Airline safety

The Federal Aviation Administration has responded to a number of fatal crashes involving regional airlines with some reasonable proposals to improve safety of the carriers.

The Feb. 12 crash of a Colgan Air turboprop on a flight from Newark, N.J., to Buffalo, which killed 50, exposed several safety lapses that will be addressed by new regulations proposed after an FAA meeting with pilots and airlines. The captain and co-pilot of the fatal flight failed to get enough rest before their flight. The captain had also failed five cockpit exams or "check rides" to test his skills, but the airline was aware of just one due to limits on checking pilot employment records.

Airlines now look into pilots' records for the previous five years, but Randy Babbitt, head of the Federal Aviation Administration, wants that practice changed. He said the agency expects the airlines to seek privacy waivers to allow the FAA to provide complete training records that they hold.

Mr. Babbitt said the FAA also intends to modify the limitation on pilot hours, something the National Transportation Safety Board has been urging action on for 19 years. Airlines have opposed changes due to the costs involved.

Current regulations limit pilots to 16 hours on duty with eight hours of flight time and eight hours off between shifts. Mr. Babbitt noted, though, that looking only at the hours does not take into account other conditions, such as the number of takeoffs and landings that can cause more fatigue than a single, longer flight.

While the proposals rely on voluntary action or changes that would require years to implement, the FAA should move quickly to require compliance to protect the flying public.