Legal Interpretations

FlightPush Summary

The Tennessee Valley Authority asked whether drone inspections of its dams could be public aircraft operations. The FAA said yes: dam inspection is not listed in 49 U.S.C. 40125(a)(2), but the list is not exclusive, and maintaining its dams is a core TVA function. Inspections of government-owned and funded public works can qualify, but simply observing a project, or charging another entity to operate the aircraft, would not.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether a crew that reached its maximum flight time on part 121 supplemental passenger flights could ferry the aircraft home under 14 CFR part 91. The FAA said no: under 14 CFR part 117, the ferry counts toward flight limits unless preceded by a 10-hour rest under 14 CFR 117.25(e), though part 91 tail-end ferries would be permitted after part 135 on-demand flights.

FlightPush Summary

A representative of a Part 135 on-demand carrier asked about flight and duty limits for three-pilot crews. The FAA said augmented crews must follow 14 CFR 135.269, including its adequate sleeping facilities requirement, so a three-pilot crew cannot fly under 14 CFR 135.267 in an aircraft without them, and time aloft does not count as rest unless the transportation is local in character.

FlightPush Summary

Direct Flight, Inc. asked whether an annual inspection must be logged in the aircraft, engine, and propeller logbooks. The FAA said only the aircraft receives an annual inspection, so 14 CFR 43.11(a) requires an entry only in the aircraft's maintenance record. An inspection authorization holder may also make product-specific entries in engine and propeller logbooks, which is good practice when multiple logbooks are kept.

FlightPush Summary

A planned 14 CFR part 135 scheduled carrier may advertise to investors before certification without violating 14 CFR 119.5(k), because advertising an investment is not advertising flight operations. The FAA noted the separate restriction in 14 CFR 201.5(a)(1) on advertising air transportation before DOT approval and recommended telling investors they are not pre-purchasing air transportation.

FlightPush Summary

In a follow-up to its August 11, 2015 interpretation, the FAA confirmed that 14 CFR 119.5(k) would not prohibit Quantum Airways, which plans to become a 14 CFR part 135 scheduled carrier, from advertising before certification as a potential crowdfunding opportunity. The letter addressed concern that the earlier term "investment" could be read as covering only equity investing.

FlightPush Summary

FlyRight Holdings, a Part 142 simulator training center, asked whether it must keep its instructors' 14 CFR 61.189 records. The FAA said no: each flight instructor keeps those records personally, while the training center must keep the trainee and instructor records required by 14 CFR 142.73.

FlightPush Summary

NetJets, Inc. asked whose work order a repair station uses under 14 CFR part 43, appendix B, paragraph (b)(1), and whether NetJets can require that option for its non-CAMP aircraft. The FAA said the repair station may use NetJets' work order, but no regulation it knew of requires a repair station to use paragraph (b); NetJets' only leverage is its contract.

FlightPush Summary

A Canadian military pilot serving as a U.S. Army instructor pilot cannot get an FAA flight instructor certificate under 14 CFR 61.73. The foreign-pilot provision covers only a commercial pilot certificate and ratings, and the instructor provision in 14 CFR 61.73(g) applies only to U.S. military instructor pilots or examiners, regardless of equivalent U.S. training.

FlightPush Summary

For VMC determination under 14 CFR 23.149(b), ground effect is negligible at any altitude higher than the wingspan, and surfaces with a manufacturer-specified takeoff trim setting must be set to it. Cowl flaps must be in takeoff position only if part of the specified takeoff configuration, and examiners may ask about any factor affecting directional control.

FlightPush Summary

ATC was correct not to give a heading to a VFR pilot below the minimum IFR altitude who could not climb to it in VFR conditions; the pilot is responsible for terrain and obstruction clearance until reaching that altitude. A pilot who claims he can maintain obstacle clearance without seeing obstacles may be found careless or reckless under 14 CFR 91.13(a).

