# Exemption No. 9570

# UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

# DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

# FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

# WASHINGTON, D.C. 20591

# 

# 

# 

# In the matter of the petition of

# 

# AMERICAN AIRLINES, INC. Regulatory Docket No. FAA--2006--25049

# for an exemption from § 121.619 

# of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations

# 

# 

# 

**GRANT OF EXEMPTION**

By letter dated June 8, 2006, Mr. Donald R. Dillman, Managing Director,
Flight Operations, American Airlines, Inc. (American), P.O. Box 619617,
Department MD 843/GSW, DFW Airport, Texas 75261--9617, petitioned the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on behalf of American for an
exemption from § 121.619 of Title14, Code of Federal Regulations
(14 CFR). The proposed exemption, if granted, would permit American to
not designate an alternate airport when dispatching aircraft to domestic
airports where, for at least 1 hour before and 1 hour after the
estimated time of arrival at the destination airport the appropriate
weather reports or forecasts, or any combination of them, indicate the
ceiling will be at least 1,000 feet above the airport elevation and
visibility will be at least 3 statute miles.

# The petitioner requests relief from the following regulation:

> Section 121.619 states the following:
>
> \(a\) No person may dispatch an airplane under IFR or over-the-top
> unless he lists at least one alternate airport for each destination
> airport in the dispatch release. When the weather conditions forecast
> for the destination and first alternate airport are marginal at least
> one additional alternate must be designated. However, no alternate
> airport is required if for at least 1 hour before and 1 hour after the
> estimated time of arrival at the destination airport the appropriate
> weather reports or forecasts, or any combination of them, indicate---
>
> \(1\) The ceiling will be at least 2,000 feet above the airport
> elevation; and
>
> \(2\) Visibility will be at least 3 miles.
>
> \(b\) For the purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, the weather
> conditions at the alternate airport must meet the requirements of
> § 121.625.
>
> \(c\) No person may dispatch a flight unless he lists each required
> alternate airport in the dispatch release.

