The wish for cockpit CVR`s are still there

AVweb Home | View Printer-Friendly Version Volume 22, Number 23b By Elaine Kauh   Airline cockpit systems can’t be safely rendered tamper- proof to prevent crews from sabotaging flights, the FAA  told the National Transportation Safety Board in a letter  obtained by Bloomberg News. The recent Germanwings  crash in Europe, found to have been premeditated by  the co-pilot, and the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines  MH370 last year has prompted a variety of security- related discussions within the industry and its regulators worldwide.  The NTSB, for one, has renewed its calls  for enhanced cockpit security including video cameras  to record pilots’ actions. The board has called for  changes in cockpit systems since 2000, after its finding  that a SilkAir captain in 1997 disabled flight recorders  and crashed a Boeing 737 in Indonesia, killing 104  people, according to Bloomberg’s report. In its response to the NTSB, the FAA argues that  pilots must be able to cut power to flight and voice  recorders in case of electrical overheating or fire.  “There appears to be no safe way to ensure recorders  cannot be intentionally disabled while keeping the  airplane safe from electrical failure that could become hazardous,”  FAA Administrator Michael Huerta wrote  to the NTSB, as quoted in Bloomberg’s report. “The  FAA does not want to introduce design requirements  that could expose the airplane to system risks that can  lead to cascading failure and fires.” As far as video  recorders in cockpits -- which pilots unions also have  opposed -- the agency says there is “no compelling  evidence” the equipment would be useful, Bloomberg  reported.