FlightPush Summary

Under 14 CFR 117.5(d), a flightcrew member must affirm fitness for duty before each flight segment of a flight duty period, not only at the start. The FAA said the requester's acclimation and rest-facility points did not seek a legal interpretation, and that changes to 14 CFR part 117 would require notice-and-comment rulemaking.

FlightPush Summary

The UK Civil Aviation Authority asked whether its "sub-ICAO" pilot licenses can be used to fly US-registered aircraft in the UK under 14 CFR 61.3(a)(1)(v). The FAA said yes: a license issued by the foreign country qualifies whether or not it meets ICAO standards, as long as the aircraft is operated only within that country.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA addressed whether news media may fly drones for newsgathering and use or buy drone imagery. Media newsgathering flights need FAA authorization because they are business, not hobby, operations. The FAA does not regulate media that merely receive images from an operator, but anyone flying to sell images needs authorization.

FlightPush Summary

Valair Aviation asked whether a Westwind 1124A TCDS note pointing to a maintenance manual chapter for life-limited parts makes those retirement times mandatory. The FAA said no: the manual has no FAA-approved Airworthiness Limitations section, the ICA requirements do not apply to this older design, and absent an AD or other FAA rule the times are not mandatory.

FlightPush Summary

The Air Line Pilots Association asked several questions about FDP extensions and cumulative limits under 14 CFR part 117. The FAA said every extension requires concurrence of the PIC and certificate holder when the need is known; delay holds, reserve time awaiting a post-flight check-in, and airport standby count toward cumulative FDP limits, but deadhead after the last flight segment does not.

FlightPush Summary

ALPA asked what counts as an "unforeseen operational circumstance" for extending a flight duty period under 14 CFR 117.19(a). The FAA said the definition requires an unplanned event that actually occurs and is too short to allow schedule adjustments, and that whether an event qualifies is a fact-specific determination with no set timeframe.

FlightPush Summary

Everts Air Cargo asked whether 14 CFR part 117 applies to paid parabolic flights that return to their departure point. The FAA said yes: holding out to carry paying passengers through the air is common carriage no matter where the flight lands, so the operation falls under 14 CFR part 121 and therefore part 117.

FlightPush Summary

An airline transport pilot asked how the 2-hour extension in 14 CFR 117.19 affects the short-call reserve limit in 14 CFR 117.21(c)(3). The FAA said the extension is added directly to the applicable combined limit; in the scenario, the 16-hour limit from a 0400 reserve start becomes 18 hours, so a flight duty period ending at 2100 would comply, assuming the 14 CFR 117.19(a) conditions are met.

FlightPush Summary

Teamsters Local Union No. 357 asked how 14 CFR part 117 governs a PIC's refusal of a flight duty period extension. The FAA said the rule is silent on how concurrence is reached, so a carrier may ask the PIC's reasons and the PIC may decline to answer; status changes and discipline are left to the employment relationship, but no extension may be taken without the PIC's concurrence.

FlightPush Summary

Teamsters Local Union No. 357 asked whether part 117 limits apply to check pilots evaluating from the jump seat. The FAA said it depends on whether the check pilot has control, authority, and responsibility over the flight's safety; if not, those segments do not count against Table A but can count toward Table B when they come before or between segments the check pilot flies.

FlightPush Summary

A certificate holder may add segments after the last scheduled one if it has not affirmatively intended to end the flight duty period, as long as 14 CFR part 117 limits are not exceeded. Once it ends the FDP, it must provide the rest required by 14 CFR 117.25(e) before a new reserve or FDP.

FlightPush Summary

A relief pilot who serves only en route during cruise and relieves only the assigned second in command does not need a left-seat takeoff and landing during operating experience or pilot-in-command proficiency training and evaluation, applying 14 CFR 121.432(a) and 121.543(b)(3)(ii).

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether split duty can be assigned during airport/standby reserve, given 14 CFR 117.15(c) requires split duty rest to be scheduled before the flight duty period begins. The FAA said yes: the assignment is prospective as long as the flightcrew member knows, before the first flight segment, when the split duty rest will be taken.

