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Is the FAA After Your Ticket?

Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Modern air traffic control (ATC) reporting systems, including mandatory occurrence reports (MORs) and automated programs like TARP, have significantly increased the likelihood of pilot deviations being detected and reported, sometimes without controllers even being aware.
  • Pilots should proactively file NASA ASRS (Aviation Safety Reporting System) or ASAP reports promptly (within 10 days for ASRS) after any perceived mistake or incident, as this offers crucial protection and immunity from punitive action for honest errors.
  • Consequences for pilot deviations can range from remedial training to certificate revocation, especially for serious errors or if not voluntarily reported; flight instructors also face increased accountability for their students' actions.
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One of the stressful things that can happen to you as a pilot is when an air traffic controller tells you to call a facility on the telephone after you land. A tower controller issued me a phone number once, and I have to admit the request made my heart skip a beat. Fortunately, I hadn’t done anything wrong. The controller simply had some questions about the airplane I was flying.

Most of the time, if a controller gives you a phone number, it’s not good news. Generally it means you’ve made a serious error and there is a chance that you will suffer some punitive consequences as a result of that mistake. The magic words that should raise the hairs on the back of your neck are “possible pilot deviation.”

Pia Bergqvist

Pia Bergqvist joined FLYING in December 2010. A passionate aviator, Pia started flying in 1999 and quickly obtained her single- and multi-engine commercial, instrument and instructor ratings. After a decade of working in general aviation, Pia has accumulated almost 3,000 hours of flight time in nearly 40 different types of aircraft.

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