News broke friday that the NTSB has reported yet another crash of the CH-601XL, an aircraft that the FAA has previously issued a safety alert for. The release from the NTSB stops just short of telling the FAA we told you so... but makes sure to detail their recommendation from April suggesting that the FAA ground the entire fleet of CH-601XL aircraft. They were blunt before titling the article "NTSB ASKS FAA TO ‘PROHIBIT FURTHER FLIGHT’ OF LIGHT SPORT AIRPLANE TIED TO IN-FLIGHT BREAKUPS." The FAA chose not to ground the fleet, instead they required all the Zodiac's certified as light sport aircraft to be modified. The NTSB contends that the advisory should have been applied to amateur built aircraft as well.

So it looks like the FAA took a risk by not grounding the entire fleet of CH-601's, but how do they come around to a decision like that? Especially when the NTSB made sure to advise grounding the entire fleet. This kind of public spat between federal agencies makes me uneasy. We look to the FAA for regulatory guidance and penalties for breaking the rules. Then we look to the NTSB for the dire consequences for violating those rules... These folks need to get on the same page quickly to ensure the safety of our fellow pilot's. Waging a war of words via press releases doesn't do me any good...

Zenith News Release
FAA SAIB
NTSB Press Advisory
NTSB Press Release From April