NTSB · Safety Recommendation
Safety Recommendation A-17-023
Recommendation
TO THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION: Revise Federal Aviation Administration Orders JO 7110.65W, “Air Traffic Control”; JO 7110.10Y, “Flight Services”; and JO 7210.3Z, “Facility Operation and Administration,” to ensure that the chapters of the orders that address pilot weather reports (PIREPs) include improved and consistent guidance about PIREP coding, handling, solicitation, and dissemination.
Safety Issue and Context
Pilot weather reports (PIREPs), which are brief reports from pilots describing observed in-flight weather conditions, are an important source of weather information in the National Airspace System (NAS). Complete, accurate, and timely weather information is essential to support flight safety for all aircraft operations—large and small—in the NAS; it is vital for use in avoiding inadvertent encounters with hazardous weather and preventing weather-related accidents. Historically, weather-related accidents involving general aviation aircraft that encountered poor visibility have a higher fatality rate than all other types of accidents.
For US air carriers, accidents involving encounters with in-flight turbulence account for the most injuries to passengers and flight attendants. PIREPs, because they provide in situ observations, are one of the most important pieces of information that weather forecasters have when assessing the quality of their forecasts and improving graphical weather products used by pilots and others to avoid weather hazards in the NAS.
Response History
October 2, 2025 · Recipient Response · FAA
-From Bryan Bedford, Administrator, FAA: This letter is our final response to Safety Recommendation A-17-23, issued by the Board on April 13, 2017, and supplements our previous letters. Effective September 5, 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published a change to FAA Order JO 7110.65, Air Traffic Control, Paragraph 2–6–2, PIREP SOLICITATION AND DISSEMINATION, providing consistent guidance pertaining to PIREP coding contained in FAA Order JO 7210.3, Facility Operation and Administration, and JO 7110.10, Flight Services, and new guidance for turbulence reports that better aligns with FAA Order JO 7110.10.
I believe the FAA has effectively addressed Safety Recommendation A-17-23 and plan no further action on this safety recommendation.
December 1, 2023 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
We note that you are assessing JO 7110.65 to determine if it can be further revised to include guidance about PIREP coding, handling, solicitation, and dissemination that is consistent with the guidance contained in JO 7210.3AA and JO 7110.10Z. Pending the results of your assessment and the recommended revisions to JO 7110.65, Safety Recommendation A-17-23 remains classified OPEN-- UNACCEPTABLE RESPONSE.
September 22, 2023 · Recipient Response · FAA
-From Kathryn B. Thomson, Deputy Administrator: In response to the Board’s request in its June 14, 2023, letter, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will assess if FAA Order JO 7110.65AA, Air Traffic Control, can be further harmonized with FAA Orders JO 7110.10CC, Flight Services, and JO 7210.3DD, Facility Operation and Administration, to include additional PIREP information.
I will keep the Board informed of the FAA’s progress on Safety Recommendation A-17-23 and anticipate providing an update by September 30, 2024.
June 14, 2023 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
We previously informed you that JO 7210.3AA and JO 7110.10Z include consistent guidance on PIREPs and we urged you to make similar revisions to JO 7110.65, which prescribes procedures for air traffic controllers.