Legal Interpretations

FlightPush Summary

The FAA's 14 CFR part 137 rules do not require supervision by a local certificate holder or an on-site supervisor when an out-of-state operator performs agricultural aircraft operations, and the FAA places no geographic limits on part 137 operators. Operators must still comply with state and local laws, and pilots must still become familiar with all available information about each flight.

FlightPush Summary

The MSP FSDO asked how Mesaba Airlines' Exemption 3585 applies when a circling approach is expected at the destination. The FAA said the exemption's visibility conditions cover circling approaches, but because it says nothing about ceilings, the OpSpec ceiling minimum still applies to dispatch. The exemption also gives no relief from the high-minimums pilot-in-command rule of 14 CFR 121.652.

FlightPush Summary

For extended overwater dispatch under 14 CFR 121.615(a), the destination may be forecast below minimums at dispatch so long as the required alternate is at or above minimums at the estimated time of arrival. A flight may not be dispatched if the alternate would be below minimums on arrival, and if the alternate drops below minimums en route, the dispatch or flight release may be amended.

FlightPush Summary

14 CFR 135.63(d) does not say what must be done with the duplicate load manifest, so it does not require leaving a copy at the airport. The FAA still advises certificate holders to put procedures for the duplicate in their operations manuals, working with their principal operations inspector, since it could help accident investigators if the onboard copy is destroyed.

FlightPush Summary

Air Canada asked whether foreign air carriers may fly over the United States or use U.S. alternates with a pilot in command over 60. The FAA said yes for pilots under 65, consistent with the ICAO standard it has applied since 2006, and noted it imposes no age limit on foreign air carrier pilots serving as second in command.

FlightPush Summary

No regulation requires aircraft owners or operators to trace a part back to its origin. A part's airworthiness must still be established before it is used on a type-certificated aircraft, through traceability, PMA markings, manufacturer documentation, or return-to-service records. If none exist, inspection and testing must show the part conforms to its type design and is in a condition for safe operation.

FlightPush Summary

Obadal, Filler, MacLeod & Klein argued that Columbia Helicopters Peru's external-load helicopter work was not common carriage, so 14 CFR 129.14 maintenance rules did not apply. The FAA disagreed: external-load operations can be common carriage when the operator holds out to move property for hire, and 14 CFR part 129 has no exception, so such an operator must comply with 14 CFR 129.14, 14 CFR 129.20, and 14 CFR 129.24.

FlightPush Summary

An FAA regional branch asked how an inoperative passenger oxygen system limits pressurized Part 135 aircraft operating under an MEL. The FAA said an MEL cannot supersede 14 CFR 135.157, so passenger flights of any duration above 15,000 feet MSL are prohibited, and passengers may not be carried for more than 30 minutes above 10,000 through 15,000 feet MSL with inoperative cabin pressurization.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA clarified that under 14 CFR 121.613, the authorized minimum for dispatching or releasing an aircraft under IFR or over the top may be visibility alone, because most U.S. instrument approach procedures have no minimum ceiling. Ceiling still counts in certain cases, such as when no instrument approach is available or the approach procedure or operations specifications set a ceiling minimum.

FlightPush Summary

Paid nonmilitary flying as a required crewmember for a Canadian company is "other commercial flying" and counts toward the 100-hour calendar month limit in 14 CFR 121.471. A part 121 pilot may not accept domestic assignments that would push total flight time past 100 hours, and carriers may set stricter limits of their own.

FlightPush Summary

The Flight Dispatchers, Meteorologists & Operations Specialists Union asked whether a hurricane plan scheduling dispatchers for 12-hour shifts fit the exception in 14 CFR 121.465. The FAA said no: a hurricane may justify extending duty on the day of the event, but scheduling dispatchers in advance to exceed the 10-hour limit is not what the exception contemplates.

