Ed Guthrie
Cleared for Takeoff
Avweb is reporting that the NTSB has weighed in with a determination that the FAA's data for GA flight time, and the accident rates the FAA determines using that data, are both flawed. According to the article, the NTSB has suggested that the FAA base their estimates using pilot certificate numbers & avgas usage, rather than a small sampling of aircraft owners.
Personally, I have never understood why the FAA hasn't tied usage reporting to aircraft annual inspections. The FAA could add a regulation requiring IAs to enter date of annual, aircraft registration, aircraft serial number, hobbs/tach time at annual, and time in service since last annual. IAs could easily use the FAA website as the data entry portal or the FAA could contract with a third party provider.
12-months later the FAA would have a very solid data pool. 24-months later the data pool would be darn near bomb proof.
Personally, I have never understood why the FAA hasn't tied usage reporting to aircraft annual inspections. The FAA could add a regulation requiring IAs to enter date of annual, aircraft registration, aircraft serial number, hobbs/tach time at annual, and time in service since last annual. IAs could easily use the FAA website as the data entry portal or the FAA could contract with a third party provider.
12-months later the FAA would have a very solid data pool. 24-months later the data pool would be darn near bomb proof.