FlightPush Summary

American Aircraft Sales sought to register the salvage of a Beechcraft Bonanza destroyed in Hurricane Sandy, whose registration had ended and which no longer had an identification plate. The FAA said it will not register the salvage as a Beechcraft F33A without an identification plate from Beechcraft, which the FAA cannot compel Beechcraft to provide. Without one, the company could apply for an experimental certificate under 14 CFR 21.191.

FlightPush Summary

An ExpressJet first officer asked whether part 117 short-call reserve limits can be extended and when rest is owed before long-call reserve. The FAA said the limits can be extended under 14 CFR 117.19 or 14 CFR 117.29, subject to their conditions. On long-call reserve, a crewmember can be required to answer the phone for an assignment notice, but must then get the required rest before the flight duty period.

FlightPush Summary

A Part 135 applicant asked whether FAA guidance on general manuals and compliance statements conflicts. The FAA said no: the manual and the compliance statement are separate parts of the application. Single-pilot applicants without manuals describe how they will comply in the compliance statement, while applicants with manuals may simply list applicable regulations and reference the manual.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked when a second pilot may log SIC time in a Citation CE-525. The FAA said a company policy requiring two pilots does not make the second pilot a required crewmember, but SIC time may be logged when acting as safety pilot, when an inoperative autopilot requires a copilot, or when the PIC's type rating requires an SIC.

FlightPush Summary

A law firm for Atlas Air asked whether a Part 121 carrier could accept hazardous materials training given by a foreign air carrier or a Part 145 repair station and add only differences training. The FAA said no to both: foreign air carriers are not certificate holders and their training programs are not FAA-approved, and repair station employees must be trained under the air carrier's own approved program.

FlightPush Summary

NAVAIR asked whether 14 CFR 21.50(b) requires design approval holders to furnish Instructions for Continued Airworthiness for its C-130J aircraft, which it operates only as public aircraft. The FAA said no, because the C-130J has no FAA type certificate and is not eligible for a standard airworthiness certificate; whether NAVAIR may share ICA it holds with maintenance providers is a civil matter between the parties.

FlightPush Summary

The US Airline Pilots Association asked whether a fuel stop planned before departure counts as a diversion under the 14 CFR part 117 flight duty period rules. The FAA said no: only unplanned diversions occurring after takeoff are excluded from segment counts, so a planned fuel stop is an additional flight segment that can change the applicable Table B FDP limit.

FlightPush Summary

An individual asked whether a 501(c)(3) charity could pay pilots with donated funds and fly its aircraft under 14 CFR part 91. The FAA said ATP and commercial pilots may be paid, but whether the operation needs a 14 CFR part 119 certificate could not be determined without more facts. Flights for children reimbursed by a make-a-wish organization could not be conducted under 14 CFR part 91.

FlightPush Summary

Responding to an NTSB question, the FAA Chief Counsel said all personnel assigned airport rescue and firefighting duties must complete the 14 CFR 139.319 training and live-fire drill before performing those duties, including command staff who perform them. An Incident Commander may not need the training, relying on trained firefighting command staff.

FlightPush Summary

For 14 CFR 121.601, a flight begins when the aircraft pushes back or taxis from the gate or ramp, not when the PIC signs the dispatch release. Dispatchers must keep passing safety-relevant airport, facility, and weather information to the PIC before departure, even if the release was signed an hour or more earlier, and throughout the flight; certificate holders are responsible for their dispatchers' compliance.

FlightPush Summary

The FAA's Chief Counsel's office considered whether documents that must be carried in an aircraft may be kept at an unmanned aircraft's ground control station. It said yes: the rules' intent is met when the pilot has the documents at the control station, but the memo applies only to unmanned aircraft, not manned or optionally piloted aircraft with a pilot aboard.

FlightPush Summary

FAA Flight Standards asked whether part 121 operators may qualify the assigned SIC on flights requiring three or more pilots using the en route relief rule. After public comment, the FAA said no: under 14 CFR 121.432(a) that SIC must meet all PIC qualifications except PIC operating experience, while a pilot who only relieves the SIC en route need not.

