You may have read reports that the FAA lost two significant legal cases in the last few months, one involving model aircraft drone registration and the other a petition for rulemaking on airline seat sizes. These losses and what the Court had to say left me wondering what—if anything—the decisions reveal about FAA decision-making.
Agencies lose cases, of course. But it’s relatively rare because the legal standard for overturning agency decisions is high. When I was at the NTSB, challenges to our decisions benefitted from that high standard for review. The FAA is no exception to the high rate of success on appeal—it wins (or settles) the overwhelming majority of its cases—both those it prosecutes and those it defends. That’s why these two recent decisions by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (the federal appeals court that hears most federal agency challenges) seemed so significant to me. It’s not just because the FAA lost, but because the Court of Appeals in both cases used particularly scathing language in its decisions.
With more than 40 years experience in the aviation industry, The Honorable John Goglia, was the first and only Airframe and Powerplant mechanic to receive a presidential appointment to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). He served from August 1995 to June 2004.
As a Board Member, Mr. Goglia distinguished himself in numerous areas of transportation safety. In particular, he was instrumental in raising awareness of airport safety issues, including the importance of airport crash fire and rescue operations and the dangers of wildlife at airports. He played a key role in focusing international attention on the increasing significance of aircraft maintenance in aviation accidents. He pressed, successfully, for greater integration of civilian and military safety information, becoming a featured speaker at national aviation symposiums attended by military leaders and major defense contractors. He is a leading proponent of airplane child safety seats.
Prior to becoming a Board Member, Mr. Goglia held numerous positions in the airline industry. He started as a mechanic for United Airlines and eventually joined Allegheny, which became USAir. Additionally, he was involved for more than 20 years as a union flight safety representative on accident investigation teams. There, he developed a safety program for his union, the International Association of Machinists, and was its representative for NTSB investigations. For twelve years, he operated his own aircraft service company.
Numerous prestigious groups have recognized Mr. Goglia’s contributions to aviation safety. Aviation Week & Space Technology awarded him a coveted 2004 Laurel for his outstanding service as an NTSB Board member. The Society of Automotive Engineers presented him with the Aerospace Chair Award for outstanding leadership in 2003 and the Marvin Whitlock Award for outstanding management accomplishment in 2002.
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