# The petitioner supports the petition with the following information:

> American proposes to conduct domestic operations using a different
> methodology to determine the need for naming a destination alternate
> airport. American states that this method seeks to take credit for
> American's ability to conduct a low minimum landing program and the
> advancements in American's ability to forecast and monitor weather.
> American further states that this exemption would grant it similar
> relief to that allowed under Exemption No. 8660, as approved for
> American on November 15, 2005.
>
> American requests to reduce the weather minimums required for not
> naming a destination alternate from the current § 121.619 requirement
> of at least 2,000‑foot ceilings and at least 3 miles of visibility to
> at least 1,000-foot ceilings and at least 3 statute miles of
> visibility based on the following additional requirements:
>
> 1\. The exemption will only be applicable to destination airports
> within the contiguous United States.
>
> 2\. Operations will use a qualified dispatcher.
>
> 3\. Each dispatcher will have a system to display the actual location
> of each flight and current, significant weather.
>
> 4\. The dispatch facility will have a system to alert the dispatcher
> automatically to a change in forecast or a special weather update.
>
> 5\. American will maintain at least category (CAT) I approach
> authorization, Operations Specifications (OpSpec) C052 and C074, for
> those fleets to which this exemption would apply.
>
> 6\. The intended destination airport must have at least one
> operational CAT I approach.
>
> 7\. The exemption cannot be used if thunderstorms are forecast in the
> main body of the weather report between 1 hour before to 1 hour after
> the estimated time of arrival.
>
> 8\. American will maintain a system to track diverted flights.
>
> American states that § 121.619 assumes that the ceiling of 2,000 feet
> and visibility of 3 statute miles will provide adequate margins for
> the flightcrew to perform an instrument flight rules (IFR) let down to
> the stipulated weather conditions. American states that § 121.619 does
> not set minimum margins between the weather requirements of the rule
> and the instrument procedures available to fly. Because of this,
> depending on the available approach, the margins may be from
> 1,800 feet and 2 2/3 statute miles of visibility if the airport has a
> CAT I approach to no margins if the available approach minimums are
> greater than 2,000 feet above threshold and greater than
> 3 statute miles of visibility. American states that there always will
> be minimum margins between approach capability and minimum weather of
> an 800-foot ceiling and 2 2/3 statute miles of visibility. American
> states that, with the exception of Palm Springs, California, all of
> American's scheduled domestic destination airports have at least
> one CAT I instrument landing system (ILS) approach.
>
> American further states that advances in all-weather aircraft
> capability, improved weather forecasting, and advances in weather
> monitoring and flight-following capability will make operations under
> the exemption safer.
>
> American asserts that when § 121.619 was originally conceived,
> approach minimums were at best at 3/4 mile of visibility and a
> 250-foot decision height. American states that very few aircraft had
> landing or guidance systems capable of operations to touchdown.
> Moreover, many operators did not have simulators capable of training
> in such operations without the addition of actual aircraft training
> and checking. Dispatcher flight-following capability consisted of
> position reports, and there was a limited ability to see weather
> developments along the route of flight from the dispatch office
> because weather reports were text-based.
>
> American states that over the past 20 years, there has been a
> significant increase in all‑weather aircraft capability of air carrier
> operations. American has fleetwide CAT III approach capability for
> weather operations down to 600 feet of runway visual range (RVR).
> Furthermore, all of American's Boeing 757/767/777 aircraft are capable
> of conducting CAT III operations to 300 feet of RVR. In addition,
> American states that its entire fleet has automatic landing
> capability, and most airports supporting major air carrier operations
> have at least one CAT II or CAT III approach. The aircraft systems
> required for this type of operation guide the aircraft precisely to a
> point where the pilot continues monitoring an automatic landing or
> continues the approach with guidance provided by a heads-up guidance
> system or flight director system. These aircraft must have a low
> minimums maintenance program requiring more detailed inspections and a
> reliability program taking these systems into account. American's
> pilots and dispatchers are required to demonstrate proficiency with
> the pertinent requirements of the low minimums authorization in
> addition to normal training and checking requirements. American states
> that its dispatch facilities have displays similar to those used by
> air traffic controllers, allowing for real-time aircraft position
> tracking.
>
> American states that it operates in excess of 2,200 flights per day.
> American collects and analyzes various data to monitor its flight
> planning performance and adjusts its operations based on trends.
> American states that these data allow it to review and categorize each
> diverted flight based on the general reason for the diversion, such as
> passenger medical emergency, equipment malfunction, and weather.
