NTSB -- NTSB TO HOLD SYMPOSIUM ON AIRLINE CODE-SHARING ARRANGEMENTS AND THEIR ROLE IN AVIATION SAFETY

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NTSB ADVISORY

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National Transportation Safety Board

Washington, DC 20594

August 16, 2010

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NTSB TO HOLD SYMPOSIUM ON AIRLINE CODE-SHARING ARRANGEMENTS

AND THEIR ROLE IN AVIATION SAFETY

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The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a two-day

symposium on the role that airline code-sharing arrangements

play in aviation safety. The event, chaired by NTSB Chairman

Deborah A.P. Hersman, will be held on October 26-27, 2010,

in Washington, DC.

Code-sharing is a marketing arrangement in which one airline

places its designator code on a flight operated by another

airline, then sells and issues tickets for that flight.

Recent NTSB investigations of accident flights operated

under code-sharing arrangements include the February 2009

accident near Buffalo, New York, in which a Colgan Air

flight was operated as Continental Connection; a 2007

accident in Traverse City, Michigan, in which a Pinnacle

Airlines flight was operated as Northwest Airlink; a 2007

accident in Cleveland, Ohio, in which a Shuttle America

flight was operated as Delta Connection; and a 2006 accident

in Lexington, Kentucky, in which a Comair flight was

operated as Delta Connection.

Today, most airlines participate in some type of code-

sharing arrangement, either with domestic or international

partners. More than half of passenger enplanements in the

U.S. this year are on regional airlines, almost all of which

are involved in code-sharing arrangements.

"In the past twenty years, code-sharing arrangements have so

proliferated within commercial aviation that today the vast

majority of airlines are involved in what are often complex

business and operational arrangements." said NTSB Chairman

Deborah A.P. Hersman. "We have investigated many accidents

in which passengers bought tickets on a major carrier and

flew all or part of their trip on a different carrier - one

that may have been operating to different safety standards

than the carrier that issued the ticket. While all carriers

are required to meet minimum standards, a clearer picture

and deeper understanding of the best safety practices for

code-sharing arrangements are the goals of this symposium."

The symposium will be organized to elicit information on the

following three issue areas: (1) structures, practices, and

oversight of domestic and international code-sharing

arrangements; (2) best practices regarding the sharing of

safety information between airlines and their code-sharing

partners; and (3) the role that a major airline would have

in the family disaster assistance response for an accident

involving a code-sharing partner.

These areas will be explored through presentations from

major and regional airlines, industry organizations, and

representatives of the traveling public.

The symposium, "Airline Code-Sharing Arrangements and Their

Role in Aviation Safety" will be held at the NTSB Board Room

and Conference Center, located at 429 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W.,

Washington, DC. A detailed agenda will be released closer

to the date of the event.

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NTSB Media Contact: Peter Knudson

peter.knudson@xxxxxxxx

(202) 314-6100

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