FlightPush Summary

ExpressJet Airlines asked whether hazardous materials training records must be kept for crewmembers. The FAA said yes: although 14 CFR 121.1007(a) does not name crewmembers, they fall within its employees, contractors, or "any other person," so records are required whenever a crewmember performs or directly supervises a covered hazardous materials job function.

FlightPush Summary

Southwest Airlines asked whether it could leave the maintenance parts of its manual off the aircraft during Part 121 supplemental operations because it never performs scheduled maintenance on those flights. The FAA said those facts alone do not create an exception: under 14 CFR 121.139(b), the manual may be left off only on supplemental flights en route to a station where its maintenance parts are kept.

FlightPush Summary

At least one hand fire extinguisher on the flight deck must be reachable by at least one flightcrew member from the seated position at all times, even with oxygen masks on. If a pilot must remove a mask or leave the seat to reach it, it is not readily accessible under 14 CFR 121.309(b) and 14 CFR 121.309(c)(4).

FlightPush Summary

A law firm asked whether KaiserAir, which holds Part 135 and Part 145 certificates, could run one drug and alcohol testing program covering both. The FAA said the Part 135 certificate holder must have its own program, but because the repair station counts as its contractor under the testing rules, the repair station's employees may be included in that Part 135 program.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether off-duty flight instruction counts as "other commercial flying" under 14 CFR part 121 flight time limitations. The FAA said unpaid instruction does not count, whether or not the instructor is a required crewmember, but it could not answer for compensated instruction without more facts.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked about servers and flight attendants on a nine-passenger Part 135 aircraft. The FAA said no flight attendant is required, a server limited to non-safety duties needs no flight attendant training, and a server assigned in-flight duties may be treated as a crewmember and use the jumpseat, subject to crewmember rules.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked how a dispatcher who wrote a new air carrier's competency check could fairly take it. The FAA said 14 CFR 121.422(b) requires the check to be given by another supervisory dispatcher or dispatcher ground instructor, who must administer and grade it and may change some variables to make it more challenging for the author.

FlightPush Summary

Aviation Law Experts, LLC asked whether a Part 135 manual may be provided electronically to maintenance and ground personnel. The FAA said yes, if the manual includes such procedures, the Principal Operations Inspector accepts them, and personnel have the technology to view the applicable portions at and away from the main base.

FlightPush Summary

Any worker, including a contractor or day worker, who loads or handles hazardous materials for a part 121 carrier must have hazmat training under 14 CFR part 121, subpart Z unless the 30-day supervised exception applies. Unloading alone is not a covered job function, and workers who perform none of the listed functions need no training.

FlightPush Summary

NetJets asked whether a pilot who failed a pilot in command line check after obtaining a new type rating may still serve as a flight crewmember under 14 CFR part 135. The FAA said no: under 14 CFR 135.301(b), the pilot may not serve as a flight crewmember until passing a pilot in command line check in an aircraft the operator designates, which may be the former or new aircraft.

FlightPush Summary

Capital Cargo International Airlines asked whether 'authorized minimums' in 14 CFR 121.613 mean ceiling and visibility or visibility alone. The FAA said both must be met at the destination. It also attached earlier interpretations holding that forecasts of 'occasionally,' 'intermittently,' 'briefly,' or 'a chance of' below-minimum conditions at the ETA do not satisfy 14 CFR 121.613.

FlightPush Summary

Swanson & Johnson asked whether its client must fly part 135 air ambulance operations to provide NVG training to air ambulance operators. The FAA said no: the guidance lets a part 135 operator train another with the same type of operations specifications, such as on-demand, if the NVG instructor is qualified in that aircraft and works for an operator of the same type, consistent with 14 CFR 135.324.

FlightPush Summary

U.S. Helicopters asked whether its electronic news gathering helicopter flights for TV stations could be flown under 14 CFR part 91 using the aerial photography exception in 14 CFR 119.1(e)(4)(iii). The FAA said yes, if everyone aboard other than the flight crewmembers is necessary to the aerial work. If a flight becomes dual-purpose, such as by landing at another point, the exception does not apply.

