CFI 199 DOT FAA Carriers Ops questionnaire

Final Version 5/4/09Revised 4/9/09 CFI Group

Federal Aviation Administration

Department of Transportation

Air Carrier Operations Management

Satisfaction Survey 2009

Survey Introduction

Target respondents: Part 121 Air Carriers and Part 135 All-Cargo Operators

Operations Management: Director of Operations, Director of Safety, Chief Pilot, Chief Inspector, Director of Training

Thank you for agreeing to participate in this survey, which will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. CFI Group, an independent research and consulting firm, is conducting this study. Your responses will remain strictly confidential and anonymous. CFI Group will aggregate your responses with others before reporting the data to the FAA Department of Transportation.

This survey has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget Control and is authorized under number 1090-0007.

Demographics

Q1. Under which of the following is your airline certified? (Select all that apply)

1. Part 121 Passenger

2. Part 121 Cargo

3. Part 121/135 All Cargo

4. Part 135 All Cargo

Q2. Has your carrier been conducting operations under its current certificate for less than 5 years (i.e. new entrant)?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q3. Have you made amendments to your operating certificate in the last 12 months?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

FAA Oversight Effectiveness

ASK Q4 ONLY TO 121 CARRIERS (ASK IF Q1=1,2 or 3)

Q4. Please rate how much oversight programs, such as ATOS have contributed to improving operational safety at your airline. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Did not contribute very much and 10 means Contributed a great deal.

Q5. Please rate how clearly ATOS findings are communicated to the appropriate managers at your airline. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very clearly and 10 means Very clearly.

Q6. During the past 12 months, have your operations…?

1. Expanded

2. Contracted

3. Remained the same

Certifications/Policies, Standards, Regulations

Please rate the policies, standards, regulations, and other guidance vehicles from the FAA on the following areas. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Poor and 10 means Excellent.

Q7. Consistency

Q8. Written in clear and understandable manner

Q9. Usefulness to your operations and planning

Q10. Providing your organization tools for today’s aviation environment

Q11. Keeping pace with changes in your industry

Q12. How much impact has FAA programs and/or guidance had on economic efficiencies in the execution of your business plans? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Very little impact and 10 means A great deal of impact.

Q13. Has FAA guidance assisted you in the implementation of the Age 65 Ruling?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q14. Do you receive SAFOs and InFOs?

1. Yes (ASK Q15)

2. No (SKIP TO Q16)

3. Don’t Know (SKIP TO Q16)

Q15. Do you feel that SAFOs and InFOs are effective vehicles to convey useful information to air carrier decision makers?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q16. Are Advisory Circulars useful in complying with FAA regulation and policy?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

FAA Organizations/Personnel

Q17. At which level are most of your interactions with FAA? (Select one)

1. FSDO/CMO

2. Regional Office

3. Headquarters

Think about your primary FAA service contact when you request clarification of regulations and policies. Please rate your primary contact on the following. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Poor and 10 means Excellent.

Please bear in mind that requests may involve further coordination between your primary contact and the FAA to obtain the answer and your answer should only reflect your opinion of your primary contact only.

Q18. Level of personal interface

Q19. Quality of service

Q20. Providing answers/responses in a timely manner

Q21. Providing technically accurate information

Q22. Resolving your issues

Please rate the support you received from FAA in the following areas. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Poor and 10 means Excellent.

Q23. Training programs

Q24. Aircrew certifications

Q25. Improving safety with respect to standards and operations

Q26. Have you visited www.faa.gov in the past 12 months?

1. Yes (ASK Q27-29)

2. No (SKIP TO Q30)

3. Don’t Know (SKIP TO Q30)

ASK Q27- 29 ONLY IF Q26=1 YES

Please rate how useful the information on the FAA website is for the following. Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is Not Very Useful and 10 is Very Useful.

Q27. Support/enable compliance with FAA regulations and guidance

Q28. Support/enable effective management processes

Q29. Please rate how useful the OpSpec system is for meeting your business needs. Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is Not Very Useful and 10 is Very Useful.

Safety trends/Programs

Q30. Which of the following voluntary safety programs does your organization use as a source for risk indicators in ATOS? (SELECT ALL THAT APPLY)

1. ASAP

2. VDRP

3. FOQA

4. None of the above (SKIP TO Q40)

Q31. Please rate the extent to which you think these programs have improved industry safety. Use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Did not contribute much and 10 means Contributed a great deal.

Q32. Are the benefits of these programs worth additional costs, if any?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q33. Do you feel that safety monitoring, surveillance and assessment programs provide effective, predictive tools for the design and implementation of safety management programs?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q34. Do you feel that safety monitoring; surveillance and assessment programs assist in targeting company oversight or priorities?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

IF Q30=1 ASAP ASK Q35

Q35. To what extent is your company safety office kept informed of safety issues identified in that program? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very much and 10 means A great deal.

IF Q30=1 ASAP OR 3 FOQA ASK Q36 and Q37

Q36. To what extent has your airline made procedural changes based on information from these programs? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very much and 10 means A great deal.

Q37. To what extent have safety issues identified in these programs been publicized to the employee population? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very much and 10 means A great deal.

Q38. Please rate how effective FAA has been at communicating Safety Management System (SMS) program guidance and information in advance of imminent implementation? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very effective and 10 means Very effective.

Q39. Do you feel that the implementation of SMS will enhance the operational safety of your organization?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Industry Challenges and Issues

To what extent have each of the following impacted operational safety during the past year? Please use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 means Not very much and 10 means A great deal.

Q40. An increase in human fatigue due to current economic conditions (e.g. fewer personnel having to do the same amount of work)

Q41. Overall economic issues/concerns

Q42. Employee moral

Q43. Does your company have a Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS)?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

IF Q43 = 2 NO ASK Q44a

Q44a. Do you believe that your FRMS program enhances safety?

IF Q43 = 2 NO ASK Q44b

Q44b. Do you think that your company would benefit from having a FRMS?

ACSI Benchmarks

Now, consider your overall satisfaction with the FAA. Satisfaction includes many things, so please reflect on all your experiences to date with the Federal Aviation Administration.

Q45. First, please consider all your experiences to date with the Federal Aviation Administration. Using a 10-point scale on which "1" means "Very Dissatisfied" and "10" means "Very Satisfied," how satisfied are you with the FAA?

Q46. Considering all your expectations, to what extent has the FAA fallen short of or exceeded your expectations? Using a 10-point scale on which "1" means "Falls Short of Expectations" and "10" means "Exceeds Expectations," to what extent has the FAA fallen short of or exceeded your expectations?

Q47. Forget about the FAA for a moment. Now, imagine an ideal agency promoting the safety of aviation. How well do you think the FAA compares to that ideal agency? Please use a 10-point scale on which "1" means "Not Very Close to Ideal" and "10" means "Very Close to Ideal."

Outcome Measures

Now, please think about any communication you may have had with the FAA over the past year regarding complaints about your experience with the FAA.

Q48. Have you complained to the FAA within the past year?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t Know

Q49. How confident are you that the Federal Aviation Administration will do a good job in the future of promoting the safety of civil aviation? Using a 10-point scale on which "1" means "Not at all Confident" and "10" means "Very Confident," how sure are you that the FAA will do a good job in the future of promoting the safety of civil aviation?

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Questionnaire – Page 6