Definition
A voluntary, confidential incident-reporting program administered by NASA on behalf of the FAA. Pilots, controllers, flight attendants, mechanics, and dispatchers may submit reports describing aviation safety events, hazards, or near-misses they have observed or been involved in. The information is de-identified and used to improve aviation safety. Filing a timely report can also provide limited immunity from FAA enforcement action for unintentional violations of the regulations.
Plain English
A program where anyone in aviation can confidentially report a safety problem or mistake. NASA collects the reports, removes names, and uses the information to make flying safer. Filing a report quickly can also protect a pilot from being punished for an honest, unintentional rule violation.
Context Anchor
You may see this term in safety training, FAA guidance, accident-prevention discussions, or after an incident where a pilot is considering filing a safety report.
Why Pilots Care
Reports help identify systemic safety issues and grant limited immunity from FAA enforcement action for the reporter.
Intuition Check
Do not think of this as an emergency-reporting system or a way to call for help. It is used after a safety issue or mistake to help the aviation system learn from it.
Example Sentence 1
After realizing he had busted his assigned altitude by 300 feet, the pilot filed an Aviation Safety Reporting System report that evening.
Example Sentence 2
Many pilots use the Aviation Safety Reporting System to share observations about confusing approach procedures.