U.S. pilots would need at least
1,500 hours of flight experience to get a job in an airline
cockpit, six times the current minimum requirement, under a
House-Senate agreement disclosed by a passenger advocacy group.
The agreement, part of broader aviation legislation being
negotiated in Congress, was outlined by Senator Jay Rockefeller
to relatives of victims in a fatal crash near Buffalo, New York,
last year, according to Scott Maurer, whose daughter was killed
in the accident, and who attended today’s meeting in Washington.
The deal is “very positive” and is among safety changes
that “should have been happening” more than a year ago, said
Kevin Kuwik of Columbus, Ohio, who said he was dating Lorin
Maurer, one of 50 victims in the Feb. 12, 2009, crash of
Pinnacle Airlines Corp.’s Colgan unit.
Boosting the minimum required pilot experience from 250
hours has been a top goal of friends and relatives of people who
died when the plane crashed in Clarence Center, near Buffalo.
Airline pilot unions and House Democrats also pushed for the
higher requirement, saying it would lessen the chance of a
repeat of the Colgan accident.
Rockefeller appreciates the families’ “deep commitment to
a safer transportation system,” spokeswoman Jena Longo said in
a statement. The senator believes legislation funding the
Federal Aviation Administration, which includes the requirement,
“is ready and he is hopeful that the bill will be considered
this week,” she said. The West Virginia Democrat heads the
Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
Pilot Blamed
The National Transportation Safety Board this year said
Colgan Captain Marvin Renslow caused the crash by incorrectly
responding to a stall warning in the cockpit. Renslow died along
with all passengers, crew and one person on the ground, after
the flight for Continental Airlines Inc. departed from Newark,
New Jersey’s Liberty airport.
A 1,500-hour minimum exceeds the 800 hours approved by the
Senate in March as part of $34.6 billion legislation to fund the
Federal Aviation Administration. The House in October 2009
approved a 1,500-hour minimum in its version of the legislation.
The Air Transport Association, the Washington trade group
for major U.S. carriers, told House lawmakers in a letter before
their vote that carriers were concerned the requirement would
result in “unnecessary and artificial barriers” for qualified
pilots and reduce the applicant pool for carriers.
Congressional talks on the FAA bill accelerated last week
in anticipation negotiations could be completed this week.
Differences remain over how much to raise ticket taxes to
fund airport projects and how many long-distance flights should
be allowed from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Kuwik
said after the Rockefeller meeting.
Congress is almost three years overdue in renewing the law
that finances the FAA. The agency has been operating on
temporary renewals of the law while lawmakers negotiate.
To contact the reporter on this story:
John Hughes in Washington at
jhughes5@bloomberg.net
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