You may have done a double-take when you picked up this issue of the magazine. Though it has familiar elements, the cover sports an updated look. The more dramatic change, though, is the title transition from FAA Aviation News to FAA Safety Briefing.

What’s Up with That? When we updated the magazine nearly two years ago, we pledged to keep the design fresh and the content relevant to the needs of our audience – the non-commercial general aviation community. You may be thinking, as we initially did, that a two-year-old graphic design can hardly be deemed decrepit, even in the fast-changing aviation world. We did, however, discover that we needed to make some changes in order to bring this publication into compliance with the branding standards and guidelines the FAA developed in the last few years. The cover changes accomplish that objective, but they also serve the original goal of periodically refreshing the magazine’s look without the kind of complete overhaul you first saw in the March/April 2008 issue.

What’s in a Name? As we reviewed possible cover designs over
the past few months, we also took the opportunity to consider updating other aspects of the magazine. Feedback suggested that the magazine’s name didn’t really reflect our audience, our mission, or our approach. Together with colleagues from the FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam), whose mission we showcase in this issue, we brainstormed possibilities and concluded that FAA Safety Briefing is a much more descriptive name. The new title is a better reflection of our core mission (providing safety information), and the word “briefing” underscores the kind of safety-minded practices that we hope to encourage and promote. We hope you’ll agree, and that you’ll enjoy FAA Safety Briefing as much (or, rather, more!) than FAA Aviation News.

What Else is New? It is appropriate to introduce the magazine’s new title and updated cover with this issue, because, as the Sun ‘n Fun organizers like to say, “The Aviation Year Starts Here.” And, what better way to launch the new aviation year than with the FAASTeam’s first-ever Safety Stand Down, described in one of this issue’s feature articles?

Even if your spring plans don’t include a visit to Lakeland, Florida, you can still participate in the FAASTeam’s Safety Stand Down by catching some of the broadcast, Webcast, and podcast events designed to cast (so to speak) the spotlight on both best practices – what to do – and worst practices – what not to do. Although, we generally seek to focus more on people and procedures that we as pilots should emulate, there is also benefit in heeding the costly lessons taught through others’ less-than-ideal experiences. As I wrote in the article on my close encounter with a cross-controlled stall, letting someone else’s “once” be enough for you, too, is another good lesson to take from any kind of safety stand down.

As always, we look forward to your feedback and comments on the new look and name for the FAA Safety Briefing.  (FAA Safety Briefing – MarApr 2010)