FlightPush Summary

Answering a question it found too unspecific for a definitive response, the FAA said part 121 all-cargo and charter passenger operations, even within the 48 contiguous states, are supplemental operations subject to the subpart S flight, duty, and rest rules, not the subpart Q domestic rules, which cover certain scheduled passenger operations.

FlightPush Summary

A part 121 charter operator asked whether a contractor's employee used occasionally to load hazmat could work under the 30-day new hire exception in 14 CFR 121.1005(b). The FAA said yes, but the 30 days run from the first day of covered work, apply to the individual only once, and require direct visual supervision by an authorized supervisor trained within the past 24 months.

FlightPush Summary

The Chief Counsel concluded that only flight training devices using manufacturer-supplied, aircraft-specific flight data, meaning level 6 and 7 FTDs, meet 14 CFR part 142, while any flight simulator level qualifies. Courses conducted primarily in aircraft fall under 14 CFR part 141 pilot school rules, so the inspector correctly applied the regulations.

FlightPush Summary

Asheville Jet Charter and Management asked whether a part 142 training center can have training programs approved under part 121 or part 135. The FAA said no: the programs are approved under part 142 and can only be approved for use by an operator's Principal Operations Inspector, and the center may not advertise them as part 121 or part 135 programs.

FlightPush Summary

ALPA asked whether carriers must give crews climb gradient data and whether pilots must fly a published ODP when ATC assigns a SID. The FAA said no regulation requires climb gradient data, and either a SID or an ODP satisfies the requirement to follow a published IFR departure procedure; a PIC who prefers the ODP must request an amended clearance under 14 CFR 91.123.

FlightPush Summary

Jet Linx Aviation, a 14 CFR part 135 on-demand operator, asked whether website features letting clients share flights fit its authority. The FAA said posting empty and occupied flights with departure location, departure window, and arrival location holds out scheduled operations its operations specifications do not authorize, and cautioned that idle-aircraft and requested-itinerary listings could be scheduled operations too.

FlightPush Summary

When Part 135 recurrent training is given in modules, the operator may record each module as it is completed or make one record when all modules are done; it need not record each element. The actual completion date must be recorded, and giving recurrent training early can reset the crewmember's base month, as long as training stays within the required look-back periods.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether a part 135 carrier must list and report changes to a president who lacks operational control. The FAA said the president may need to be listed under other rules or for citizenship purposes; if listed, changes require notice and an operations specifications amendment needing FAA approval. Changes to the president, shareholders, shares, or agent for service address generally must be reported.

FlightPush Summary

The Air Transport Association asked how the emergency deviation rules apply to Hurricane Katrina relief flights. The FAA said that because Katrina was an incident of national significance, air carriers may generally determine that deviations are appropriate for affected flights, with the PIC retaining ultimate authority, and each carrier may file one consolidated report within 10 days of its last emergency flight.

FlightPush Summary

An FAA regional attorney asked whether office duty before a flight assignment counts in a flight attendant's duty period. The FAA said yes: when a certificate holder mixes ground duties such as office or gate work with flight assignments, that time counts, because it adds to fatigue. An 18-hour day of office duty plus flights therefore exceeds the 14-hour limit of 14 CFR 121.467(b)(1).

FlightPush Summary

Omni Air International asked when pilots may train and check exclusively in a Level C simulator under 14 CFR part 121 Appendix H. The FAA said it depends on whether the training is initial, transition, or upgrade and on the pilot's experience: transition training within the same airplane group is open to all pilots, while initial and upgrade training carry experience prerequisites.

FlightPush Summary

Under 14 CFR 121.647, fuel computations must take into account an instrument approach and possible missed approach at the destination, even when no alternate airport is designated. Failing to consider it violates the regulations, but using the 45-minute reserve required by 14 CFR 121.639 is not illegal when circumstances not reasonably foreseeable make it necessary despite full compliance.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA Chief Counsel examined whether agreements labeled wet leases between U.S. and foreign air carriers violate the ban on U.S. carriers wet leasing from foreign carriers. Because the providers kept possession and operational control of the aircraft, the agreements were charters, not leases, so 14 CFR 119.53(b) did not apply and no FAA regulatory action was needed.