> American states that the completion factor, the number of flights that
> landed at the intended destination as a percent of the total number of
> flights operated, is in excess of 99.7 percent. When weather-related
> diverted flights are singled out, American states that its data reveal
> that there is approximately a .13 percent chance (or 13 in 10,000)
> that a flight on any particular day will divert because of adverse
> weather conditions at the intended arrival airport.
>
> American, as the current holder of Exemption No. 8660, states that
> since it was granted that exemption, it has operated 783 flights using
> OpSpec C355 as of the date of its petition and has had no diversions,
> no special air traffic control (ATC) handling, and no declarations of
> fuel emergency or minimum fuel status.
>
> American states that the weather forecasting and reporting capability
> within the United States has become more advanced and refined over the
> years. It is now unusual for a forecast to be entirely inaccurate
> compared to the actual weather. American states that the most
> difficult weather phenomena to forecast are non-frontal
> air mass-related thunderstorms. Otherwise, the ability to predict
> weather accurately has greatly improved. While not required by
> regulation, American states that it has invested in a graphic
> flight-following system. This system allows the dispatcher to see the
> actual location of aircraft in relation to significant weather and
> monitor other aircraft and traffic flows, and allows a more proactive
> approach to en route diversions. American also has programs that alert
> a dispatcher if a weather report has changed beyond predefined
> thresholds. Additionally, American contracts licensed meteorologists
> through WSI, Inc., who work with the dispatchers. The dispatcher can
> quickly gain valuable information about the weather by speaking with a
> trained meteorologist. American states that this allows a more
> proactive approach to en route weather‑related diversions.
>
> American states that it recognizes that the majority of diverted
> flights it sees are around thunderstorm activity during the spring and
> summer months. The lowering of the ceiling and visibility minimums for
> not designating a destination alternate will increase the exposure to
> pop-up (non-frontal air mass) thunderstorms during those months.
> American dispatchers typically list a destination alternate when
> thunderstorms are in the forecast, even if the ceilings and visibility
> are forecast to be above 2,000 feet and 3 statute miles. American
> states that because of the unpredictability of thunderstorm activity,
> it believes it would be appropriate to limit the use of the proposed
> exemption when thunderstorms are forecast.
>
> American states that it envisions the greatest potential for
> application of this exemption will be during the winter months when it
> is very common for prolonged periods of broken to overcast clouds to
> form and persist between 1,500 and 2,000 feet. American states that
> the visibility under these clouds is typically very good. With the
> capability of American's fleet, these conditions pose no hazard to
> flight safety and do not reduce the probability of completing the
> operation to the scheduled destination.
>
> American states that the advanced technology now commonly found on all
> transport category aircraft, in conjunction with the improvements in
> aviation weather forecasting, advanced flight-following techniques,
> and real-time weather reporting and airport landing systems, provide
> for a safe operation under ceiling and visibility conditions much
> lower than the proposed reduced requirements for the determination of
> the need for a destination alternate. As previously stated, American's
> fleet has been certified to conduct approaches to CAT III conditions.
> Furthermore, American states that dispatchers are required by
> regulation to take into account all factors of the flight when
> determining fuel and alternate destination requirements.
>
> American states that the proposed exemption would have no adverse
> effect on public safety. American states that very few diverted
> flights are because of inaccurately forecast weather. However,
> American maintains there still needs to be a system in place to
> monitor the flight progress in real time along with the ability for a
> dispatcher to directly monitor current conditions at the destination
> airfield, as well as the en route flight path.
>
> American asserts that the proposed exemption would be in the public
> interest for the following reasons:
>
> 1\. The current rule does not require a minimum margin between
> approach capability at the destination airfield and the 14 CFR weather
> requirements. Based on the requirement to have at least one
> operational CAT I ILS approach, American's proposal will always
> maintain at least an 800-foot ceiling margin and a 2 2/3 statute-mile
> visibility margin when determining the need for a destination
> alternate.
>
> 2\. Fuel consumption will decrease because fewer flights will require
> an alternate to be named for the destination airport. This will result
> in a weight savings that would provide more available payload for
> public use without additional weight.
>
> 3\. All American pilots will maintain additional training to safely
> operate and use the advanced navigation equipment installed on the
> aircraft. This includes both en route and terminal operations.
>
> 4\. All American dispatchers will continue to have access to
> sophisticated flight tracking and weather monitoring tools beyond
> those required by regulation for releasing and following a flight.

