This Day in FAA History: December 28th

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19481228: CAA ordered a complete end to racial segregation at Washington National Airport following a Department of Justice opinion that the Administrator had authority to issue such a ruling notwithstanding the apparent incorporation of the Virginia segregation statute in the Federal law governing the airport.
19781228: Administrator Bond established a Light Transport Airplane Airworthiness Review looking to the adoption, in December 1980, of a new FAR Part 24 that would establish separate airworthiness standards for airplanes intended for commuter operations. FAA had airworthiness standards for two basic designations of airplanes: Part 23 for airplanes 12,500 pounds or under that seated up to nine passengers, and Part 25 for transport category airplanes. FAA proposed to apply the new certification category to airplanes that carried up to 60 passengers and had a maximum takeoff weight of 50,000 pounds. In December 1980, however, FAA withdrew the proposal. Foreign manufacturers, already manufacturing commuter aircraft under the more stringent Part 25 standards, opposed the new rule. FAA also determined that the savings in costs between manufacturing airplanes under the proposed standards and the existing Part 25 standards would be minimal.
19821228: Secretary of Transportation Drew Lewis announced his resignation, effective February 1, 1983. Lewis, who stated that he had originally planned to remain as Secretary only two years before returning to private life, became chief executive of a cable television company.
19821228: Witnesses reported that a 737 flew dangerously close to a tall building in Rosslyn, Va., as it approached Washington National Airport. On March 24, 1983, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reported that the aircraft had flown nearer the building than normally should occur, and that low-flying aircraft were not unusual in the locality. NTSB recommended that FAA change the approach path and take certain other actions. FAA rejected these recommendations, but on November 21, 1983, NTSB asked the agency to reconsider. On December 21, FAA responded that it would institute a new instrument approach course farther from Rosslyn, upgrade electronic equipment on the approach already in use, and place an additional limit on how low pilots using a third approach course could descend before sighting the airport. FAA also tested new lead-in lights and later installed them on Potomac River bridges. (See March 8, 1984.)
19971228: A powerful blast of air turbulence sent a United Airlines jumbo jet with 393 people aboard into a sudden 1,000-foot drop over the Pacific Ocean, killing one passenger and injuring 110 others. The Boeing 747 (United Flight 826) was about 1,100 miles east of Japan after leaving Tokyo for Honolulu when it encountered the turbulence. December 31, 1997: During Calendar Year 1997 public agencies collected $1.2 billion in Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) revenue.
20141228: AirAsia Flight QZ8501, an Airbus A320-200 flying from Surabaya to Singapore, disappeared in Indonesian airspace with 162 people on board. Indonesian authorities leading the rescue efforts believed the plane went down in the Java Sea between the islands of Belitung and Borneo.
20161228: FAA approved a certificate of authorization for the Northern Plains UAS Test Site to oversee unmanned aircraft operations that go beyond the line of sight of the operator. The North Dakota test site was the first in the nation to have such beyondline-of-sight operability. This meant the test site would be able to support the development, testing, and evaluation of a wide range of new applications for UAS technology. (See March 10, 2016; April 9, 2018.)
20201228: FAA announced final rules for unmanned aircraft. The new rules required Remote Identification (Remote ID) of drones and allow operators of small drones to fly over people and at night under certain conditions. Remote ID will help mitigate risks associated with expanded drone operations, such as flights over people and at night, and both rules support technological and operational innovation and advancements. The Remote ID rule (PDF) applies to all operators of drones that require FAA registration. There are three ways to comply with the operational requirements
1. Operate a standard Remote ID drone that broadcasts identification and location information of the drone and control station;
2. Operate a drone with a Remote ID broadcast module (may be a separate device attached to the drone), which broadcasts identification, location, and take-off information; or
3. Operate a drone without Remote ID but at specific FAA-recognized identification areas.
The Operations Over People and at Night rule applied to Part 107 operators. The ability to fly over people and moving vehicles varies depending on the level of risk a small drone operation presents to people on the ground. The rule allowed for operations at night under certain conditions. The final rule required that small drone operators have their remote pilot certificate and identification in their physical possession when operating, ready to present to authorities if needed. This rule also expanded the class of authorities who may request these forms from a remote pilot. The final rule replaces the requirement to complete a recurrent test every 24 calendar months with the requirement to complete updated recurrent training that included operating at night in identified subject areas. Both rules became effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. The Remote ID rule included two compliance dates. Drone manufacturers had 18 months to begin producing drones with Remote ID, with operators having an additional year to start using drones with Remote ID. (See May 5, 2020; April 21, 2021.)
20201228: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized emissions standards for airplanes used in commercial aviation and large business jets. This action will align U.S. standards with the international carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), ensuring domestically manufactured aircraft remain competitive in the global marketplace.
20201228: Effective this date, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention required that anyone traveling from the United Kingdom to the United States Passengers get a viral test (i.e., a test for current infection) for COVID-19 within three days before their flight from the U.K. to the U.S. departs, and provide written documentation of their laboratory test result (in hard copy or electronic) to the airline. Airlines had to confirm the negative test result for all passengers before they boarded the aircraft. If a passenger chose not to take a test, the airline had to deny boarding to the passenger.
20231228: FAA announced it was closely monitoring targeted inspections of Boeing 737 MAX airplanes to look for a possible loose bolt in the rudder control system. Under consultation with FAA, Boeing issued a Multi-Operator Message (MOM), urging operators of newer single-aisle airplanes to inspect specific tie rods that control rudder movement for possible loose hardware. FAA said it would remain in contact with Boeing and the airlines while the inspections are underway. The agency will consider additional action based on further discovery of loose or missing hardware. Boeing recommended the inspections after an international operator discovered a bolt with a missing nut while performing routine maintenance on a mechanism in the rudder-control linkage.
20231228: Chinese manufacturer EHang demonstrated the world’s first commercial eVTOL air taxi flight. Inaugural trips aboard the two-passenger, self-flying air taxi took place in Guangzhou and Hefei. Passengers—including high-ranking government officials and citizens alike—were invited to fly and did not need to pay for their tickets. The cities posted no-fly notices to keep the airspace clear.