Legal Interpretations

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A prospective helicopter operator asked whether 14 CFR part 133 applies to hoisting passengers from offshore vessels and flying them into the United States. The FAA said no, as long as the hoist is completed before entering US airspace, but the passenger flights would require a 14 CFR part 119 certificate and operation under 14 CFR part 135.

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Reliant Air Charter asked about part 135 pilot testing and approach minimums. The FAA said general knowledge subjects under 14 CFR 135.293(a) need not be retested for each aircraft, and any authorized check pilot may give them, and that 14 CFR 135.225(c) and (d) apply to part 135 operations generally despite a drafting error suggesting they cover only eligible on-demand operations.

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The New Zealand Air Line Pilots' Association asked whether an Air New Zealand Second Officer under 60 can be the younger pilot ICAO requires when the pilot in command is 60 or older on U.S. flights. The FAA said only if licensed, appropriately rated for all phases of flight, and current; one exempted from the required takeoffs and landings does not qualify, despite New Zealand's filed difference.

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NorthStar Trekking asked whether the Auke Bay route at Juneau is necessary only for takeoff or landing, which would exempt its tours from life preserver and float rules. The FAA said no, because the route runs several miles before the traffic pattern. Flying within gliding distance of shore, the operator may either equip floats or have passengers wear life preservers; the route remains usable.

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A flight instructor renewing early with a FIRC must apply within 3 calendar months of completing it. The new expiration is 24 calendar months from the current expiration only if the FIRC itself was completed within the 3 calendar months before expiration; otherwise it is 24 calendar months from the month of application.

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A flight instructor need not retake the fundamentals of instructing test for a ground instructor certificate, under 14 CFR 61.213(b). But holding an instrument rating does not satisfy 14 CFR 61.213(a)(4)(iii); an applicant for an instrument ground instructor certificate must pass the instrument ground instructor knowledge test.

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An FAA office asked whether operations funds may pay for developing EMS helicopter routes and departure procedures. The FAA's counsel said yes: the 2012 law's list of authorized expenditures, which names helicopter approach procedures, is a set-aside rather than a limit, and the FAA may spend appropriated funds on other purposes that support its mission.

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Pilots who must stay on call around the clock are not at rest, so a Part 135 operator may not use 24/7 on-call status in place of required rest under 14 CFR 135.267. Required training is also duty: it cannot count as rest, may not infringe on rest required before an EMS flight, and may not be completed during a HEMES assignment.

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FAA offices asked whether Scaled Composites' SpaceShipTwo needs a 14 CFR 91.817 authorization to exceed Mach 1 during launch. It does not: the Commercial Space Launch Act's licensing regime excludes other approvals during launch and reentry. The vehicle and its carrier aircraft are still subject to aviation regulations during aviation activities.

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Kalitta Air asked about drug testing and random-test notification. The FAA said the "performing" definition in 14 CFR 120.7(k) applies only to alcohol testing, so employees responsible for safety-sensitive functions are subject to drug testing at any time. Random tests must be unannounced, and employers should notify employees when they can ensure the employee proceeds to testing immediately.

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A requester asked how 'military experience' rides fit the part 119 exceptions. The FAA said they may be flown under part 91 as commercial air tours with a 14 CFR 91.147 letter of authorization and standard-airworthiness aircraft, but not under the training flight exception, and that a commercial pilot need not be a CFI to fly them.

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Paragon Space Development Corporation asked whether its World View balloon capsule, carrying people to 30 kilometers, falls under the commercial space launch statute. The FAA said yes for the proposed altitudes, because the capsule must be built to operate in outer space to keep occupants alive for hours, assuming it rapidly transits controlled airspace. It did not decide whether 30 kilometers is outer space.

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An FAA Flight Standards office asked whether part 133 covers helicopter hoist operations carrying passengers more than 12 nautical miles from the United States. The Chief Counsel's office said no, because 14 CFR part 133 applies only within the United States, so the operations must be conducted under 14 CFR part 135, including 14 CFR 135.3(a)(2) for operations over the high seas.

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A pilot with a type rating limited to SIC privileges, such as for the S-61, may not log pilot-in-command time under 14 CFR 61.51(e)(1)(i), because that rule requires a type rating without the "SIC Privileges Only" limitation. The FAA reaffirmed its 2012 Counsil interpretation.

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A requester asked whether a paid formation flight instructor counts as a passenger for hire under 14 CFR 91.111(c). The FAA said the authorized instructor exception does not apply because formation flight requires no training or endorsement, but a rated pilot may hire an experienced formation pilot to ride along for familiarization if the experienced pilot does not act as pilot in command.

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A requester asked how 14 CFR 135.267(c) applies to a mid-shift base change and to an early charter. The FAA lacked the facts to answer the base-change question, noting a 15-day shift is shorter than the four weeks it has called reasonable to establish a regularly assigned duty period, but said an infrequent early charter with at least 10 hours of rest is permitted.

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A requester asked whether an instructor may give a high-performance endorsement in a multiengine airplane to a pilot without a multiengine rating. The FAA said yes, because 14 CFR 61.31(f) does not require a rating first, but the pilot may not use the endorsement to act as pilot in command of a multiengine airplane until earning the multiengine rating.

