FAA to Restrict Access to Aircraft Registration Database

These people send anonymous letters to the owner’s address as listed in the FAA database. Often these letters come from someone who doesn’t like aircraft and include a threat to report the pilot to the FAA for alleged violations or threatened with a lawsuit. 

The FAA, as required by Public Law 118-63 as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 has implemented Section 803 Data Private which allows private aircraft owners to request that their name and address be kept private and not publicly available on FAA websites.

To do this, private aircraft owners and operators need to make an electronic request of the FAA through the Civil Aviation Registry Electronic Services (CARES).

How the agency will make this happen has not been determined yet, as the FAA is publishing a Request for Comment (RFC) in the Federal Register.

The FAA wants to know how often people or organizations access or use registered owner information and how is this information used, as well as what would be the impact on privacy, safety, and accessibility of information if the identified categories of registered owner information are removed from public availability.

In addition, there is the question of what the impact of the removal of this information would have on stakeholders who need the information as part of performing maintenance, safety checks and other regulatory compliance.

For more information contact the FAA at faa.aircraft.registry@faa.gov

ADS-B was created to promote safety, as it gives pilots an extra level of situational awareness. Unfortunately, it is also being misused by persons who want to curtail aviation in their community. Because the complaint letters are anonymous even when they contain threats of physical violence there is very little if anything law enforcement can do. Meanwhile, the FAA has to investigate allegations of violations, especially those that suggest safety was compromised such as an aircraft flying too low over a residential area.