[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1112 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1112
To improve the safety of the air supply on commercial aircraft, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 10, 2019
Mr. Blumenthal (for himself, Mr. Markey, and Mrs. Feinstein) introduced
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve the safety of the air supply on commercial aircraft, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Cabin Air Safety Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. COMMERCIAL AIR CARRIER DEFINED.
In this Act, the term ``commercial air carrier'' means an air
carrier operating under part 121 or 135 of title 14, Code of Federal
Regulations.
SEC. 3. TRAINING TO RESPOND TO SMOKE OR FUME INCIDENTS ON AIRCRAFT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration shall prescribe regulations requiring flight attendants,
pilots, aircraft maintenance technicians, and airport first responders
and emergency response teams to receive training, not less frequently
than annually, on how to respond to incidents on board aircraft
involving smoke or fumes.
(b) Requirements.--The training required by subsection (a) shall
include the dissemination of educational materials with respect to the
following:
(1) Sources and types of smoke and fumes on board aircraft.
(2) Odor and visual descriptors to allow an individual to
recognize the presence of oil and hydraulic fluid fumes and
other potentially hazardous fumes, such as fumes relating to
hydraulic fluid, engine exhaust, ground service vehicle
exhaust, fuel, de-icing fluid, and ozone.
(3) The potential for acute or chronic impairment to an
individual relating to such fumes.
(4) Procedures for recognizing and responding to smoke and
fumes on board aircraft.
(5) An overview of the system for reporting incidents of
smoke or fumes on board aircraft established under section
4(a)(2).
(6) Requirements relating to reporting incidents of smoke
and fumes on board aircraft to the Federal Aviation
Administration under sections 4 and 6(b).
SEC. 4. REPORTING OF INCIDENTS OF SMOKE OR FUMES ON BOARD AIRCRAFT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration shall--
(1) develop a standardized form for flight attendants,
pilots, and aircraft maintenance technicians to report
incidents of smoke or fumes on board an aircraft operated by a
commercial air carrier; and
(2) establish a system for reporting incidents of smoke or
fumes on board aircraft that allows--
(A) pilots, flight attendants, and aircraft
maintenance technicians to--
(i) submit the form developed under
paragraph (1) to the Federal Aviation
Administration; and
(ii) receive a copy of such submission for
their records; and
(B) pilots, flight attendants, aircraft maintenance
technicians, the collective bargaining representative
of employees of the air carrier, and commercial air
carriers to search the reported incidents database
compiled by the Federal Aviation Administration for the
purposes of reviewing and monitoring incidents
contained in the database and assisting with
investigations conducted under section 5.
(b) Content of Forms.--The form developed under subsection (a)(1)
for reporting an incident of smoke or fumes on board an aircraft shall
include sections for the following information, if available at the
time of the report:
(1) Identification of the flight, the type of aircraft, the
registration number of the aircraft, and the individual
reporting the incident.
(2) Information about the smoke or a fire, if relevant,
including a description of the nature and apparent source of
the smoke or fire.
(3) Information about the fumes, including a description of
the type, apparent source, smell, and visual consistency (if
any) of the smoke or fumes.
(4) Information about the location of the smoke or fumes.
(5) Information about the engine manufacturer, engine type,
the engine serial number, and the age of the engine.
(6) Information about--
(A) the phase of flight during which smoke or fumes
were present; and
(B) if the incident happened while the aircraft was
on the ground, the location of the aircraft at the
airport at the time of the incident.
(7) Other observations about the smoke or fumes.
(8) A description of symptoms reported by crew members and
passengers.
(9) Information with respect to whether crew members or
passengers used, needed, or were administered supplemental or
emergency oxygen.
(10) Information regarding any effects on the operation of
the flight.
(11) Information about maintenance work conducted on the
aircraft following the incident.
(c) Public Availability of Smoke and Fume Event Information.--
(1) In general.--Not less frequently than quarterly and
subject to paragraph (2), the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration shall compile, and make available to
the public, statistics regarding the information obtained from
the forms developed under subsection (a)(1) and submitted to
the Federal Aviation Administration.