FlightPush Summary

A pilot on 14 CFR part 121 domestic rest never has to answer the phone; one contact from the carrier does not break rest, but a second contact does, and repeated unanswered calls raise fatigue concerns. Travel to layover lodging or between "co-domicile" airports counts as rest only if it is reasonably brief, or local in character, under 14 CFR 121.471(f).

FlightPush Summary

An attorney for an air carrier broker asked whether part 125 operators may take cargo through brokers or forwarders that hold out to the public. The FAA said that to the extent a broker holds out on the operator's behalf, it violates 14 CFR 125.11(b), which prohibits direct and indirect holding out, and noted it is acting on reports of such noncompliance.

FlightPush Summary

World Airways asked whether foreign Aer Lingus flight attendants on flights World operates for Aer Lingus must be drug and alcohol tested. The FAA said yes: the flights are 14 CFR part 121 supplemental operations under World's operational control, so the flight attendants perform safety-sensitive duties and must be tested under 14 CFR part 121, appendices I and J.

FlightPush Summary

The former FedEx Pilots Association asked whether a PIC may freely refuse to carry passengers seated aft of the flight deck. The FAA said no: the PIC's unfettered discretion under 14 CFR 121.547 applies only to the flight deck, and refusing a cabin passenger on the carrier's behalf under 49 U.S.C. 44902(b) must be a reasonable safety decision that can be reviewed.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether a pilot in command's unfettered authority to refuse flight deck admission under 14 CFR 121.547 applies to all part 119 certificate holders. The FAA said no: the rule applies only when a certificate holder conducts part 121 operations, and part 135 has no comparable flight deck admission provision.

FlightPush Summary

A certificated mechanic asked whether a United Airlines doctor who is an FAA Aviation Medical Examiner could impose medical restrictions on him. The FAA said the AME designation gives no authority over mechanics but does not limit authority the doctor has from other sources. Mechanics have no FAA medical standards, but the FAA expects employers and mechanics to act responsibly about impairing conditions.

FlightPush Summary

A prime contractor without air carrier certificates cannot exercise operational control of Part 121 or 135 flights operated through certificated subcontractors. Using an appropriately rated repair station for maintenance raised no apparent problem, but on the facts presented, operational control would appear to rest with the uncertificated contractor, which 14 CFR 135.77 and 14 CFR 121.533(a) do not permit.

FlightPush Summary

The Allied Pilots Association asked how delays affect domestic pilot rest under 14 CFR 121.471. The FAA said look-back rest may be reduced to 8 hours only with 10 hours of compensatory rest beginning within 24 hours after the reduced rest began, flights must be planned on actual expected flight and taxi-in time, and a flight may not depart if expected to leave less than 8 hours of look-back rest.

FlightPush Summary

A Dassault Falcon 900B with 10 to 19 passenger seats that entered the U.S. register in 1989 does not have to meet the flight recorder requirements of 14 CFR 135.152(a) to operate under 14 CFR part 135, because that rule covers aircraft registered after October 11, 1991. Paragraph (b), which covers 20 to 30 seats, also does not apply.

FlightPush Summary

The Air Line Pilots Association asked about a PIC's duties when the passenger count differs from the load manifest. The FAA said no rule requires the PIC to count passengers, and the certificate holder is responsible for manifest accuracy, but the PIC must resolve discrepancies affecting weight and balance and could violate weight and performance rules such as 14 CFR 91.605 and 14 CFR 121.189.

FlightPush Summary

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association asked whether a Part 135 operator may call a resting pilot to assign a trip that starts after the rest period. The FAA said yes, as long as the pilot had no obligation to answer the phone or pager; such contact does not interrupt the required continuous rest.