Federal Aviation Administration

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a subordinate agency of the Department of Transportation (DOT). It was originally established by the Federal Aviation Act of 1958. The FAA is one of the largest agencies in the United States and has a broad span of aviation control including regulatory and procurement functions and operational responsibilities. It has more than 48,000 employees and had a fiscal year 2003 budget of approximately $14 billion.[Page 655] The FAA's chief executive is its administrator, who is appointed by the president of the United States for a five-year term and confirmed by the Senate.

Prior to 2002, the FAA had responsibility for civil aviation security, which it regulated through airport and air carrier security programs. The FAA also had an active Federal Air Marshal Program. Subsequent to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Congress created a separate agency (Transportation Security Administration, TSA) under the DOT, and transferred most of the FAA's security functions to it. The TSA was transferred to the Department of Homeland Security in 2003. The FAA still maintains, and exercises, requirements for security of its own employees and facilities, as well as internal investigations.

The FAA has divided its efforts into several core areas. While none are commonly thought of as law enforcement, each has oversight responsibilities of a number of enforcement-type activities. Law enforcement agencies are frequently able to obtain assistance on a wide range of aeronautical issues directly from local FAA offices. Principal activities include air traffic services, research and acquisition, regulation and certification, airports, commercial space transportation, and international programs.

Air traffic services encompasses all air traffic control services; construction, installation, and maintenance of navigational aids and all FAA communication equipment and controller display equipment; runway safety programs (incursion prevention); air traffic system requirements; control and coordination of military air traffic requirements; and air traffic system capacity. The FAA maintains a national system of weather observing equipment, which generates both radar images and text messages for use by pilots, air traffic controllers, and air carrier dispatchers.

Research and acquisitions includes system development, research direction and sponsorship, procurement management, system architecture decision and procurement investment analysis, and a large testing and logistical center. Regulation and certification covers flight standards, certification of aircraft and airmen, aviation medicine, enforcement of safety regulations for airmen and aircraft maintenance, inspection and certification of newly designed aircraft and aircraft propulsion systems, accident investigation, and management of the FAA's public rulemaking process. In aviation accident investigation, the FAA may be delegated investigative duties by the National Transportation Safety Board or may conduct its own investigations for the purpose of determining regulatory compliance.

The FAA's responsibilities for airports include inspections for runway, taxiway, and airfield compliance with safety regulations, administration of large grant programs for airport improvements, and airport planning and coordination of national policy issues related to access to public-use airports. Responsibilities in commercial space transportation include licensing and safety oversight of all commercial space launches in the United States, space systems development, and research sponsorship. Last, international programs involve the exchange of information with foreign governments on certification standards for aircraft and airmen, providing technical assistance on aeronautical issues, assisting U.S. air carriers in regulatory compliance in foreign countries, and providing scientific and technical expertise at international conferences on weather, air traffic procedures, and flight operations.

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