NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said that government planes and helicopters are currently “safety orphans,” with no governing body regulating the safety of the flight crews, government employees and passengers who use them and that “someone needs to accept this duty.”
The issue of who is responsible for overseeing the safety of government aircraft came to light following a two-year investigation into a crash that killed seven U.S. Forest Service firefighters and injured four others near Weaverville, California on Aug. 5, 2008.
The General Services Administration, which makes air fleet management recommendations to federal agencies, said the FAA is responsible for oversight of aircraft that is used only to carry passengers, but does not regulate aircraft engaged in government activities like firefighting, criminal investigations, border patrol or land surveying. The FAA has said it does not have the authority to regulate government aircraft.
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