 
        developers in considering hardware and software options for 
        sending, accessing, and displaying NOTAMs; and
            (3) take appropriate actions within the International Civil 
        Aviation Organization (ICAO) to adopt recommended standards on 
        the writing, formatting, and disseminating of NOTAMs.
    (c) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall issue a report to 
Congress not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 
and no less than every 6 months thereafter, until new standards for the 
writing, formatting, and dissemination of NOTAMs have been adopted by 
the FAA. This report shall include an update on the progress of the 
work described in this section, including an explanation of how any new 
recommendations that have been developed will improve safety and an 
explanation of any obstacles remaining to achieving consensus for new 
international standards for the NOTAM system.

SEC. 9. GAO STUDY ON RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE OF CVR DATA IN 
              FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

    (a) In General.--The Comptroller General shall take the lead in 
carrying out a study on the risks associated with the use of CVR data 
in investigations led by foreign governments or units of foreign 
governments.
    (b) Contents.--At minimum, this study shall--
            (1) review past incidents in which CVR data was used by 
        foreign governments or units of foreign governments in such a 
        way that the National Transportation Safety Board found to 
        depart from the National Transportation Safety Board's 
        standards and procedures for a safety investigation, including 
        the use or circulation of CVR data for purposes other than 
        determining the causes of an accident or safety incident, 
        inappropriate release of data contained on a CVR, or the 
        dissemination of information or conclusions based on a 
        misinterpretation of data contained on a CVR;
            (2) document the protections provided for cockpit voice 
        recordings and transcripts by ICAO and other countries where 
        United States-based air carriers operate;
            (3) identify and assess the risks to United States flight 
        crews, air carriers, manufacturers, and other stakeholders in 
        the aviation industry associated with CVRs capable of recording 
        more than 2 hours of data; and
            (4) provide recommendations on measures to adopt to 
        mitigate against such risks and ensure that any use of CVR data 
        serves the sole purpose of a safety investigation, including 
        recommendations for the United States to make to ICAO to 
        mitigate these risks.

SEC. 10. TRANSPARENCY IN AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR WORK.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Administrator shall update the guidelines of the FAA 
for part 121 certificate holders in implementing a Continuing Analysis 
and Surveillance System (CASS) for their air carrier maintenance 
programs to include reporting no less than once every 6 months by 
certificate holders to the FAA of any failure to follow procedures in 
aircraft maintenance as well as any major alteration, complete 
overhaul, or repair of mechanical irregularities of each airframe, 
engine, propeller, and appliance.
    (b) Advisory.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator shall issue an advisory with formatting 
guidelines for air carriers to report information as required under 
subsection (a).
    (c) Inclusion.--For each instance of a failure to follow procedures 
and for each major alteration, overhaul, or repair reported under the 
requirements of this section, the Administrator shall require 
certificate holders to include any name and any physical address where 
the work is carried out for each maintenance provider that performs 
work.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section, the terms ``major alterations'', 
``airframe'', ``propeller'', and ``appliance'' have the meanings given 
such terms in part 1 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

SEC. 11. REVIEW OF FAA'S AVIATION SAFETY INSPECTION PROGRAM.

    (a) Audit by the Department of Transportation Inspector General.--
Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Inspector General of the Department of Transportation shall initiate a 
review of the FAA's August 2017 Flight Standards reorganization and its 
aviation safety inspection program.
    (b) Review.--The review shall include an evaluation of--
            (1) the FAA Flight Standards reorganization from a 
        geographic-based system to a functional-based system;
            (2) the implementation of the FAA's Compliance Philosophy 
        as it relates to safety inspections and enforcements;
            (3) the FAA's new oversight system known as the Safety 
        Assurance System (SAS);
            (4) training for aviation safety inspector and operational 
        research analysts on the Compliance Philosophy and SAS; and
            (5) the impact of the FAA's reorganization and SAS on the 
        FAA's ability to produce reliable estimates of aviation safety 
        inspector and operational research analyst staffing needs.
    (c) Report.--The Inspector General shall submit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 
report on the results of its review and any recommendations to improve 
the aviation safety inspection program of the FAA.

SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.
            (2) Covered event.--The term ``covered event'' means--
                    (A) a category A or B runway incursion, as defined 
                in Order 7050.1B of the Federal Aviation Administration 
                (dated November 3, 2013);
                    (B) a landing on a taxiway, incorrect runway, or 
                other area not designed as a runway at a public-use 
                airport on land;
                    (C) descent by an aircraft below 300 feet above 
                ground level on approach to a taxiway, incorrect 
                runway, or other area not designed as a runway at a 
                public-use airport on land; or
                    (D) a landing by an aircraft notwithstanding an 
                instruction by air traffic control that the aircraft 
                perform a missed approach or go-around.
            (3) FAA.--The term ``FAA'' means the Federal Aviation 
        Administration.
            (4) Part 121 air carrier.--The term ``part 121 air 
        carrier'' means an air carrier that holds a certificate issued 
        under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.
            (5) Part 129 air carrier.--The term ``part 129 air 
        carrier'' means an air carrier that holds a certificate issued 
        under part 129 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.
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