BY ANGELA GREILING KEANE
Copyright 2003 Journal of Commerce, Inc.
Traffic World

The cargo airline industry is concerned that a planned National Transportation Safety Board air cargo safety forum will give industry opponents a very public forum at which to air their grievances.

NTSB Chairwoman Ellen Engleman resurrected an idea to hold a public discussion about air cargo safety that was born during the board's investigation of a Emery Worldwide Airlines crash in 2000 that killed the three crew members on board.

"I just felt it was work that was needed to be done, especially with some of the air cargo-related accidents the NTSB has investigated," Engleman told the Cargo Airline Association. "Where is it going to lead? I don't know. It's not a board hearing. It's a forum."

In the air cargo industry's estimation, the NTSB started planning the forum on the wrong foot by announcing it at an August Air Line Pilots Association banquet that highlighted aviation safety. "The National Transportation Safety Board relies on its partners in safety and tonight is no different," Engleman said at the Aug. 21 ALPA dinner. "This evening, I ask ALPA and industry partners to join the NTSB in developing an air cargo safety forum at the NTSB Academy. With your help and the help of other industry and transportation leaders, this timely discussion can and will make a difference in achieving safer skies."

Engleman said the NTSB should involve itself in air cargo issues because the line between safety and security is often blurry. "There is no complete separation of safety and security," she said. "You can make something safe that's not secure. The NTSB has a huge history regarding safety and security."

But cargo carriers fear the move is merely one more federal agency camel sticking its nose under the proverbial tent. Engleman said the NTSB's jurisdiction stretches beyond merely investigating transportation accidents.

"This is not a mission-creep organization," she said. "We're not looking to expand our mission. We've got plenty on our plate as it is."

And, Engleman said, the forum is not intended to serve as extension of the Emery crash, although that was one impetus for it. "I'm not using the forum to be a bullet against anyone or a target on someone," she said. "It's not a result of Emery Air. It's not an Emery Air rehash."

The forum, which has not been scheduled, is expected to last for two days at the NTSB's training facility in Ashburn, Va. The board has offered scant detail about the forum's agenda, saying it is deferring that to the planning committee, which includes air cargo industry representatives.

NTSB board member John Goglia, who presided over the Emery hearing, broached the idea of an air cargo forum during the Emery investigation. The Emery crash in outside Sacramento, Calif., came three years after an overloaded Fine Air cargo plane crashed on takeoff at Miami International Airport, another event that drew attention to air cargo safety. Goglia's background is in aircraft maintenance and he has been outspoken about cargo safety issues.

Engleman said the crash of Emery Flight 17 highlighted the need to focus on cargo security. "This is one of the saddest accidents that the NSTB has investigated because it truly was an accident that didn't have to happen," she said.

According to ALPA, the NTSB has investigated at least 38 accidents involving air cargo since 1984.

Copyright 2003, Traffic World, Inc.