NTSB Smooths Accident Data Reporting

A new accident reporting system will streamline data collection for investigations.

Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • The NTSB has launched a new secure online portal for pilots and operators to submit data regarding incidents and accidents.
  • This new portal replaces a cumbersome fillable PDF, aiming to simplify the reporting process for pilots and reduce manual data entry for NTSB staff.
  • The update streamlines compliance with federal regulations that require immediate accident reporting and completion of NTSB Form 6120.1 for investigations, which occur about 1,000 times annually.
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The NTSB is making it easier for pilots to tell them all about what might be the worst day of their lives. The board has introduced a new user-friendly secure online portal to allow pilots and operators to submit data about incidents and accidents that the organization is investigating. It replaces a cumbersome fillable PDF that must be filled out and emailed to the NTSB. It will also free up some time at the other end because NTSB staff must manually input the information from the PDF into their system.

“Federal regulations have long required the pilot-in-command or operator of an aircraft with an FAA-issued registration number to report an accident to the NTSB ‘immediately, and by the most expeditious means available,'” the NTSB said in a news release. “After an initial report is made by calling the NTSB’s 24-hour Response Operations Center at 844-373-9922, an investigator will determine whether the NTSB will investigate. In those cases when an investigation is opened, the pilot and/or operator will complete NTSB Form 6120.1. On average, the NTSB receives nearly 1,000 of these reports each year.”

Russ Niles

Russ Niles is Editor-in-Chief of AVweb. He has been a pilot for 30 years and joined AVweb 22 years ago. He and his wife Marni live in southern British Columbia where they also operate a small winery.
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