Sean Broderick covers aviation safety, MRO, and the hardware side of the airline business from Aviation Week Network's Washington, D.C. office.
Broderick's aviation career started in 1991, working for Airbus in Toulouse. His industry experience includes four years with an aviation consultancy, where he helped launch a U.S. Part 121 carrier; 12 years with the American Association of Airport Executives, where he served as editor of Airport Magazine; and 20 years in full- and part-time roles with Aviation Week writing primarily about safety and the aftermarket.
Broderick was named the 2020 Aerospace Journalist of the Year by the Aerospace Media Awards. He also shared in a 2020 Neal Award for Best News Coverage with Aviation Week Network colleagues. Broderick and Aviation Week colleague John Croft shared the 2015 Flight Safety International Cecil A. Brownlow Publication Award recognizing "significant contributions by journalists to aviation safety awareness."
He graduated from James Madison University with a B.S. in Communications ('91) and earned an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications ('13) from West Virginia University.
Europe A U.K. Aviation Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) call to have Boeing 777 interior lighting crashworthiness improved has been rejected by the U.S. FAA, but Boeing addressed the matter well before an accident brought the issue to light, AAIB's latest annual safety report reveals.
A recent report from the U.S. Transportation Department's Inspector General sheds some light on the impact of sequestration on FAA's certification efforts and related delays. Top FAA executives have said a hiring freeze put in place late last year has forced the agency' s Aviation Safety (AVS) branch to allocate more of its limited resources to immediate safety issues. The loser has been certification projects that are either resource-intensive or simply new.
An FAA rulemaking advisory committee's recommendations on improving the consistency of rules interpretations is starting bear fruit in a much-needed area: the guidance behind regulations. Dorenda Baker, FAA's director of Aircraft Certification Services, says the agency is tackling the committee's most pressing recommendations: conducting a review of existing guidance to eliminate duplicative, conflicting or irrelevant guidance; and ensuring the rest is available in an electronic database.
