Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19550314: The first type-certification board meeting to be held in connection with the certification of a foreign-built aircraft under U.S. regulations met in Washington. Representatives of the Royal Netherlands Aircraft Factories, having applied for a U.S. type certificate on its Fokker F-27, met with the CAA engineering staff for preliminary discussions. Previous certification negotiations, such as those involving the British-built Viscount, had focused on U.S. acceptance of certification by the country of manufacture.
19600314: FAA transferred from Washington to Oklahoma City certain organizational elements responsible for: aircraft registration; preparation and administration of knowledge examinations for certification of airmen and ground instructors; and the issuance of airman certificates.
19730314: The Department of Transportation announced that four companies had been selected to continue development of a common civil-military microwave landing systems (MLS). Under this Phase II of the MLS developmental program, each contractor had to demonstrate the feasibility of its proposed system design to meet the full range of civil and military requirements. (See January 27, 1972, and June 7, 1973.)
19730314: Alexander P. Butterfield became the fifth FAA Administrator, succeeding John H. Shaffer (see March 24, 1969), whose resignation was one of many accepted by President Nixon in a reorganization of the Executive Branch. Butterfield’s selection had been announced on December 19, 1972, and his nomination submitted to the Senate on January 4, 1973. Questions were raised about his eligibility, however, since he was a retired Air Force colonel and the FAA Administrator was prohibited by law from having a military affiliation. When congressional exemption from this statute appeared unlikely, Butterfield resigned his Air Force commission. His nomination was resubmitted to the Senate on February 26 and confirmed on March 12.
Born in Florida in 1926, Butterfield spent much of his youth in California and attended UCLA for two years before receiving his B.S. degree from the University of Maryland. (He later earned an M.S. degree in international affairs from George Washington University and graduated from the National War College.) During 20 years with the Air Force, Butterfield had flown as a command pilot and member of a jet aerobatic team. His decorations included the Legion of Merit and Distinguished Flying Cross. Butterfield had commanded the USAF’s low and medium level air reconnaissance operations in Southeast Asia. His staff positions included duty as senior aide to the Commander in Chief Pacific Air Forces, and Military Assistant to the Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense. He was serving as the senior U.S. military representative to Australia when he retired from the Air Force in 1969 to become Deputy Assistant to President Nixon. Butterfield moved from this post to FAA, serving as Administrator for just over two years (see March 25, 1975).
19840314: FAA announced the award of a contract for the Interim Voice Response System (IVRS). The system provided a computerized voice message giving weather information to pilots who called their local IVRS number on a touch-tone telephone. This was expected to reduce the time required for flight service stations to provide complete preflight weather briefings. In October 1985, FAA announced that IVRS was available to pilots in 24 cities. Meanwhile, FAA was also developing the Direct User Access Terminal Service (DUATS). This system allowed pilots to obtain weather information and file a domestic flight plan using computers equipped with a modem for communication via telephone lines. The agency’s Technical Center began developing DUATS in 1983, and a test of the system began at ten sites during the following year. (See February 13, 1990.)
19860314: FAA announced the choice of Embry Riddle Aeronautical University to provide a new management training facility to replace the existing school at Lawton, Okla. (see May 3, 1971). After building the new school at Palm Coast, Fla., Embry Riddle operated the facility for FAA under a 20 year contract, while FAA awarded separate contracts for instructional services. FAA dedicated the new school, named the Center for Management Development (CMD), on October 15, 1987, and the first class began four days later.
19970314: FAA formally accepted, ahead of schedule, the Display System Replacement (DSR) system. (See April 27, 1995; January 20, 1999.)
19970314: FAA published two proposed airworthiness directives requiring retrofit of Boeing 737 rudder components. (See January 15, 1997; January 13, 1999.)
20000314: FAA Administrator Jane Garvey announced new initiatives to enhance runway safety, including a series of workshops that would be held around the country to produce regional and local plans to reduce runway incursions. These workshops would be followed by a national summit. FAA also announced initiation of a program for pilots involved in such incidents to help determine the root causes of the events. (See March 5, 2000; June 14, 2000.)
20110314: FAA commissioned ADS-B equipment on its Airbus 330/340 flight simulator at FAA’s Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center. The one year, $1 million project featured other enhancements, such as dual electronic flight bags with traffic information display; an air/ground display of traffic bearing/speed/altitude indicator cueing; a new traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) integrated with ADS-B; and a fully integrated simulator visual system and electronic flight bag for up to 50 aircraft. (See November 3, 2008; February 3, 2011; January 2, 2013; April 22, 2013.)
20120314: FAA and NATCA announced an extension of the NATCA contract for another four years. The contract was enacted in 2009 and was to expire on October 1. The extension, which did not require a vote of the union’s members, prolonged the agreement to July 1, 2016. (See August 13, 2009.)