Problem statement
One of the most scrutinized pieces of evidence gathered from an aircraft accident is the collection of information contained in the Cockpit Voice Recorder and Flight Data Recorder. CVRs and FDRs paint an often haunting, but frequently useful picture of what occurred during the last minutes of an accident flight. This is not to say, however, that the recorders are always conclusive, or even useful. There are a handful of cases where the CVR and FDR tapes have broken, failed to record, stopped recording early, or not captured enough information to be useful to the investigation. Advancements in these devices are not new to the industry; however, the pace is slow to incorporate new technology into current fleets.
Justification
Concerns surrounding Cockpit Voice Recorders and Flight Data Recorders stem from all corners of the aviation industry. There are currently five outstanding NTSB recommendations to the FAA regarding the use of and reliability of CVRs and FDRs. Of these five suggested improvement areas, the FAA has yet to respond to any of them, prompting the NTSB to place the issues on their list of Top 10 Most Wanted Safety Recommendations.
Documented cases will be presented in this text where CVRs and FDRs have stopped recording seconds, and even minutes, before an accident. Other cases will examine incidents where the focus shifts to a hypothesis as to what may have been recorded on earlier portions of the tape. Either way, strong cases will be built to justify having CVR and FDR tapes not only record longer, but to record more information as well.
Herein, we shall identify existing problem areas, areas where work is ongoing, and areas for which future plans are in existence. These topic areas can be identified as follows: ú FDR and CVR carriage requirements for new aircraft ú FDR and CVR carriage requirements for existing aircraft (retrofit) ú Independent power supplies ú Cockpit video recording ú Deployable recorders ú NTSB recommendations
Background
History
Flight information recorders have been in use on commercial aircraft since the 1950’s. The FAA requires both CVRs and FDRs to be installed on all aircraft capable of carrying ten or more passengers when u...
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... a loss of power would result in 1/3 of the transcript being taped over. A good case is presented for 2 hour-long tapes.
As technology speeds into the blue yonder, we can expect to see more innovations in in-flight recordings. Civil aviation has not progressed to the point where video cameras and deployable recorders are viable and reliable devices. Will it ever? We can speculate. For now, the recommendations that lie before the FAA appear sufficient. The current trends and problems surrounding recorders have seemed to be addressed by the Safety Board. It is up to the Feds now.
Works Cited
FDR/CVR. 2 May 2000.
Scott,D.M,A. (2011, May 31). How to Complete an Incident Report. Retrieved on March 2014 from you tube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MRJUC6HgzQ
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Simmon, David A. (1998). Boeing 757 CFIT Accident at Cali, Columbia, Becomes Focus of Lessons Learned. Flight Safety Digest.
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Suggest possible solutions to cope with the issues as well as recommendations for further improvement