Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19530210: CAA and British aircraft experts concluded extensive discussions of technical problems relating to airworthiness certification of turbine-powered transports. The meetings, termed “exploratory,” sought eventual agreement on standards for U.S. certification of the airworthiness of jet transports, such as the British Comet. (See May 15, 1950.)
19720210: FAA consolidated the National Airspace System Program Office (NASPO) with the Systems Research and Development Service. On July 26 FAA abolished NASPO, established in 1966 (see April 25, 1966). As the installation of NAS En Route Stage A at FAA’s ARTCCs was proceeding satisfactorily, there was no further need for a separate office to manage this program. Also, effective July 26, FAA transferred NASPO’s facilities systems and ARTCC building program functions to the Airway Facilities Service.
19860210: FAA formally established the National Aviation Safety Inspection Program (NASIP), a plan to continue on a more systematic basis the kind of in-depth inspections begun under the National Air Transportation Inspection, or NATI (see March 4, 1984). An inspection of Eastern Air Lines already begun in December 1985 became part of NASIP (see March 7, 1986). The program also included inspections targeting airlines operating under military charter, an emphasis that fulfilled a directive issued by the Secretary of Transportation in the wake of a crash in Newfoundland (see December 12, 1985). NASIP inspections during fiscal 1986 included 18 carriers providing military charter flights, as well as 20 turbine engine repair stations. The program was then redefined annually, as were the certificate holders targeted for inspections, and special emphasis inspections were conducted as circumstances warranted.
19890210: FAA issued a new rule upgrading the fire safety standards for baggage and cargo compartments in existing airline aircraft. The new standards required that all cargo compartments larger than 200 cubic feet that were inaccessible to crewmembers in flight be lined with rigid fiberglass or comparable materials on their sidewalls and ceilings to more effectively resist the spread of fire. The airlines had two years from the effective date of the new regulation to comply. (See May 16, 1986, and November 14, 1996.)
20000210: FAA ordered an immediate inspection of the entire fleet of single-aisle planes built by McDonnell Douglas after inspectors found two Alaska Airlines aircraft with damage in the tail section similar to that found in the wreckage of Alaska Airlines Flight 261. The airworthiness directive required a visual inspection of the jackscrew assembly of the horizontal stabilizer within three days and a more sophisticated examination within 30 days. Sources close to the investigation of the fatal crash reported that there was preliminary evidence of extreme wear on parts of the stabilizer control system in the tail of the MD-83 aircraft that plunged into the Pacific near Los Angeles on January 31. (See January 31, 2000; March 17, 2000.)
20030210: FAA expanded the restricted airspace over Washington, DC. It now covered a 30-mile radius from each of the region’s three major airports – Reagan National, Baltimore-Washington International, and Dulles International. (See October 28, 2002; July 26, 2007.)
20040210: FAA published a final rule in the Federal Register modifying 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 158 to change the amount and the basis for compensation to air carriers collecting, handling, and remitting Passenger Facility Charges.
20090210: FAA suspended Miami-based AAR Landing Gear Services’ repair station certificate because the company had not followed manufacturer maintenance manual procedures for conducting liquid penetrant exams, shot peening, and cadmium plating before returning to service a variety of airliner landing gear parts. The agency said AAR employed defective processes and followed defective inspection protocols. FAA had inspected the Miami facility in early July 2008, and on July 16 had issued a written notice of alleged discrepancies, to which AAR said it responded with corrective actions on July 29. On November 7, AAR and FAA representatives met to discuss the company’s responses and its corrective actions. On January 30, FAA sent the company a follow-up letter identifying items that required further attention. AAR said it was in the process of responding to that request when it received the suspension notice. AAR had until February 20 to appeal the Emergency Order of Suspension. (See February 17, 2009.)
20120210: An Airbus A320 test aircraft made the world’s first four-dimensional, or 4D, trajectory flight as part of a single European sky air traffic management research (SESAR) initiative. SESAR, founded by the European Commission, Eurocontrol, Airbus, Honeywell, Indra, NORACON, and Thales, reported during the flight from Toulouse, France, to Stockholm, Sweden, the relevant air navigation service providers and airports successfully exchanged the trajectory information containing current and predicted position.
20140210: FAA certified Ohana by Hawaiian, Hawaiian Airlines’ new turboprop subsidiary. Ohana planned to enter the inter-island market with flights between Honolulu International Airport and Molokai on March 11 and between Oahu and Lanai on March 18.
20140210: Microsoft announced it received FAA authorization for Surface 2 tablets to be used as electronic flight bags. (See June 26, 2013.)
20140210: FAA launched a 10-day campaign to recruit air traffic controller (ATC) trainees. Candidates had to have a high school diploma or three years work experience. FAA’s collegiate training initiative (CTI) program graduates had to reapply under the new program. All applicants had to pass the normal ATC aptitude test (AT-SAT), as well as a new biographical test. In addition, a single vacancy announcement would be used for all applicant sources, and a single nationwide referral list would be generated containing all candidates who met the qualification standards and passed the assessments. Location preferences would no longer be used as a determining factor for referral or selection. Centralized selection panels would no longer be convened to make selection from the referral list. Selection would now be fully automated, grouping candidate by assessment scores and veteran’s preference. FAA notified the 36 CTI schools of the impending change on December 30, 2014, and held a telecon with the schools on January 8, 2014, to discuss the changes. The changes in hiring policy came after FAA released a barrier analysis of air traffic control hiring in April 2013. (See March 7, 2007; April 4, 2010.)