NTSB · Safety Recommendation
Safety Recommendation A-99-056
Recommendation
THE NTSB RECOMMENDS THAT THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION: STUDY AND PUBLICLY REPORT ON THE FEASIBILITY AND SAFETY BENEFITS OF REQUIRING TRAFFIC ALERT AND COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM (TCAS) EQUIPMENT FOR ALL CARGO AIRCRAFT OPERATING UNDER 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PARTS 121, 125, AND 129.
Safety Issue and Context
ON 2/6/99, AT 0336 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, FEDERAL EXPRESS FLIGHT 1020 (FDX1020), A MCDONNELL-DOULAS DC-10F, AND AIR CANADA FLIGHT 754 (ACA754), AN AIRBUS A320, WERE INVOLVED IN A REAR MIDAIR COLLISION APPROXIMATELY 40 MILES NORTH OF LINCOLN, NEBRASKA. WHILE ACA754 WAS IN CRUISE AT FLIGHT LEVEL 350 (APPROXIMATELY 35,000 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL), THE PILOT RECEIVED A TRAFFIC ALERT AND COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM (TCAS) TRAFFIC ADVISORY (TA) ABOUT FDX1020 THEN A RESOLUTION ADVISORY (RA), DIRECTING THE FLIGHT CREW TO CLIMB TO AVOID A POTENTIAL COLLISION. THE TWO AIRCRAFT SUBSEQUENTLY PASSED WITHIN ONE MILE HORIZONTALLY AND 600 FEET VERTICALLY.
FDX1020 WAS NOT EQUIPPED WITH TCAS NOR WAS IT REQUIRED. THE FLIGHT CREW OF FDX1020 REPORTED THAT IT HAD NOT RECEIVED ANY TA'S FROM AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL (ATC) AND HAD NOT BEEN NOTIFIED THAT PROPER SEPARATION HAD NOT BEEN MAINTAINED. NEITHER AIRCRAFT WAS DAMAGED, AND NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (VMC) PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. BOTH FLIGHTS WERE OPERATING UNDER 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 121 ON INSTRUMENT FLIGHT PLANS.
Response History
June 10, 2003 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
The Safety Board notes that in the April 1, 2003, Federal Register, the FAA published the final rule amending 14 CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to include the requirement for TCAS I or II on cargo airplanes. This completes the FAA's actions in response to these safety recommendations. Accordingly, Safety Recommendations A-99-55 and -56 are classified "Closed--Acceptable Action."
April 1, 2003 · Recipient Response · FAA
The Final Rule was published in the Federal Register, with a compliance date of January 1, 2005
September 3, 2002 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
In a letter dated December 20, 2001, commenting on the NPRM, the Safety Board indicated that it fully supported the NPRM. Pending the amending of 14 CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to require TCAS and a mode S transponder on the designated aircraft, Safety Recommendations A-99-55 and -56 remain classified "Open--Acceptable Response."
July 15, 2002 · Recipient Response · FAA
Letter Mail Controlled 07/22/2002 10:29:31 AM MC# 2020700 The Federal Aviation Administration agrees with the intent of these safety recommendations and has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to amend 14 CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to include the requirement for TCAS I or II on all cargo airplanes. I have enclosed a copy of the NPRM for the Board's information.
December 20, 2001 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
Notion 7416: The National Transportation Safety Board has reviewed the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), “Collision Avoidance Systems,” which was published in 66 Federal Register 55506 on November 1, 2001. The NPRM proposes collision avoidance system requirements for certain cargo airplanes to minimize the possibility of midair collisions involving cargo airplanes. In addition, it proposes standardization of the collision avoidance system requirements for 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121, 125, and 129 airplanes.
The FAA indicates that the current Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) rules for Parts 121 and 125 require the use of TCAS based on airplane weight and passenger-seating configuration criteria and, in some cases, combination passenger/cargo configuration criteria, while the TCAS rules for Part 129 require the use of TCAS based on passenger-seating configuration criteria and the type of airplane powerplant. The proposed amendment would require the use of a collision avoidance system by all-cargo airplanes for the first time and would standardize the requirements for all-cargo and passenger-carrying airplanes.
The Safety Board fully supports this NPRM. As the Board stated in its September 9, 1999, safety recommendation letter to the FAA regarding two near-midair collisions in 1999, cargo operations have expanded substantially and today represent a significant fraction of the daily operations of the National Airspace System. The potential for collisions between cargo aircraft or between a cargo aircraft and a passenger aircraft must be minimized to ensure safety. The addition of TCAS or TCAS-equivalent systems to aircraft not subject to existing anticollision equipment requirements will clearly improve the overall level of system safety.
The Safety Board notes that the FAA first received a petition for rulemaking to require TCAS on cargo aircraft in 1996 and that the FAA subsequently received 350 favorable comments in support of the petition and none opposing it. In the 5 years since that petition was received by the FAA, serious near-midair collisions involving cargo aircraft such as those documented in the Board’s September 9, 1999, recommendation letter and the text of the NPRM have underscored the need to proceed expeditiously with rulemaking.
March 16, 2001 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
The FAA reports that it has developed a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to amend 14 CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to include the requirement for TCAS I or II on all cargo airplanes. The FAA further reports that the Office of the Secretary of Transportation concurred with the NPRM and forwarded it to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The FAA states that once OMB concurs, the NPRM will be published in the Federal Register for comment. Pending the amending of CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to require TCAS and a mode S transponder on the designated aircraft, Safety Recommendations A-99-55 and -56 remain classified “Open--Acceptable Response.”
February 22, 2001 · Recipient Response · FAA
Letter Mail Controlled 02/28/2001 3:36:17 PM MC# 2010172 The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) agrees with the intent of these safety recommendations and has developed a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to amend 14 CFR 121.356, 125.224, and 129.18 to include the requirement for TCAS I or II on all cargo airplanes. The Office of the Secretary of Transportation has concurred with the NPRM and has forwarded the document to the Office of Management and Budget. Once the Office of Management and Budget concurs, the NPRM will be published in the Federal Register for comment. I will provide the Board with a copy of the NPRM as soon as it is published.
December 23, 1999 · NTSB Correspondence · FAA
THE FAA STATES THAT IT AGREES WITH THE INTENT OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS. THE FAA ANTICIPATES PUBLISHING THE NPRM IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER IN SPRING 2000. PENDING ISSUANCE OF THE NPRM AND THE BOARD'S REVIEW OF THAT NPRM, A-99-55 AND -56 ARE CLASSIFIED "OPEN--ACCEPTABLE RESPONSE."
November 17, 1999 · Recipient Response · FAA
Letter Mail Controlled 11/22/1999 3:51:26 PM MC# 991325 THE FAA AGREES WITH THE INTENT OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS. PRIOR TO RECEIVING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS, THE FAA HAD DRAFTED A NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING (NPRM) PROPOSING TO AMEND 14 CFR 121.356 AND 129.18 TO INCLUDE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR TCAS I OR II ON ALL CARGO AIRPLANES. THE FAA WILL REVISE THE DRAFT NPRM TO INCLUDE 14 CFR 125.224. THE FAA ANTICIPATES PUBLISHING THE NPRM IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER IN SPRING 2000.
October 20, 1999 · Recipient Response · FAA
Letter Mail Controlled 10/28/1999 4:11:30 PM MC# 991191
October 8, 1999 · Recipient Response · FAA
Letter Mail Controlled 10/13/1999 2:36:05 PM MC# 991135