Articles for category Regulatory
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May
17
2021
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Posted by Admin
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A myth is generally defined in this context as a widely held but false belief or idea. And when it comes to aircraft maintenance, a majority of aircraft owners and a smaller number of mechanics seem to thrive in that mythical maintenance world.
So pop in your copy of Magic Carpet Ride and let’s take a journey down the yellow brick flight line to unlock some of those long-held maintenance myths.
MYTH: The mechanic is responsible for maintaining the aircraft.
No. While a mechanic is responsible for the specific work they perform, in reality, it is the owner who is held responsible overall by the FAA for maintaining the aircraft in airworthy condition. The feds even conveniently stated that in black and white in FAR Part 91.403(a).
So if you think you get a pass on all regulatory maintenance infractions, you may want to think again and be more involved in the maintenance processes that take place on your aircraft.
And just when you think you have that myth resolved, the owner is also responsible for compliance with the requirements of Part 39, Airworthiness Directives. This is also stated in Part 91.403(a). So while your APIA may check for the actual AD compliance during every Annual inspection, the owner is the one who is accountable to the Man.
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Tags:
Helicopter Maintenance
Helicopter Mechanic Duties and Responsibilies
Helicopter Mechanic Liability
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial
Regulatory
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Oct
07
2019
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Posted by Admin
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After a recent helicopter accident, some old topics popped up on a number of internet forums: aircraft repairs, aircraft data plates, and salvage parts. While it remains to be seen if any previous repairs have fault in this accident, the ensuing discussions demonstrated that there is an ongoing knowledge gap in how aircraft repairs can be performed legally.
First, the use of aircraft salvage parts in aircraft repairs is perfectly legal within the FARs and is a classic example of, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” However, when it comes to data plates, there is – and has been – specific regulatory guidance on how they are made, attached, and maintained.
Unfortunately, some people are not aware of (or choose not to follow) this FAA guidance.
As such, the FAA and the OEMs have become more proactive in this area in recent times. For instance, as recently as October 2018 the FAA issued new guidance. So follow below as we continue the discussion.
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Categories:
Regulatory
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Aug
26
2019
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Posted by Admin
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Several times a year, I’ll field a question about aircraft records. Not the Chuck Yeager type, but those binders, stacks, or sometimes just boxes of documents and paper products that record the maintenance performed on an aircraft.
The specific topic may vary a bit, but one topic that continually repeats itself concerns the FAA required format for these records. While there is FAA guidance on the content and form for each maintenance entry made into these records, there is no mandated format, i.e. physical form, on which that entry should be written.
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Categories:
Regulatory
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Feb
25
2019
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Posted by Admin
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No, despite the above title, I’m not trying to move some product on the street. Rather, when was the last time you looked over your aircraft’s Empty Weight & Balance Record (EWBR) and Equipment List (EL)? My what?
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Categories:
Regulatory
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Sep
10
2018
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Posted by Admin
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In aviation, there are some topics that never seem to remain settled. For instance, does the responsibility for the inspection and maintenance of an aircraft fall to the owner/operator or the mechanic? Simple. The owner or operator.
However, this hierarchy still gets twisted around occasionally. The reasons vary on both sides of the fence. They range from simple misinformation or misinterpretation of the FARs to intentional motives in pursuit of an external agenda.
Follow along as we delve into the available guidance and provide a balanced, one-stop-shop approach to who’s in charge of maintaining an aircraft.
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Categories:
Regulatory
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Jul
30
2018
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Posted by Admin
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Periodically, I have the privilege of assisting Part 135 operators with temporary management and training position services. My role may include providing instructor and/or check-pilot services for their Part 135 operating certificate. In many cases, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) inability to support an operator training and checking program is driven by their FAA inspector’s lack of experience and/or currency in the aircraft operated by the Part 135 certificate holder.
A few weeks ago, I was working with an operator to become their Part 135 instructor and check pilot. Following the guidance provided within FAA Order 8900.1, we requested an initial cadre approval and set the process to move forward. That letter was crafted and submitted in October 2017. Once our principal operations inspector (POI) received the request, we were notified that the office did not have adequate staff to conduct pilot proficiency checks in the requested aircraft make and model, so an FAA inspector from another office would conduct the checks.
