This Day in FAA History: September 7th

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19500907: President Truman approved Public Law 762, which directed the Secretary of Commerce “to construct, protect, operate, improve, and maintain” a second public airport for the Washington, D.C., area. The act authorized appropriations not to exceed $14 million (see July 11, 1958), and Congress subsequently authorized $1 million to launch the project. By the end of 1951, 1,046 of the required 4,570 acres had been purchased at Burke, Va. When local opposition to the project developed, Congress refused to appropriate additional funds. Further studies were made in the 1953-1955 period. (See December 1955.)
19570907: The President signed legislation establishing an aircraft loan guarantee program to aid local service and territorial carriers unable to obtain private loans to purchase new and modern equipment. The act authorized CAB to guarantee loans of up to $5 million for each such airline. (see October 15, 1962.)
19610907: FAA approved in principle the use of Doppler radar and other flight deck navaids to guide airliners across the North Atlantic. Authorization to operate on these routes without a navigator was contingent on satisfactory completion of a pilot training program and a refinement of procedures. The announcement resulted in a strike threat by airline navigators, who would be replaced by the all-electronic navigation systems. In February 1962, however, Trans World Airways became the first carrier to obtain FAA authorization to employ the Doppler navigational system in lieu of celestial navigation. (See July 21, 1964.)
19640907: Effective this date, FAA prescribed more rigorous safety standards for air-taxi operators and commercial operators of small aircraft weighing 12,500 pounds or less. The new directive was designated Part 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations in accordance with an ongoing recodification (see December 31, 1964), and its scope included the larger scheduled air taxis later designated commuter airlines (see July 1, 1969). Part 135 contained provisions on pilot qualifications, operational procedures, and aircraft equipment. Need for the new standards was underscored by a marked increase in the complexity and volume of air-taxi operations. The scheduled air taxi was becoming a popular means of transportation where small airports were located near industry or population centers, or where route-carrier scheduling did not meet local need. Aircraft manufacturers contributed to the growth of this mode of transportation by designing small aircraft especially suited for air-taxi operations. Route carriers, recognizing the potential of the air taxi as a feeder to main terminals, also contributed by entering into operating agreements with air-taxi operators. (See February 1968 and Calendar year 1968.)
19650907: FAA presented its first type certificate for a Japanese-made aircraft to the Nihon Aeroplane Manufacturing Company, Ltd., for its NAMC YS-11, a twin-turboprop short/medium-range transport with a maximum seating capacity of 59 passengers. The YS-11 had first flown in August 1962, and had received its Japanese type certificate on August 25, 1964. (See March 14, 1955.)
19730907: On this date, FAA issued the first National Airport System Plan (NASP). The plan forecasted that 700 new airports would be needed in the United States over the next 10 years to keep pace with the projected growth of air traffic. FAA estimated that the overall cost of building the new airports and upgrading existing facilities at $6.3 billion. The Airport and Airway Development Act of 1970 required FAA to prepare the NASP as a guide for future airport development (see May 21, 1970). The NASP replaced the former National Airport Plan (NAP), last published in 1967. (See August 2, 1985.)
19770907: The Aircraft Loan Guaranty Program lapsed on this date as Congress had failed to provide funds for program, which had guaranteed loans of $307 million during its 20-year existence. (See June 13, 1968, and October 24, 1978.)
19930907: Vice President Albert Gore released the report of the National Performance Review, a study of the operations of the Federal government that Gore had led during the past six months. The report made recommendations intended to streamline government and make it more cost beneficial. Proposals concerning aviation included: terminating Federal grant funding for FAA higher education programs; cutting Essential Air Service subsidies; increasing FAA fees for inspection of foreign repair facilities; and contracting for the operation of low activity (Level 1) air traffic control facilities. The report’s most far reaching recommendation concerning FAA was its proposal for creating a government-owned corporation to provide air traffic control services (see January 6 and May 3, 1994).
19950907: FAA announced that it was putting into operation a new Safety Performance Analysis System (SPAS), an automated decision support system designed to aid in targeting inspection and certification resources. By the end of fiscal 1996, the SPAS operational test system was in use by selected inspectors at 58 FAA offices.
20110907: Lockheed Martin announced controllers at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport were now using a tool it developed with FAA. The automated terminal proximity alert (ATPA) tool automatically let controllers know what the distance was between aircraft that are flying in-line instrument approaches. The system also visually alerted a controller when a trailing plane was predicted to get too close to an aircraft ahead of it, allowing the controller to take action before a loss of standard separation occurs.
20220907: FAA issued a new policy requiring Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) holders to protect employees authorized to act on behalf of the agency from feeling pressure to ignore possible safety risks and ensure they have direct lines of communication with the agency. The policy codified a 2020 law that called for more protections of ODA employees delegated to work on behalf of the FAA. The new requirements included: documented procedures for monitoring interference among UMs, annual anonymous surveys soliciting feedback on whether workers have experienced or witnessed pressure, clearly established protocols for addressing reports of interference, and clear lines of communication with FAA Organization Management Teams.
20220907: FAA issued type certificate to Matternet Inc.’s Model M2, a four-rotor copter capable of carrying a 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) package, the first flying drone built specifically for shipping packages.
20230907: President Biden nominated Michael Whitaker to be FAA Administrator. Whitaker began his career in aviation as an attorney for TWA in New York and Washington and then spent 15 years at United Airlines in Chicago, where he served as senior vice president of alliances, international and regulatory affairs. After leaving United, he served as Group CEO at InterGlobe, India’s largest travel conglomerate based in Delhi. In 2013, President Obama appointed Whitaker as deputy administrator of FAA, where he served until 2016. He earned a private pilot license while at the agency and holds bachelor’s degrees in political science and French from the University of Louisville and a juris doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center. The U.S. Senate confirmed Whitaker as FAA administrator on October 24, 2023. (See January 3, 2023.) The Senate confirmed Whitaker on October 24, 2023, for a five-year term as FAA administrator. On October 27, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Deputy Secretary Polly Trottenberg (who had been running FAA on an acting basis) swore Whitaker into office.