FAA · Information for Operators (InFO)
InFO 25001: Work Flexibility for Lactating Flightcrew Member(s)/Crewmember(s) Onboard Aircraft.
In Brief
What It Addresses
This InFO provides information and resources to Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 121 air carriers (this information may also be useful for parts 91, 125 and 135 operators), developing or reviewing their policies and procedures for flightcrew member(s) and/or crewmember(s) who are lactating to express breast milk. For the purposes of this InFO, the terms “Flightcrew member(s) and Crewmember(s)” will hereafter be referred to as “crewmembers.”
Why It Matters
H.R.3935 - FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, Title IV – Aerospace Workforce, Sec. 421.
Recommended Action
Directors of Safety, Operations, In-Flight Services, and Training, and Crewmembers should consider the information and resources referenced in this InFO when developing or reviewing lactating crewmember policies and procedures to ensure work flexibility and safe operation of the aircraft.
From the Document: selected source passages, quoted as written, for a quick overview.
Distributed by: Flight Standards
https://www.faa.gov/other_visit/aviation_industry/airline_operators/airline_safety/info/all_infos___________ An InFO contains valuable information for operators that should help them meet certain administrative, regulatory, or operational requirements, with relatively low urgency or impact on safety. The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way. This document is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.
Subject: Work Flexibility for Lactating Flightcrew Member(s)/Crewmember(s) Onboard Aircraft.
Purpose: This InFO provides information and resources to Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 121 air carriers (this information may also be useful for parts 91, 125 and 135 operators), developing or reviewing their policies and procedures for flightcrew member(s) and/or crewmember(s) who are lactating to express breast milk. For the purposes of this InFO, the terms “Flightcrew member(s) and Crewmember(s)” will hereafter be referred to as “crewmembers.”
Background: H.R.3935 - FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, Title IV – Aerospace Workforce, Sec. 421. Crewmember pumping guidance, directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to issue guidance to part 121 air carriers relating to crewmember expression of breast milk on aircraft during noncritical phases of flight. In producing such guidance, Sec. 421 provides that the FAA must consider multiple methods of expressing breast milk that could be used by crewmembers, including the use of wearable lactation technology, and ensure that any guidance does not require an air carrier or foreign air carrier to incur significant expense, such as through:
The addition of an extra crewmember in response to providing a break;
Removal or retrofitting of seats on the aircraft; or
Modification or retrofitting of an aircraft.
Discussion: The aviation industry is a cornerstone of global connectivity that requires a workforce to navigate rigorous schedules and complex responsibilities. This InFO addresses the safety related roles and challenges of lactating crewmembers, and suggests Directors of Safety, Operations, In-Flight Services, and Training develop mitigation strategies to ensure safe operation of the aircraft is not compromised. Operators and crewmembers should work collaboratively to develop appropriate and safe policies regarding lactating crewmembers.
FAA regulations allow for expression of breast milk by lactating crewmembers; however, expression of breast milk must be accomplished within the current regulatory framework, for which the underlying priority is safe aircraft operations.
Existing FAA Regulations and Guidance: When developing policies regarding lactating crewmembers, operators should follow all established guidance to ensure policies do not create regulatory noncompliance or increase risk to the safety of flight. Existing FAA safety regulations provide InFOInformation for Operators
U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Aviation
Administration
InFO 25001
DATE: 01/16/25
Flight Standards Service
Washington, DC
Distributed by: Flight Standards
appropriate latitude for flight crewmembers to leave their station in connection with physiological needs, including their need to express breast milk. Utilizing existing regulations and guidance will ensure the safety of each flight is maintained. Areas of consideration within existing regulations are:
In accordance with § 5.1, all part 121 air carriers must develop and implement a Safety Management System, which includes systematic procedures, practices, and policies for the management of safety risk in accordance with part 5.
If an operator chooses to install a privacy curtain that alters the aircraft in any way to accommodate lactating crewmembers, the operator must utilize the current process to obtain a supplemental type certificate (STC) in accordance with § 21.113.
Crewmembers may use cloth “nursing covers” to maintain privacy while pumping, consistent with FAA regulations.
A crewmember must be able to operate the aircraft or perform other required duties in a safe manner in accordance with § 61.53.
To comply with §§ 91.21 and 121.306, the aircraft operator must determine that the use of portable electronic devices (PED) will not interfere with an aircraft’s navigation or communication systems.
For more information, reference the Aircraft PED Tolerance Determination section below.
