The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is one of those federal agencies wed have to create if it didnt already exist. The NTSB has its roots in the 1926 Air Commerce Act and, through successive legislation, was made independent of the FAA, for example, or any other government agency in 1974. 288
An Activist NTSB?
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is one of those federal agencies wed have to create if it didnt already exist. The NTSB has its roots in the 1926 Air Commerce Act and, through successive legislation, was made independent of the FAA, for example, or any other government agency in 1974. Its mission has been relatively consistent throughout its history: "determining the probable cause of transportation accidents and promoting transportation safety. In 1996, Congress added the responsibility to assist victims of transportation accidents and their families. In addition to the aviation accidents and incidents highlighted in these pages, the NTSB also investigates maritime, rail, highway and even pipeline events.
Key Takeaways:
- The NTSB is a highly regarded, independent U.S. federal agency primarily tasked with determining the probable cause of transportation accidents and promoting safety, often assisting in international investigations.
- The NTSB seeks to expand its focus from post-accident investigation to proactively identifying aviation hazards and preventing crashes, specifically aiming for greater access to airlines' Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) data.
- Despite these ambitions, the NTSB faces significant criticism for its four-year backlog in publishing crucial annual accident data analyses, rendering much of its existing statistical work outdated and less effective.
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