The NTSB Safety Compass
NTSB SAFETY COMPASS- The Official Blog of the Chairman
The Official Blog of the NTSB Chairman
Currently the Chairman is veteran NTSB Board Member Robert Sumwalt
To Read the latest aviation safety edition CLICK HERE
NTSB Recent NEWS Releases
- For Recent NTSB News CLICK HERE
About the National Transportation Safety Board
Our Mission
Making transportation safer by conducting independent accident investigations, advocating safety improvements, and deciding pilots’ and mariners’ certification appeals.
Legislative Mandate
Maintaining our congressionally mandated independence and objectivity;
Conducting objective, precise accident investigations and safety studies;
Performing fair and objective airman and mariner certification appeals;
Advocating and promoting safety recommendation;
Assisting victims of transportation accidents and their families.
Who is the NTSB?
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent Federal agency charged by Congress with investigating every civil aviation accident in the United States and significant accidents in other modes of transportation – railroad, highway, marine and pipeline. The NTSB determines the probable cause of the accidents and issues safety recommendations aimed at preventing future accidents. In addition, the NTSB carries out special studies concerning transportation safety and coordinates the resources of the Federal Government and other organizations to provide assistance to victims and their family members impacted by major transportation disasters.
Read more about the NTSB in the 2018 to 2022 Strategic Plan
Robert L. Sumwalt - 14th Chairman of the NTSB - Bio as written 3/16/2019 in Wikipedia:
Prior to coming to the board, Sumwalt was a pilot for 32 years, including 24 years as an airline pilot with Piedmont Airlines and US Airways.[6] After his airline career, he joined SCANA, a Fortune 500 energy company, where he managed its corporate aviation department.[7] He logged over 14,000 flight hours and earned type ratings in five aircraft.
Sumwalt worked on special assignment to the US Airways Flight Safety Department where he was involved in the development of numerous airline-safety programs. He served on the US Airways Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) Monitoring Team.[8]
Sumwalt served as an air safety representative for Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) for 17 years where he chaired ALPA's Human Factors and Training Group. He was a co-founder of that organization's Critical Incident Response Program, which provides guidance to airline personnel involved in traumatic events such as accidents.
From 1991 to 1999, Sumwalt conducted aviation-safety research as a consultant to NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System, where he studied flight-crew human factors.
Sumwalt co-authored a book on aircraft accidents and he wrote chapters pertaining to aircraft accident investigation in two books. He has written extensively on aviation-safety matters, having published over 90 articles and papers. In 2003, Sumwalt joined the faculty of the University of Southern California's Aviation Safety and Security Program, where he was the primary human-factors instructor.