Aviation Safety Reporting Program (ASRP) (00-46)
The Aviation Safety Reporting Program (ASRP) is a cooperative safety reporting program that invites pilots, controllers, flight attendants (F/A), maintenance personnel, dispatchers, and other users of the National Airspace System (NAS), or any other person, to report to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) actual or potential discrepancies and deficiencies in aviation safety.
NASA serves as a third party to receive and process Aviation Safety Reports.
Examples of operations covered by the program include:
The effectiveness of this program in improving safety depends on the free, unrestricted flow of information from the users of the NAS. Based on information obtained from this program, the FAA will take corrective action as necessary to remedy defects or deficiencies in the NAS.
The reports may also provide data for improving the current system and planning for a future system.
Reporting Procedures
NASA ASRS forms have been prepared specifically for intended users (including Form 277A for air traffic use, Form 277B for general use (including pilots), Form 277C for F/As, Form 277D for maintenance personnel, and Form 277U for unmanned operations) and are preaddressed and postage free, or are available online for access and filing electronically.
Additionally, organizations may elect to securely transfer copies of reports from their internal reporting system to NASA ASRS directly.
Forms with a narrative report should be completed and mailed to ASRS at NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System, P.O. Box 189, Moffett Field, California 94035-0189, or filed electronically with ASRS through the NASA ASRS website at asrs.arc.nasa.gov.
Get the most recent Advisory Circular (00-46) from FAA.gov.
Read 14 CFR 91.25 at the National Archives website.
Why do you need to know about NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting Program? If you are involved in an incident that could have impacted flight safety, you can report the incident to this program. Moreover, as a user of the National Airspace System (NAS), you are encouraged to do so.
Some examples of incidents that would warrant an ASRP report include, but are not limited to:
Reports must be submitted within 10 days of the incident.
The FAA uses information obtained from the ASRP to take corrective action as necessary to remedy defects or deficiencies in the National Airspace System (NAS). The reports also may provide data for NAS planning.
NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) prioritizes confidentiality. All reporting parties, and others as appropriate, are assured to remain anonymous. The FAA has agreed not to seek reports filed under the ASRP, and NASA has stated that they will not make the reports available to the FAA. NASA also will not provide any information that might reveal the identity of any party involved in an occurrence or incident reported under the ASRP.
Because of these agreements, the FAA does use any reports submitted via the ASRP, or information derived, to support enforcement actions against pilots.
However, there are exceptions:
What's a "709" Ride?
Filing a NASA report protects pilots from enforcement actions, provided that the incident is not found by the FAA to fall within one of the disqualifying conditions.
However, a pilot may be compelled to take a re-examination flight with the FAA where his/her certificates and ratings are evaluated. This is known as a "709 Ride", per 49 USC 44709:
The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may reinspect at any time a civil aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, appliance, design organization, production certificate holder, air navigation facility, or air agency, or reexamine an airman holding a certificate issued under section 44703 of this title.
The results of this flight test may include a downgrade of the pilot's certificate. The NASA form does not prevent this result.
Test Questions
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