This Day in FAA History: May 18th

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19490518: New York’s first helicopter station began operating at pier 41 on the East River.
19510518: Charles F. Horne became Administrator of Civil Aeronautics. He succeeded Donald W. Nyrop (see October 4, 1950), who became Chairman of the Civil Aeronautics Board on this same day. (Nyrop had submitted his resignation from the CAA post on March 18.) Horne, a regular Navy officer, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1926 and received an M.S. degree in communications and electronics from Harvard in 1935. On loan from the Navy, he became Acting Director of CAA’s Airways Division in 1949. From 1950 to 1953, he served as vice chairman of the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics. Horne went on the retired list of the Navy in May 1951 as a Rear Admiral. (See April 27, 1953.)
19630518: Effective this date, FAA required aircraft of Cuban registry engaging in nonscheduled international service in U.S. airspace to follow designated routes and to land at designated airports for inspection. FAA issued the rule at the request of the Departments of State and Defense as a measure necessary to national security. Its content was disseminated on May 20 in an international notice to airmen.
19650518: FAA announced a plan to establish 18 area (or subregional) offices in the contiguous 48 states, as part of plans to decentralize FAA which had begun in 1961. Elements of the decentralization plan had been tested during Project FOCUS (see October 1, 1963). Under the plan, an area manager would head each of the 18 area offices, and would have line responsibility over four basic operating programs: air traffic, flight standards, airway facilities, and airports–programs that had previously been in the hands of the regional directors and the regional program division chiefs. FAA selected as area office headquarters sites: Boston, Cleveland, New York, and Washington in the Eastern Region; Atlanta, Memphis, and Miami in the Southern Region; Chicago, Kansas City, and Minneapolis in the Central Region; Albuquerque, Fort Worth, and Houston in the Southwest Region; Denver, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and Seattle in the Western Region. In September 1965, nine area offices opened for business; all 18 offices were fully operational by the end of the following month. (See June 30, 1965.)
19650518: An FAA-DOD agreement effective this date provided for exchange of mobile flight facilities equipment and services between the Air Force and FAA in such circumstances as defense readiness, natural emergencies, and equipment outages affecting the aviation community.
19700518: FAA established the Office of the Associate Administrator for Engineering and Development, replacing the abolished Office of the Associate Administrator for Development. The new Associate Administrator had executive direction over the National Airspace System Program Office (NASPO), the Systems Research and Development Service (SRDS), and the National Aviation Facilities Experimental Center (NAFEC). Previously, NASPO and NAFEC reported directly to the FAA Administrator. Under the new organizational structure, the agency abolished the Aircraft Development Service and assigned its responsibilities to SRDS. (See January 13, 1961, July 1, 1961, October 22, 1965, and April 25, 1966.)
19800518: Washington state’s Mt. St. Helens erupted, destroying over 100 square miles of timber and leaving at least 61 persons dead or missing. Ash from the volcano caused widespread disruption, but did not close FAA facilities in the area. The agency informed airmen of the location of the volcanic cloud, which damaged several aircraft, and issued a maintenance checklist for planes that had entered suspected areas. FAA also set up a mobile air traffic control tower to assist military missions of reconnaissance, search, and rescue. Interest in the threat of volcanoes to aircraft increased in 1982, when two Boeing 747s lost all engine thrust temporarily as they encountered ash from an Indonesian volcano. (See December 14, 1989.)
20000518: FAA ordered 120 Boeing 767 aircraft to undergo emergency inspections after airline mechanics found damaged bolts in the engine pylons of one of the planes. Under the directive, airlines had five to ten days to complete the inspections.
20080518: FAA proposed to temporarily limit scheduled flight operations at Newark Liberty International Airport to ease persistent congestion and delays during peak operating hours and to accommodate the projected increase in flight delays during the summer. After evaluating the written comments submitted to the public docket, FAA issued a final order, which took effect on June 20, 2008. (See April 16, 2008; August 5, 2008.)
20090518: Mediation aimed at ending an ongoing contract dispute between FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) began. Both parties signed a process agreement to move the negotiations forward. The agreement provided for extensive mediation sessions and for binding resolution of any unresolved issues, guaranteeing a new collective bargaining agreement between the parties. Jane Garvey, former FAA administrator, led the mediation as part of a three-member panel that also included Richard Bloch and George Cohen. (See December 2007; August 13, 2009.)
20100518: FAA’s Aviation Safety organization released a plan identifying the key roles that its staff would play in setting standards for NextGen and providing oversight for the safe implementation of new technologies, processes, and procedures. The AVS Work Plan for NextGen established the commitments — schedules, resources, management structure, and internal coordination — that the organization would make to ensure the successful transition to the next-generation air traffic control system.
20160518: The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a final rule prohibiting passengers and crewmembers from carrying battery-powered portable electronic smoking devices (e.g., e-cigarettes, e-cigs, e-cigars, e-pipes, personal vaporizers, and electronic nicotine delivery systems) in checked baggage and prohibited passengers and crewmembers from charging the devices and/or batteries on board an aircraft. (See March 24, 2016.)
20200518: Piper Aircraft announced the Piper M600/SLS had received FAA type certification for its new HALO safety system making it the first Garmin Autolandequipped aircraft in the world to receive certification.