(2) Website.--The Administrator shall develop a publicly
available Internet website that includes the aggregate data
required under paragraph (1) and a searchable database for the
events reported to the Federal Aviation Administration under
subsection (a)(2) that includes the following variables for
each event:
(A) Date.
(B) Tail number.
(C) Air carrier.
(D) Phase of flight.
(E) Location of fumes.
(F) Description of fumes.
(G) Aircraft type.
(H) Engine type.
(I) Oil type.
(J) Deidentified narrative.
(K) Cause or maintenance information if cause is
not known.
(L) Such other criteria as the Administrator
considers appropriate.
(3) Redaction.--Before making either individual event
information or aggregate data available to the public under
paragraph (1) or (2), the Administrator shall redact any
personally identifiable information.
SEC. 5. INVESTIGATIONS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration shall prescribe regulations requiring the Federal
Aviation Administration to conduct an investigation described in
subsection (b), after a report is submitted to the Administration
through the system for reporting incidents of smoke or fumes on board
aircraft established under section 4(a)(2) and before the date that is
7 days after the incident.
(b) Requirements for Investigations.--An investigation described in
this subsection shall include the following:
(1) Gathering factual and standardized information from all
flight attendants, pilots, aircraft maintenance technicians,
airport first responders, emergency response teams, and medical
doctors involved in the incident.
(2) Gathering any reports submitted under section 4 with
respect to the incident.
(3) Gathering technical findings on any replaced, worn,
missing, failed, or improperly serviced components that may
have resulted in the incident.
(4) Identifying the cause of the incident, if possible.
(c) Participation of Air Carriers and Collective Bargaining
Representatives.--In conducting an investigation under this section,
the Federal Aviation Administration shall--
(1) consult with the commercial air carrier involved;
(2) work in conjunction with the technical representatives
of the air carrier; and
(3) invite the participation of the collective bargaining
representative of employees of the air carrier.
SEC. 6. AIR MONITORING EQUIPMENT.
(a) Requirement To Include on Commercial Aircraft.--Not later than
180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator
of the Federal Aviation Administration shall prescribe regulations
requiring a commercial air carrier, by not later than one year after
the regulations are published in the Federal Register--
(1) to install and operate onboard carbon monoxide
detectors that--
(A) are situated in the air supply system to best
enable pilots and maintenance technicians to locate the
source or sources of air supply contamination;
(B) continuously monitor carbon monoxide levels in
the aircraft air supply system when the aircraft is in
flight; and
(C) alert the pilot and flight attendants in the
event that carbon monoxide concentration is at or above
9 ppm; and
(2) to have in place procedures to train the pilots to
initiate standardized communication protocols, as soon as
appropriate, with the flight attendants and controllers (as
needed), and to apply their professional judgement based on
onboard conditions, all in response to carbon monoxide
concentration at or above 9 ppm.
(b) Requirement for a Pilot To Report an Alarm.--The regulations
prescribed under subsection (a) shall require a pilot to submit a form
through the system for reporting incidents of smoke or fumes on board
aircraft established under section 4(a)(2) if the carbon monoxide
concentration is at or above 9 ppm at any time during flight.
(c) Inclusion of Information Relating to Carbon Monoxide Detectors
in Aircraft Manuals.--Not later than one year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration shall prescribe regulations requiring an aircraft
manufacturer that manufactures aircraft for commercial air carriers to
include procedures for responding to alarms from carbon monoxide
detectors during normal and nonstandard operations in the flight
operator's manual for each such aircraft produced by the manufacturer.
(d) Continuing Research To Develop Sensors and Techniques To
Monitor Bleed Air Quality.--The Federal Aviation Administration shall
continue to research, study, and identify emerging technologies
suitable to provide reliable warning of bleed air contamination,
including through investigation and research into specific sensors,
methods, and operational techniques to prevent fume events.
(e) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be construed
to imply that an investigation under section 5 is not necessary or that
crew members and passengers have not been exposed to fumes if the alarm
in a carbon monoxide detector installed on an aircraft is not
activated.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Federal Aviation
Administration such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
SEC. 8. EXCLUSION OF HELICOPTERS.
The provisions of this Act do not apply to helicopters.
SEC. 9. CONFORMING REPEAL.
Section 326 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-
254) is repealed.
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