During takeoff and landing, required flight attendants (F/A) shall be located as near as practicable to required floor-level exits and shall be uniformly distributed throughout the airplane in order to provide the most effective egress of passengers in the event of an emergency evacuation. During taxi, flight attendants required by this section must remain at their duty stations with safety belts and shoulder harnesses fastened except to perform duties related to the safety of the airplane and its occupant in accordance with § 121.391.
Crew resource management is vital to ensuring all in flight announcements and cabin safety duties are accomplished in accordance with § 121.404. Examples of crew resource management strategies include seatbelt announcements and compliance checks, prelanding announcements and compliance checks, lavatory checks, flight deck door procedures, and adequate crewmember availability in case of an emergency.
No flight crewmember may engage in, nor may any pilot-in-command (PIC) permit, any activity during a critical phase of flight which could distract any flight crewmember from the performance of his or her duties or which could interfere in any way with the proper conduct of those duties in accordance with § 121.542.
A required flight crewmember may leave the assigned duty station if the absence is in connection with physiological needs, including their need to express breast milk, in accordance with § 121.543.
Ensure crewmembers follow the operator’s approved flight deck door opening procedures in accordance with §§ 121.547, 121.584, and 121.587.
Crewmembers are subject to applicable air carrier policies and FAA regulations for stowage of personal breast pumps and coolers with breast milk in aircraft compartments.
Lactation Technology: If the air carrier elects to develop policies and procedures to use lactation technology on the flight deck, a safety risk assessment should be conducted. The assessment should consider at a minimum the following:
Is there an impact of a crew member either being unavailable or having limited availability to perform their assigned duties.
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Will the use of lactation technology impede or interfere with the manipulation of the aircraft’s flight controls?
Commercial off-the-shelf lactation technology is available in a variety of shapes and sizes. Is the breast milk containment technology robust enough to withstand unanticipated severe turbulence while occupying a pilot seat and manipulating the aircraft flight controls?
Is only one individual allowed to express breast milk on the flight deck at a given time? Can more than one crewmember express breast milk on the flight deck?
Note: The air carrier determines which lactation technology is acceptable to be used on the flight deck for each make, model, series of aircraft operated by the air carrier in accordance with § 121.306(b)(6).
Wearable lactation technology that utilizes WiFi or Bluetooth functionality shall not be allowed to connect to a crewmember’s personal PED while occupying a seat on the flight deck in accordance with § 121.542 (d), and 49 U.S.C. 44732(d)).
Aircraft PED Tolerance Determination: The FAA has published InFO 13010, Expanding Use of Passenger Portable Electronic Devices and 13010SUP, FAA Aid to Operators for the Expanded Use of Passenger PEDs to aid in Aircraft PED tolerance determinations to provide aircraft operators with a method for expanding the allowance of PED use throughout various phases of flight. When followed, it provides an acceptable method of compliance for § 91.21, § 121.306, § 125.204, or § 135.144, as applicable, when allowing expanded use of PEDs throughout various phases of flight.
Additional Information: Additional information for PED use allowance and resources for Lactating Crewmembers can be found at the following links:
PED Use:
FAA Advisory Circular (AC) 91.21-1, Use of Portable Electronic Devices Aboard Aircraft
FAA Advisory Circular (AC) 20-164, Designing and Demonstrating Aircraft Tolerance to Portable Electronic Devices.
FAA InFO 14006, Prohibition on Personal Use of Electronic Devices on the Flight Deck.
Resources for Lactating Crewmembers from other Federal Agencies: Other resources that may be useful are listed below. However, expression of breast milk must be accomplished within the current FAA statutory and regulatory framework, for which the underlying priority is safe aircraft operations:
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Women’s Health: Pumping and storing breastmilk (womenshealth.gov).
For information on the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (42 U.S.C §§2000gg (2022)), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (Pub. L. 88–352, 78 Stat. 241 (1964)), and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (42 U.S.C §§2000e(k) 1978)), please refer to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission website at www.eeoc.gov and the Department of Labor website at www.dol.gov.
Time and Place to Pump at Work: Your Rights | EEOC and DOL
What You Should Know About the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act | EEOC
Distributed by: Flight Standards
Recommended Action: Directors of Safety, Operations, In-Flight Services, and Training, and Crewmembers should consider the information and resources referenced in this InFO when developing or reviewing lactating crewmember policies and procedures to ensure work flexibility and safe operation of the aircraft.
Contact: Questions or comments regarding this InFO should be directed to the Air Transportation Division at 9-AFS-200-Correspondence@faa.gov.
Source: Federal Aviation Administration — www.faa.gov. Reproduced from the published record; FlightPush adds formatting only.
InFO 25001