This Day in FAA History: August 23rd

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19370823: At the Army’s Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, the first wholly automatic landing was made by Capt. Carl J. Crane, the system’s inventor, Capt. George Holloman, pilot, and Mr. Raymond K. Stout, project engineer. The landing was made without intervention from the human pilot or from the ground.
19580823: President Eisenhower signed the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 (P.L. 85-726) into law. Treating comprehensively the Federal role in fostering and regulating civil aeronautics and air commerce, the new statute repealed the Air Commerce Act of 1926, the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938, the Airways Modernization Act of 1957, and those portions of the various Presidential reorganization plans dealing with civil aviation. The act assigned the functions exercised under these repealed laws, which had been dispersed within the Federal structure, to two independent agencies–the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA), which was created by the act, and the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), which was freed of its administrative ties with the Department of Commerce.
FAA came into existence with the signing of the Act, but assumed its functions in stages. Pursuant to the legislation, it also took over the responsibilities and personnel of the Airways Modernization Board, which were transferred to it by Executive Order 10786, on November l. FAA inherited as a nucleus the organization and functions of CAA on December 31, 1958. Later (on August 11, 1960), Executive Order 10883 terminated the Air Coordinating Committee, transferring its functions to FAA. Section 103 of the act concisely stated the Administrator’s major powers and responsibilities as follows:
(a)The regulation of air commerce in such manner as to best promote its development and safety and fulfill the requirements of national defense;
(b)The promotion, encouragement, and development of civil aeronautics;
(c)The control of the use of the navigable airspace of the United States and the regulation of both civil and military operations in such airspace in the interest of the safety and efficiency of both;
(d)The consolidation of research and development with respect to air navigation facilities, as well as the installation and operation thereof;
(e)The development and operation of a common system of air traffic control and navigation for both military and civil aircraft.” CAB, though retaining responsibility for economic regulation of the air carriers and for accident investigation, lost under the act most of its former authority in the safety regulation and enforcement field to FAA. The law provided, however, that any FAA order involving suspension or revocation of a certificate might be appealed to CAB for hearing, after which CAB could affirm, amend, modify, or reverse the FAA order. Provision was made for FAA participation in accident investigation, but determination of probable cause was to be the function of CAB alone. When the FAA assumed full operational status on December 31, 1958, it absorbed certain CAB personnel associated with the safety rulemaking function. (See November 1 and December 31, 1958.)
19770823: In the desert at Shaffer, Calif., Bryan Allen made the first flight propelled by human muscle through a one-mile, figure-eight course. Allen pedaled the course in the Gossamer Condor, a heavier-than-air craft weighing less than 70 pounds that had been designed by Paul MacCready. Nearly two years later, on June 12, 1979, Allen made the first human-powered flight across the English Channel, pedaling the MacReady-designed Gossamer Albatross.
19820823: United Parcel Service began “Next Day Air” package delivery between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The service was extended to 24 metropolitan areas during the following month, and by June 1985 it covered all the states except Alaska. UPS air freight had traveled primarily in the cargo holds of passenger aircraft through 1980, but thereafter the company relied increasingly on its growing fleet of cargo aircraft.
19840823: FAA issued an advisory circular establishing an acceptable means of obtaining airworthiness approval of airborne LORAN-C equipment for use as an area navigation system under instrument flight rules (IFR) as well as visual flight rules (VFR). Derived from the LORAN (Long Range Navigation) system developed during World War II, LORAN-C used radio signals from ground transmitting stations spaced several hundred miles apart. It had been developed primarily for marine users, but in the early 1980s many general aviation pilots had begun to adopt the system for VFR navigation. (See June 2, 1986.)
19880823: United Airlines became the first major U.S. carrier to get Operations Specifications produced by a new automated FAA system designed to increase standardization. With the new system, FAA assumed responsibility for initial preparation of the “Ops Specs,” which spelled out in detail the rules that an airline must follow to comply with safety requirements. Previously, the carriers had prepared the document and submitted it to FAA for approval.
19940823: Enactment of the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 provided fiscal year 1994-96 funding and authorization for FAA’s programs. This included the awarding of Airport Improvement Program grants, which had lapsed at the end of June 1994 (see entries for May 26, 1994, and September 30, 1996). The act also required that airport fees be reasonable, and directed DOT to issue rules on resolving disputes between airlines and airports over such fees, and to establish policies to prevent diversion of airport revenues to activities unrelated to airports. In addition, the act established a five-year term of office for the FAA Administrator, and directed FAA to institute a joint aviation research and development program with other agencies.
20100823: FAA announced that Nigeria had achieved a Category 1 rating under FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment program, which meant that Nigeria complied with international safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization. The IASA Category 1 rating was based on the results of a July FAA review of Nigeria’s civil aviation authority. With the IASA Category 1 rating, Nigerian air carriers could apply to operate to the United States with their own aircraft. (See July 30, 2010.)
20110823: New consumer protections for airline passengers went into effect mandating airlines to refund any fee for carrying a bag if the bag is lost. Airlines were required to prominently disclose all optional fees on their websites, including but not limited to fees for baggage, meals, canceling or changing reservations, or advanced or upgraded seating. The new rules also doubled the amount of money passengers were eligible to be compensated for in the event they were involuntarily bumped from an oversold flight. The rule expanded the existing ban on lengthy tarmac delays to cover the international flights of foreign airlines at U.S. airports, and established a hard four-hour time limit on tarmac delays for all international flights at U.S. airports. It also extended the three-hour tarmac delay limit for domestic flights, then in place at large-hub and medium-hub airports, to flights at small-hub and non-hub airports. All carriers subjected to the tarmac rule would be required to report lengthy tarmac delays to DOT. In all cases, exceptions to the time limits were allowed only for safety, security, or air traffic control-related reasons. Carriers also had to ensure passengers stuck on the tarmac were provided adequate food and water after two hours, as well as working lavatories and any necessary medical treatment. (See June 2, 2010 and November 14, 2011.) Additional measures under the new rule that would take effect January 24, 2012, included
* Requiring all taxes and fees to be included in advertised fares.
* Banning post-purchase price increases.
* Allowing passengers to hold a reservation without payment, or to cancel it without penalty, for 24 hours after the reservation is made, if the reservation is made one week or more prior to a flight’s departure date.
* Requiring disclosure of baggage fees when passengers book a flight.
* Requiring that the same baggage allowances and fees apply throughout a passenger’s journey.
* Requiring disclosure of baggage fee information on e-ticket confirmations.
* Requiring prompt notification of delays of over 30 minutes, as well as cancellations and diversions.
20160823: The Santa Monica city council voted to close the Santa Monica airport as soon as legally permitted, with a goal of on or before July 1, 2018. (See August 15, 2016; September 15, 2016.)
20230823: FAA approved an experimental airworthiness certificate for Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 technology demonstrator, clearing the way for flight testing at the Mojave Air and Space Port, California.