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Aviation First Consulting asked whether a part 135 air taxi operator adding an aircraft type must wait for an approved amended Form 4507. The FAA said 14 CFR 298.23 lets the amendment be filed within 30 days after the change, so no wait is needed for it, but the new type cannot be used until amended operations specifications are approved under 14 CFR 119.51.

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The FAA said a Part 135 operator with one leased aircraft loses exclusive use under 14 CFR 135.25(b) if the owner or anyone else operates it. It also said the number of pilots actually used decides whether 14 CFR 135.267 or 14 CFR 135.269 applies, and operators may apply stricter limits to augmented crews.

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A physician asked whether random drug testing is limited to employees actually performing safety-sensitive duties. The FAA reaffirmed its Mayo interpretation: the 14 CFR 120.7(k) definition of performing does not apply to drug testing, so a pilot hired to perform a safety-sensitive function is subject to random drug testing even if not immediately available to fly due to a lapse in currency.

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A requester asked nine questions about adequate airports used to decide whether a part 121 two-engine flight is ETOPS. The FAA said such an airport must meet 14 CFR 121.7 and be listed in the operations specifications. Alternate-airport weather rules do not apply to it in a non-ETOPS flight plan, but dispatchers must still pass on conditions that may affect the safety of the flight.

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A private energy company's Director of Aviation asked which company flights he could fly as a private pilot under 14 CFR 61.113(b). The FAA said maintenance test flights are incidental and permitted, but carrying company correspondence or other company pilots is not, nor is aerial observation that is a foreseeable, regular part of the business. It lacked enough facts to fully answer about flights meant to keep the aircraft airworthy.

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The five-second quick-donning requirement for oxygen masks is measured from the mask within immediate reach while the crewmember is seated at the duty station, under 14 CFR 25.1447(c)(2) and 14 CFR 121.333(c)(2). The rules require both conditions, and FAA Policy ANM-03-111-07 describes acceptable test methods.

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Elevon Consulting asked whether a donation-funded not-for-profit could fly free point-to-point flights for other not-for-profit organizations under 14 CFR part 91. The FAA said no: donations offsetting aircraft and pilot expenses are compensation, so a 14 CFR part 119 certificate is required, and pilots could not share expenses because they lack a common purpose. Exemptions for humanitarian flights may be considered.

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An FAA Flight Standards Division asked whether a Kauai County as-needed helicopter contract for marijuana eradication could be a public aircraft operation. The FAA said no: a contractor's aircraft must be exclusively leased for at least 90 continuous days, and Drug Enforcement Administration funding gives drug eradication a commercial purpose. The flights must follow FAA rules, with Class D external loads requiring a multiengine helicopter under 14 CFR part 133.

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A rated pilot who lacks the complex or high-performance endorsements may still log pilot-in-command time under 14 CFR 61.51(e) while sole manipulator of the controls, even though another pilot acts as PIC. The endorsements in 14 CFR 61.31(e) and (f) are needed to act as PIC, not to log PIC time.

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An FAA regional Flight Standards Division asked whether two aircraft leasing programs were wet leases. The Office of the Chief Counsel said leases are judged case by case: the first appeared to be a wet lease requiring a 14 CFR part 119 certificate and 14 CFR part 135 operations, and the second warranted scrutiny, but more facts were needed to decide definitively.

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The FAA said a pilot cannot be assigned 10 consecutive days of duty across the move to the 14 CFR part 117 rules. 14 CFR 117.25(b) requires 30 consecutive hours free from all duty within the 168 hours before any reserve or flight duty period, and rest given under the old 14 CFR part 121 rules counts. Consecutive duty days not interrupted by such rest do not comply.

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An owner of two late-1940s aircraft with aluminum ID plates inside the cabin complies with current 14 CFR 45.11(a) and (e), assuming all other relevant requirements are met. The fireproof, attached-plate requirement is not new; for aircraft built before March 7, 1988, the plate may be inside near an entrance if the model and serial number are displayed on the fuselage exterior.

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Aerospace Turbine Rotables asked when and by whom the FAA would enforce the 14 CFR 21.50(b) duty of design approval holders to provide instructions for continued airworthiness. The FAA reaffirmed the duty but declined to set a timeframe or name an enforcing entity, calling these case-specific policy matters; generally Aircraft Certification or Flight Standards would investigate and refer violations to an FAA legal office.

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Silverberg, Goldman & Bikoff asked whether a company facilitating charitable donations from non-business guests on its aircraft receives compensation. The FAA could not say without more facts, such as the company's ties to the charities and how seats are offered. It cautioned that compensation is construed broadly, and good will from facilitating donations may in some circumstances be compensation.

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Silverberg, Goldman & Bikoff asked whether a company that forwards voluntary charitable donations from guests flown free in unused seats is carrying passengers for hire. The FAA cautioned that facilitating donations may yield valuable good will, which counts as compensation, especially where company officers serve on the charities' boards, so the flights could require 14 CFR part 119 certification. Charitable event flights under 14 CFR 91.146 differ.

