The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), trying to shake criticism it has been too close to the industry it regulates, will drop its practice of calling airlines its ‘customers’ while also beefing up safety measures.

The FAA will no longer refer to air carriers as customers. That policy got the aviation agency in hot water with lawmakers last year during a Southwest Airlines maintenance oversight controversy. Some lawmakers and safety watchdogs had long complained of a revolving-door culture that allegedly fostered coziness between the FAA and the airlines.

Whistle-blowers brought to the surface maintenance lapses at Southwest, leading to a congressional probe and harsh criticism of FAA oversight. The FAA eventually fined Southwest Airlines for operating 46 airplanes without performing mandatory inspections for fuselage fatigue cracking. The agency found that the airline failed to comply with a September 2004 airworthiness directive (AD).

Several U.S. air carriers soon after voluntarily cancelled thousands of MD-80 flights amidst heightened FAA inspections to make sure that they had complied with a wiring AD.

“These changes make it clear that the FAA’s number-one customer is the public. We know we can improve how we all communicate technical safety information so we maintain a safe U.S. fleet and avoid flight cancellations wherever possible,” said Babbitt.

Meanwhile, as part of a strategy to reduce risks by employing safety data, the FAA’s Office of Aviation Safety has launched a new Accident Investigation and Prevention Service that combines the existing Offices of Accident Investigation and Safety Analytical Services into a new Accident Prevention Office.

“If we are going to continue to improve aviation safety, we have to be able to gather safety information from our industry and use data-driven safety programs to identify and address risks before they lead to accidents,” Babbitt believes.

The FAA is establishing a new Office of Audit and Evaluation that will handle all public safety complaints and whistleblower allegations. The FAA is now providing managers and supervisors in safety offices around the nation with guidance to ensure that FAA decisions are consistent with rules and policies and are communicated in a standard, consistent manner.

The new office aims to improve the FAA’s ability to conduct candid self-examinations in aviation safety matters and questionable personnel practices. The office’s goal is to manage complaints and audits more effectively, making sure they receive the necessary consideration and coordination and are acted on in a timely manner.

The FAA is also strengthening the procedures used by air carriers, manufacturers, and the FAA to ensure that air carriers comply with ADs. A team of FAA and industry experts found that the processes for developing, issuing and implementing ADs work well, but uncovered areas where improvements could be made.

The agency has also chartered an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) to identify and implement long-term actions on AD compliance that can be completed by the third quarter of 2011.

Creation of the new Accident Prevention Office will allow the aviation agency to better understand current and emerging risks across the aviation community through the use of data from accident and incident investigations, historical accidents and incidents, and voluntarily submitted information from industry programs such as the Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) and Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) program.

The FAA believes it can now look at data from commercial operations and identify emerging vulnerabilities and trends.

The Accident Investigation and Prevention Service will be headed by Jay Pardee, who most recently was the director of the Office of Safety Analytical Services. Tony Fazio, who most recently was director of the FAA's Europe, Africa and Middle East Office in Brussels, will serve as deputy director.

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