Legal Interpretations

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether Air Canada may overfly the United States with a pilot in command over 60. The FAA said that under the ICAO standard effective November 23, 2006, which the U.S. applies to foreign air carriers, operations are allowed with a pilot in command or second in command age 60 or over, provided one of them is under 60.

FlightPush Summary

SEI Industries asked the FAA to agree that external-load flights over an interstate highway or sparsely spaced homes are not over congested areas under 14 CFR 133.33(d). The FAA did not concur: congestion is decided case by case, and NTSB decisions have found a street intersection, an interstate area, and a busy recreational lake to be congested areas.

FlightPush Summary

IFR fuel under 14 CFR 91.167 must cover flying to and landing at the destination, then flying to the alternate and 45 minutes beyond; fuel to merely attempt an approach is not enough. A pilot may reasonably land at the destination if, before the approach, reported weather is still at least a 2,000-foot ceiling above the airport and 3 statute miles visibility.

FlightPush Summary

If destination weather deteriorates after a domestic airline flight departs without an alternate, the pilot in command must, under certain circumstances, designate an alternate airport or fuel stop en route. Where the pilot and carrier know weather is worsening and fuel is insufficient to reach an alternate, the FAA probably would consider both careless and reckless for continuing without amending the release.

FlightPush Summary

The Association of Flight Attendants asked whether pilot rest interpretations apply to flight attendants. The FAA said its three-part definition of rest and its narrow 'one phone call' exception both apply to flight attendant rest under 14 CFR 121.467, but it cannot impose a 'do not call' letter regime through an interpretation, since that would require rulemaking.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA Chief Counsel concluded that public airports that aided other public airports after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita acted consistently with federal airport revenue use requirements, comparing the aid to mutual aid agreements. The same approach would apply to aid after future declared emergencies, but only to airport revenue, not federal grant funds or Passenger Facility Charge receipts.

FlightPush Summary

Continental Airlines asked the FAA to rescind two 14 CFR part 121 rest interpretations, including the Whitlow Letter, as improper rulemaking. The FAA refused, finding both were interpretative rules exempt from notice and comment, though it clarified the November 7, 2003 letter. It agreed to reinstate its 1980 public-comment procedures for new interpretive issues.

FlightPush Summary

Existing air tour operator status over a national park cannot be transferred to another person. A buyer can benefit from it only by purchasing the entire corporation that earned the status and keeping that corporation in existence and operating tours in the park; partnership or sole proprietorship status ends on dissolution. The buyer should notify its Principal Operations Inspector of the purchase.

FlightPush Summary

The Transport Workers Union of America asked whether managers who give dispatcher competence checks must themselves be trained and checked. The FAA said yes: under 14 CFR 121.422(b), an appropriate supervisor or ground instructor must be competent and current in dispatch operations, so someone who has not recently completed initial and recurrent training does not qualify.

FlightPush Summary

Under 14 CFR 121.485(a), a flag carrier must provide adequate sleeping quarters, generally a bunk or berth and not a reclining passenger seat, when it realistically schedules more than 12 hours of flight time. A flight realistically scheduled for 12 hours or less that runs over due to unforeseen circumstances does not trigger the requirement.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA's Southwest Region counsel told the City of Garland, Texas, that its ordinance banning flight below 2,500 feet over the city conflicts with and is preempted by federal law. Only the FAA may limit aircraft in flight, and it already sets altitudes for flight over congested areas in 14 CFR 91.119.

FlightPush Summary

Critical Air Medicine, a Part 135 air ambulance operator, asked whether Austin could stop its in-city air ambulance service under a city ordinance. The FAA Southwest Region Regional Counsel concluded the city's action is preempted by 49 U.S.C. 41713 because Critical Air is a 14 CFR part 298 air carrier, regardless of whether its flights are interstate or intrastate.

FlightPush Summary

Helicopter Lift Services asked who may prepare the congested area plan required by 14 CFR 133.33(d)(1). The FAA said the regulations name no particular employee or officer and do not require a full-time employee, so the operator may hire a part-time employee for the task while remaining responsible for that employee's actions.

FlightPush Summary

Helicopter Lift Services, Inc., which arranges helicopter external-load work through Part 133 operators, asked several questions about 14 CFR part 133. The FAA said it needs no Part 133 certificate if it does not hold itself out as the operator and the operators retain operational control, but it cannot submit congested area plans for them, and whether an airport is "busy" depends on the facts.

FlightPush Summary

"24 calendar months" in the regulations means 24 whole months, so a student pilot certificate issued January 2, 2000 under 14 CFR 61.19 expires January 31, 2002. By contrast, "24 months" means two years from date to date, and some rules, such as 14 CFR 61.58(g), add a grace month.