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The FAA's Air Transportation Division asked whether a supplemental operator flying under domestic or flag rules may leave a regular, provisional, or refueling airport off its dispatch or release. Chief Counsel said 14 CFR 121.631(a) alone does not forbid it, but 14 CFR 119.49(a)(4)(ii) bars domestic and flag operations at airports not listed in the OpSpecs, so relief requires an exemption.

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A supplemental air carrier cannot operate a 12.5-hour nonstop flight with four pilots under the U.S. mainland rules, which limit scheduled segments to 8 hours (10 for qualifying transcontinental flights). Under the international rules, it could only fly under 14 CFR 121.523, which requires adequate sleeping quarters on board; the FAA reads that as a bunk or berth, not a reclining passenger seat.

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A flight attendant scheduled for 13:35 of duty may finish a 16-hour day when a delay beyond the carrier's control on the first segment pushes back every later flight. The schedule met the 14-hour limit, so the carrier complied and did not have to reassign the flight attendant simply because the delay happened early.

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CAS Aviation Services asked about the legal basis for FAA Notice 8900.197, which directs inspectors to correct Part 135 training programs that credit training done with another certificate holder. The FAA said the notice reflects existing 14 CFR part 135 training rules, which make each certificate holder responsible for its own tailored training, allows only limited reduced-hour curricula, and created no new regulations.

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Southwest Airlines asked whether age-60 crew pairing rules apply to part 121 flights from Puerto Rico to the contiguous states and to domestic flights through Canadian airspace. The FAA said 14 CFR 61.3(j) applies to both when the flight passes through another country's airspace and meets the operational characteristics in 14 CFR 61.3(j)(1).

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A pilot asked whether flying a friend's airplane for only the cost of fuel is compensation under 14 CFR 61.113. The FAA did not decide, citing too few details, but said compensation is construed very broadly and that not paying the full operating costs might be a financial benefit that counts, depending on the arrangement and the flight's purpose.

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FedEx Express asked how far its OpSpec D084 continuous ferry-flight authorization reaches. The FAA said D084 covers flights to storage and, if the AD allows movement, flights to make AD-required repairs, but flights to a place where an aircraft will be scrapped, donated, or sold need a separate special flight permit under 14 CFR 21.197(a).

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A United Air Lines certificate management inspector asked whether rest time during long flights counts toward part 121 operating experience. The FAA said no: a pilot must actually perform PIC or SIC duties while seated at the controls, so in the example only 18 hours 43 minutes of a 31-hour-10-minute trip counts.

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An FAA branch asked how to compute deadlines for aging airplane inspections under 14 CFR 121.1105. The FAA said the initial inspection and records review must be completed before the airplane enters its 20th year in service, counted from its first airworthiness certificate, and that the 90-day extension in 14 CFR 121.1105(c) cannot extend the initial inspection.

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The FAA was asked whether any approved part 142 course allows a flight instructor reinstatement practical test in a level D simulator. The Chief Counsel's office said no: under 14 CFR 61.199(a)(1) and 14 CFR 61.183(h)(2), the instructor must be enrolled in an approved course specific to instructor certification or reinstatement for that training to be conducted in a level D simulator.

FlightPush Summary

A private pilot who uses her employer's avionics and pilot supplies in her own aircraft and gives unpaid feedback may not be receiving compensation, so 14 CFR 61.113(a) may not be implicated when the flights are recreational and not directed or reimbursed by the company. Because compensation is defined broadly, any compensation would be prohibited for flights made to test the products.

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Replacement and overhaul intervals that S-LSA manufacturers call mandatory are not per se mandatory. Under 14 CFR 43.13(a), following the manual is one acceptable way to maintain the aircraft, but a maintenance provider may instead use an alternative method acceptable to the FAA.

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A law firm asked whether a Part 135 operator still has an exclusive-use aircraft if the aircraft's owner occasionally flies it under Part 91 with the operator's authorization. The FAA said no: exclusive use under 14 CFR 135.25(c) means the certificate holder's sole possession, control, and use, and only the certificate holder may use the aircraft for non-Part 135 operations.

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The Aviation Law Firm asked whether its client could be paid for aerial survey data gathered with an experimental gyroplane. The FAA said this complies with 14 CFR 91.319(a) only if the flights match the certificate's issued purpose and carry only the operator's own essential employees and property. Dual-purpose flights that also reposition the aircraft may need a part 119 certificate.

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The Air Line Pilots Association and Airlines for America asked whether part 117's cumulative limits look back at flying done before the rule's January 4, 2014 effective date. The FAA said no, because part 117 is not retroactive; the limits build up from that date. For crewmembers who moved to part 117 early under an exemption, the look-back starts when they began operating under it.

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Airlines for America asked how theater and acclimation work under 14 CFR part 117. The FAA said a theater change occurs when a flight segment ends more than 60 degrees longitude from where the FDP series began, and a crewmember acclimates to a theater, not a time zone, after 72 hours there or 36 consecutive hours of rest. Acclimation status is locked in for each FDP.