FlightPush Summary

Gulf & Caribbean Cargo asked what counts toward the 1,000 hours of air carrier experience a part 121 PIC needs. SIC time counts only if flown under part 121 operating rules, not part 91 repositioning or simulator time; pilots and operators share responsibility for compliance, and pilots relying on earlier part 121 PIC time may seek an exemption.

FlightPush Summary

Island Air asked whether the fitness-for-duty affirmation under 14 CFR 117.5(d) is needed before every flight segment or only at the start of the flight duty period. The FAA said every segment: a flightcrew member must affirm fitness in writing each time he or she commences a flight segment, and may do so electronically, such as through ACARS.

FlightPush Summary

The US Airline Pilots Association asked whether a pilot could fly a fourth consecutive nighttime flight duty period when the third had infringed on the window of circadian low only because of delays. The FAA said yes under 14 CFR 117.27, which limits scheduling: a realistically scheduled non-infringing duty period breaks the chain of consecutive infringing periods, even if delays later push it into that window.

FlightPush Summary

Jet-Care International asked whether a pilot with only a UK airline transport pilot license may fly a U.S.-registered aircraft in UK airspace. The FAA said yes: 14 CFR 61.3 allows it without limitation, including for salaried pilots of type-certificated aircraft, but a pilot holding only the UK license may not operate the aircraft outside the United Kingdom.

FlightPush Summary

A 2011 interpretation holding that academic training assigned by a Part 135 certificate holder is duty, even when done by distance learning, applies equally to Part 121 rest rules under 14 CFR 121.471(e). Calling the training homework or pre-study does not change that, operating manuals cannot supersede the regulations, and inspectors generally cannot approve noncompliance; relief requires an exemption.

FlightPush Summary

An attorney asked when an airman must answer Yes to question 18(n) on the medical application. An alcohol test result of 0.04 or greater on a DOT-required test in the last two years counts as substance abuse, so the airman must answer Yes to both 18(n) and 18(o) and explain the circumstances.

FlightPush Summary

A requester asked whether short-call reserve rules allow a flight duty period longer than the daily limits in 14 CFR part 117. The FAA said no: the reserve limits in 14 CFR 117.21(c) apply on top of the daily limits, and the more stringent one controls. In each example, assuming no extensions were used, the earlier end time applied.

FlightPush Summary

The Aviation Designee Association asked whether the FAA may refuse export airworthiness approvals and special flight permits for aircraft outside the United States. The FAA said it may deny an export approval because 14 CFR 21.325(c) is permissive and location can create an undue burden, though no rule requires the aircraft to be on U.S. soil; special flight permits have no explicit geographic limit.

FlightPush Summary

Keystone Turbine Services, a repair station, asked whether remotely located field representatives could perform AOG maintenance at customer locations after its FSDO denied the request. The FAA said yes: 14 CFR 145.203(b) allows recurring work away from the fixed location when the manual includes procedures for it, and the rule sets no required frequency for returning to the fixed location.

FlightPush Summary

Suburban Air Freight, Inc. asked whether 14 CFR 135.63(a)(4)(vii) requires a duty time log for flight-qualified managers. The FAA said no: the rule requires only a record of pilot flight time, not a specific duty time record, but the certificate holder must still comply with all 14 CFR part 135 flight, duty, and rest rules, subject to FAA inspection.

FlightPush Summary

No set duration makes an unplanned event an unforeseen operational circumstance under 14 CFR 117.19; it must not be relatively short and must reasonably justify the flight duty period extension. Both the pilot in command and the certificate holder must concur, and a pilot in command who declines and does not fly the segment complies with 14 CFR part 117.

FlightPush Summary

NASA asked whether its astronauts, and astronauts of its international partners, must give written informed consent to fly as space flight participants on licensed or permitted vehicles. The FAA said yes. Unlike the waiver of claims it had found NASA astronauts need not sign, informed consent is not a waiver, and the FAA identified no statute that conflicts with requiring it.