FlightPush Summary

Evergreen International Airlines asked whether scheduled Tel Aviv to New York flights marketed by a tour operator could run under its supplemental operations specifications. The FAA said no: assuming they are scheduled passenger-carrying operations, they are flag operations and must be conducted under flag operations specifications, although Evergreen's all-cargo flight may stay under the supplemental rules.

FlightPush Summary

PacifiCorp Trans, an air transportation subsidiary of energy company PacifiCorp, asked whether it could charge Scottish Power for flying its employees during Scottish Power's purchase of PacifiCorp. The FAA said no charge is allowed under 14 CFR 91.501(b)(5) because the subsidiary's business is air transportation. The parent PacifiCorp, if it ran the flights, could charge guests a pro rata share of costs.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked whether a client's administrative driver's license suspension for exceeding Oregon's blood alcohol limit matters under 14 CFR 61.15. The FAA said the motor vehicle action definition in 14 CFR 61.15(c)(2) appears to apply and requires no criminal conviction; if it applies, the suspension is reportable. A single action carries no adverse consequences, but two within 3 years can support adverse action.

FlightPush Summary

Air Surveillance Corporation asked whether it needed a Part 135 certificate for aerial surveillance and security flights that depart and return to the same airport with no stops. The FAA said no: these are aerial work operations excluded from Part 135 by 14 CFR 135.1(b) and can be flown under 14 CFR part 91, though the pilot in command needs at least a commercial pilot certificate.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked the FAA to confirm that rentals of Cessna Citation N19ER could be conducted under 14 CFR part 91. The FAA's regional counsel agreed on the facts provided, since the lessee would assume operational control, but warned that marketing a transportation package, restrictive insurance pilot terms, or combined scheduling and billing for aircraft and pilots could change that result.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether skydivers without approval could land near an active runway at Vance Brand Airport under 14 CFR 105.17. The FAA noted skydivers already have airport management approval to jump over and land on the airport, so the rule's drift-over exception does not apply.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked how the FAA decides who is pilot in command when an instructor flies with another pilot. The FAA said an instructor without a medical certificate who takes the controls to prevent an unsafe condition does not become PIC; the qualified pilot remains PIC. Agreement between the pilots usually controls, and otherwise qualifications and other factors decide case by case.

FlightPush Summary

The Oregon Department of Forestry asked whether billing other state agencies for flights jeopardizes public aircraft status. The FAA said personnel transport must move to part 91 under a 1995 change, internal state billing is not commercial, but payment from any other government would make a flight commercial, except under narrow agreements or a statutory threat-response exception.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked whether a U.S. corporation wholly owned by a Canadian corporation may hold a rotorcraft external-load operator certificate. The FAA found nothing in 14 CFR part 133 or its regulatory history prohibiting it.

FlightPush Summary

Corporate Air asked whether its owners could obtain a second Part 135 certificate for a new, separately managed company. The FAA said yes, but only if the new company has a legal identity separate from Corporate Air, normally as a separate corporation, because SFAR 38-2 allows each person only one certificate and a separate corporation is its own person under 14 CFR 1.1.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked about the FAA's role in issuing airman certificates and keeping their records. The FAA traced certification authority from the Commerce Department through the Civil Aeronautics Authority and Administration to the FAA, which issues pilot and medical certificates under the Federal Aviation Act. Offices in Oklahoma City keep pilot and medical certification records, with pilot records dating to the 1940s.

FlightPush Summary

A commercial pilot asked whether flying two medical companies' employees in aircraft the companies rented fell under 14 CFR part 135. The FAA said that on the facts given the pilot did not appear to be "carrying" passengers, which turns on operational control, so the flights were not subject to 14 CFR part 135, but warned the case was close and slight changes could alter the outcome.

FlightPush Summary

A Senator asked how 14 CFR 61.118 applies to private pilots flying volunteer Angel Flight missions. The FAA said reimbursement of expenses or a tax deduction for carrying persons or property is compensation or hire and violates the rule. Angel Flight might qualify for an exemption allowing fuel, oil, and maintenance reimbursement for official search activities, but not for carrying persons or property.

FlightPush Summary

An aircraft owner asked which costs of a trip with an acquaintance could be shared under 14 CFR 61.118(b). The FAA said only costs that would not exist without the flight, such as fuel, oil, and destination ramp or tie-down fees, may be shared, and equally; insurance, maintenance, hangar rent, and engine replacement costs may not.

FlightPush Summary

A bank that flies its own documents to Salt Lake City cannot fill the return leg with another financial institution's cargo in exchange for shared expenses under 14 CFR part 91. The private pilot cost-sharing rule does not let a company carry others' property for payment, and the 14 CFR part 91, subpart F exceptions do not cover cargo outside the bank's own business.