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Categories:
Regulatory
Training
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Nov
20
2017
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Posted by Admin
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I was talking to a local helicopter pilot that had recently obtained his private pilot helicopter certificate. We were chatting about his experience during his checkride. He said, “I was surprised that the DPE asked so many questions on airport signage when we’re able to land just about anywhere on the airport.” That comment caused me to to pause and consider: Is his perception of helicopter operations at airports accurate?
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Categories:
Training
Regulatory
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May
30
2017
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Posted by Admin
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On December 22, 2016 a State District Court judge in Austin upheld a ruling, giving the State of Texas the right to regulate fees paid to air ambulances for transporting patients covered by Workers' Compensation Insurance. On the surface it doesn’t look like that ruling affects the American HAA (Helicopter Air Ambulance) industry, but it could prove to change the fabric of the industry. The ruling has the potential to create a negative ripple effect in our industry, if successfully argued and used as a precedent in other State class-action lawsuits currently filed against for-profit HAA providers.
Air medical companies have legally operated under the umbrella of the 1978 Airline Deregulation Act. This Act was originally crafted to remove government control of airfares as a way to promote healthy competition. This gave the consumer a choice of which airline they patronize based on a price they would be willing to pay. Air ambulance patients do not have a choice -- and are not told what the air ambulance company will charge until after the transport, which is the core of the legal argument.
In July 2015, over a dozen clients in Oklahoma City were billed thousands of dollars for an air ambulance transport. The clients asked a judge to certify a lawsuit as a class action, naming several air ambulance companies in that suit. The claim: “They’re making profit margins [of] in excess of 750%, huge profit margins they’re trying to get from the average public.”
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Categories:
Regulatory
Helicopter Sectors
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Feb
21
2017
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Posted by Admin
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Ever wonder how many times you signed your name and A&P number after the word “airworthy.” For me, it’s in the thousands. So, how does a mechanic define it?
For some, the definition is rigid: the aircraft must be in like-new condition with a pristine record trail. For others, it’s a gray area of personal decision, defined by an aircraft’s use, age, and regulatory compliance.
Regardless of interpretation, the airworthy condition of an aircraft is the core function of a mechanic. Yet, an official FAA definition of this fundamental word is lacking within our maintenance regulations and guidance material. Let’s try to find one.
The Basics
Numerous articles, papers, and FAA documents offer various descriptions of airworthy. The common accepted version today requires an aircraft to conform to its type design and to be in a condition for safe operation.
Looking to the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs), essential terms and their definitions are usually given at the beginning of a chapter, part, or section, along with an applicability clause. FAR Part 1, Definitions and Abbreviations, applies to “Subchapters A through K of this chapter,” so it seems it would be a logical place to find a definition for airworthy, since our Part 43 falls under Subchapter C.
Unfortunately, the definition is not listed in FAR Part 1, or Part 43, or Part 65 for that matter. Given its significance, you would think airworthy, or airworthiness, would have its own part in the FARs.
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Categories:
Training
Safety
Regulatory
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Nov
28
2016
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Posted by Admin
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SkyWest pilot and designated pilot examiner (DPE) Tony Fizer remembers the costly hangar mishap as if it were yesterday. “A fellow pilot I knew was assigned to fly a Citation CJ3 business jet for a friend,” Fizer says. “Unfortunately, he struck the hangar door with a wingtip on the way out. Suddenly, there it was: $30,000 in damages to the door and wing, right in front of everyone there! My pilot friend said they were glancing around with looks that implied, OK, so who’s going to pay for this? Hearing about it afterward, I was not only glad that it wasn’t me, but also glad that I would have been covered, thanks to my personal pilot liability insurance, if I had been responsible.”
As someone who frequently flies not just his own aircraft, but also many others for his clients, Fizer knows that things can go wrong. He protects himself by purchasing personal pilot liability insurance. (The insurance product he chooses is XINSURANCE, offered by Evolution Insurance Broker through Prime Insurance Company.) “I know that my insurance company has my back should I get into a situation where someone tries to hold me personally liable,” Fizer says. “Pilots need coverage in today’s litigious world, just in case.”
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Categories:
Regulatory