FlightPush Summary

Paint the Sky Kites asked what counts as the boundary of an airport for the rule barring moored balloons and kites within five miles of one. The FAA said the boundary includes the outermost edges of all property used or designated for airport purposes, even land not fenced as airport property or an airport business park, as shown on airport layout plans for federally eligible airports.

FlightPush Summary

A law firm asked whether an aircraft owner or operator may hire another party, such as a manufacturer, to make a replacement part under 14 CFR 21.303(b)(2). The FAA said yes, but the owner remains responsible for conformity to type design, parts are one-for-one only, and installation must still be done by certificated airmen under 14 CFR part 43.

FlightPush Summary

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources asked how federal rules apply to state aircraft fighting fires. The FAA said qualifying public aircraft are exempt from some rules, such as 14 CFR part 133 certification, but not part 133 operating and airworthiness rules, and operations near people are governed by 14 CFR 91.119, with helicopters allowed lower if they create no hazard.

FlightPush Summary

Flying a helicopter in the shaded area of the height-velocity curve is not automatically a violation; the FAA treats it as one factor in judging whether an operation was careless or reckless under 14 CFR 91.13 or below safe altitudes under 14 CFR 91.119. The FAA recognizes external load operations cannot always avoid the shaded area.

FlightPush Summary

American Air Ambulance asked which rules govern air ambulance return flights carrying medical technicians. Rather than answer directly, the FAA enclosed a June 7, 1990, interpretation it believed fully answered the question and invited follow-up questions. The enclosure's text is not included.

FlightPush Summary

A helicopter-rated Army aviator asked whether helicopter time could count toward an airplane instrument rating and commercial airplane certificate. The FAA said crediting it toward the instrument rating is unnecessary, since the helicopter instrument rating already meets the non-aircraft-specific requirements of 14 CFR 61.65(e), leaving the airplane instruction hours. Military helicopter cross-country time does count toward 14 CFR 61.129(b)(3)(ii).

FlightPush Summary

A certificated flight instructor giving flight instruction for compensation does not need a second-class medical certificate. A third-class medical certificate is acceptable, even when the instructor is paid and acts as pilot in command on the instruction flight.

FlightPush Summary

The National Air Transportation Association asked which conflicting interpretation governs part 135 flights in the grace month when a crewmember misses the required check. The FAA pointed to its long-standing November 10, 1971 interpretation, written for part 121 but equally applicable to part 135, and said its legal offices are the authorized issuers of legal interpretations.

FlightPush Summary

An aviation consultant asked whether crews scheduled within the 8-hour limit of 14 CFR 121.471(a)(4) may finish their trips after weather or a bomb-threat diversion pushed actual flight time past 8 hours. The FAA said yes under 14 CFR 121.471(g), provided the schedule was realistic; if actual flight times are consistently higher, the schedule should be adjusted.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether a corporation may rent an aircraft that an FBO uses for Part 135 and fly it under Part 91. The FAA said yes if the pilot is the corporation's employee or an independent contractor unrelated to the aircraft's lessor, but leasing both airplane and pilot from the same source is a Part 135 operation. It declined to say who the lessor is.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked how to read the word "past" in 14 CFR 61.57(e). The FAA confirmed that it means the same as the word "preceding" in 14 CFR 61.57(a).

FlightPush Summary

The Department of Commerce asked whether aircraft operators may accept reimbursement for carrying its employees without an operating certificate. The FAA said a company operating under 14 CFR part 91, subpart D may charge up to its cost of owning, operating, and maintaining the airplane when carrying guests is within the scope of and incidental to its business, but individual operators may not be reimbursed.

FlightPush Summary

AOPA's Washington counsel asked the FAA to review a column on private pilot expense sharing. The FAA said 14 CFR 61.118(b) does not allow time-building trips to places the pilot has no business, advertising may amount to holding out, paying less than a pro rata share suggests no real sharing, and only direct operating costs, not insurance or maintenance, may be shared.

FlightPush Summary

Trans-Share Corporation asked the FAA to evaluate Share-A-Flite, a ride-referral service it described as cost sharing under 14 CFR 61.118(b). The FAA warned that the service's scale and advertising suggest pilots are holding out to the public for compensation or hire, so flights could violate 14 CFR 61.118 and raise Civil Aeronautics Board common carriage issues.

FlightPush Summary

A pilot who was a community college student asked whether advertising for passengers to share the costs of local time-building flights was allowed. The FAA said share-the-cost flights must be a bona fide joint venture for a common purpose. Flying to build time is an operation for gain beyond the transportation itself, so it counts as an operation for compensation or hire.