A summary of the petition was published in the [Federal
Register]{.underline} on October 4, 2006 (71 FR 58659). The FAA received
no comments.

# The FAA's analysis is as follows:

> The FAA has considered fully the petitioner's request and supporting
> materials and finds that a grant of exemption would be in the public
> interest and maintain a level of safety equivalent to that provided by
> the current regulations.
>
> American currently holds Exemption No. 8660, which grants American
> similar relief with minimums of 1,000 feet and 2 statute miles, but
> contains conditions and limitations that allow American to use this
> exemption only at airports with operable CAT II ILS and with aircraft
> that maintain at least a CAT II approach authorization. American seeks
> a change to these conditions and limitations that would allow the
> exemption to apply at airports with operable CAT I ILS and with
> aircraft that maintain at least a CAT I approach authorization. With
> this change, American proposes to increase the visibility required
> under the exemption back to 3 miles, as currently required by
> § 121.619.
>
> The FAA has reviewed the regulatory history of § 121.619 for the
> reasons why the regulation was established, to find if these reasons
> are still valid and if continued strict compliance with § 121.619 is
> required to ensure the level of safety currently provided would not be
> reduced by the proposed exemption.
>
> The origin of § 121.619 can be traced back to 1936 and part 61 of the
> Civil Aviation Regulations (CAR). Before 1954, the rules concerning
> scheduled interstate air carrier certification and operation were
> contained, respectively, in parts 40 and 61 of the CAR. In 1951, the
> FAA proposed in Draft Release 51--6 to consolidate these rules in
> part 40, Scheduled Interstate Air Carrier Certification and Operation
> Rules. Draft Release 51--6 was codified as part 40 and, after several
> postponements, became effective April 1, 1954.
>
> Section 40.181(a) of Draft Release 51--6, Alternate Airport for
> Destination -- IFR, stated, in pertinent part:
>
> For all IFR or over-the-top operations there shall be at least
> one alternate airport designated for each airport of destination and,
> when the weather conditions forecast for the destination and first
> alternate are marginal, at least one additional alternate airport....
>
> Section 40.181 of Draft Release 51--6 was designated as § 40.389. By
> amendment to 14 CFR effective April 1, 1965, part 40 was replaced by
> part 121 and the section was designated as § 121.619.
>
> Section 121.619 was next amended on June 19, 1980, by Amendment.
> No. 121--159. Before Amendment No. 121--159 became effective, the FAA
> issued Proposals 8--16 and 8--17. These proposals sought to reduce the
> 2-hour weather requirement for alternate airports to 1 hour. They also
> sought to change the ceiling requirement of 1,000 feet above the
> minimum en route altitude or minimum obstruction clearance altitude to
> 1,500 feet above the minimum descent altitude if a circling approach
> is required and authorized, or 1,500 feet above the lowest published
> minimums or 2,000 feet above the airport elevation, whichever is
> higher.
>
> On June 19, 1980, in issuing Amendment No. 121--159, the FAA found
> that weather forecasting had improved from that which existed in the
> 1950s and 1960s. Again, 27 years later, the FAA finds that the
> accuracy of weather forecasts and the ability to monitor actual
> weather conditions have improved from the accuracy available in 1980.
> However, the FAA also finds that weather forecasts are still subject
> to error.
>
> In addition, as American states, "The most difficult weather
> phenomenon to forecast is non-frontal air mass-related
> thunderstorms...\[T\]he majority of weather diversions are caused by
> thunderstorm activity during the spring and summer months." American
> also states, "The lowering of the ceiling and visibility when an
> alternate is required will increase the exposure to 'pop-up'
> (non-frontal air mass) thunderstorms during those months." American
> states that its dispatchers typically list a destination alternate
> when thunderstorms are in the forecast, even if the ceilings and
> visibility are forecast to be above 2,000 feet and 3 statute miles,
> respectively. American believes it would be appropriate to limit the
> use of the proposed exemption when thunderstorms are forecast. The FAA
> finds that requirement to be appropriate and requires that this
> restriction be applied anytime thunderstorms are forecast in either
> the main body of the forecast or the remarks section of the forecast.
>
> American proposes that under the exemption it would be required to
> maintain a system to trend diverted flights and the reasons for any
> diversion. The FAA finds that requirement is appropriate. However,
> because American has not described the system to trend diverted
> flights sufficiently to be evaluated, the FAA will assign the
> determination of the efficacy of the American system to trend diverted
> flights to the FAA principal operations inspector (POI) assigned to
> American.
>
> American has established its unique situation by its use of a graphic
> flight-following system. This system allows an American dispatcher to
> see the location of aircraft in relation to radar weather returns in
> real time. This real-time data allows American dispatchers to make
> decisions on the very latest data, improving the ability to predict
> weather minimums at the actual time of arrival. Under the exemption,
> the FAA will be closely monitoring such things as each diversion to
> any airport and each declaration of an emergency or minimum fuel
> status for any American flight operated under this exemption. The FAA
> will review this data on a monthly basis for at least the
> first 24 months of operation under this exemption to determine the
> efficacy of continued operations, or the possible initiation of a
> rulemaking project to amend § 121.619.

# The FAA's Decision

In consideration of the foregoing, I find that a grant of exemption is
in the public interest. Therefore, pursuant to the authority contained
in 49 U.S.C. §§ 40113 and 44701, delegated to me by the Administrator,
American Airlines, Inc.; American Airlines, Inc., certificated
dispatchers; and American Airlines, Inc., pilots in command (PIC) are
granted relief from 14 CFR § 121.619 to the extent necessary to dispatch
aircraft to domestic airports without designating an alternate for the
destination airport where for at least 1 hour before and 1 hour after
the estimated time of arrival at the destination airport the appropriate
weather reports or forecasts, or any combination of them, indicate the
ceiling will be at least 1,000 feet above the airport elevation and
visibility will be at least 3 statute miles subject to the following
conditions and limitations:

**Conditions and Limitations**

> 1\. Before conducting operations under this exemption, American must
> obtain appropriate amended OpSpecs that provide for operations under
> this exemption.
>
> 2\. Operations under this exemption are limited to only those
> destination airports in the contiguous United States.
>
> 3\. Operations under this exemption are limited to only those airports
> at which an operable CAT I ILS procedure with published minimums of
> 200 feet and RVR 2,000 or lower is available for use if needed.
>
> 4\. Before conducting operations under this exemption, American must
> demonstrate to the FAA POI assigned to American's satisfaction that---
>
> a\. Each American dispatcher has a system available to display the
> location of each American flight within 3 minutes of real time.
>
> b\. Each American dispatch facility has a system that provides its
> dispatchers with overlays of weather returns updated at least once
> every 5 minutes.
>
> c\. Each American dispatch facility has a system that provides its
> dispatchers with a display of the specific aircraft routing as
> assigned by ATC and actual filed flight plan routing.
>
> d\. Each American dispatcher has a system available to display
> locations of other airborne aircraft, including aircraft of other
> operators.
>
> e\. Each American dispatch facility has a system available that
> provides its dispatchers with a display of planned and actual fuel at
> regular intervals along the route and the difference between planned
> and actual fuel.
>
> f\. Each American dispatch facility has a system available that
> automatically alerts its dispatchers to special weather updates, and
> changes in weather reports, forecasts, and/or other significant
> weather-related reports, and ensures these can be relayed to
> flightcrews in an expeditious manner.
>
> g\. Each American dispatcher is provided the capability to access the
> services of a qualified meteorologist approved by the POI whenever the
> dispatcher believes consultation is necessary to ensure safety of
> operations under this exemption. The presence of an approved EWINS
> program satisfies this requirement.
>
> h\. Each American dispatcher has the capability to expeditiously
> recompute projected arrival fuel from a point aloft to the intended
> destination in the event conditions occur that negatively impact the
> flight.
>
> i\. The dispatch release will contain a statement for each flight
> dispatched under this exemption of, "ALTERNATE WEATHER EXEMPTION
> APPLIED. REFERENCE \[insert name of appropriate document\]."
>
> 5\. American must maintain at least CAT I ILS approach authorization
> (OpSpec C074) for those aircraft to which this exemption would apply,
> and each aircraft must have fully operating equipment needed for
> CAT I ILS approaches for that aircraft to operate under this
> exemption.
>
> 6\. At the time of dispatch, the flightcrew must be qualified to
> conduct a CAT I ILS approach to minimums of 200 feet and RVR 2,000 or
> lower if published. PICs with less than the requisite minimum hours
> specified in § 121.652 cannot be used in operations under this
> exemption unless the operator also holds Exemption No. 5549, the PIC
> has been trained in accordance with the requirements of that
> exemption, and all of the conditions specified by Exemption No. 5549
> are met.
>
> 7\. Operations are not permitted under this exemption at any airport
> at which thunderstorms are reported or forecast from 1 hour before
> through 1 hour after the estimated arrival time if such reports or
> forecasts are in either or both the main body or the remarks section
> of the weather report or the weather forecast. Furthermore American
> cannot use Exemption No. 3585P issued to Air Transport Association of
> America, Inc., members (including American) or any subsequent
> exemption granting similar relief regarding any kind of forecast of
> thunderstorms at the destination airport in conjunction with any
> operation conducted under this exemption issued today.
>
> 8\. Each certificated American dispatcher and PIC who conducts
> operations under this exemption must be provided with a copy of
> pertinent parts of this exemption. Operations under this exemption are
> permitted by American dispatchers and American PIC, but are not
> required.
>
> 9\. Use of this exemption in operations to destinations outside the
> contiguous United States is prohibited. American is authorized to use
> this exemption in operations to airports within the contiguous United
> States from airports outside those boundaries provided American also
> holds OpSpec A012 and operations are conducted in accordance with the
> appropriate provisions of that OpSpec as they pertain to operations
> from airports listed in Table 1 thereof.
>
> 10\. American must provide the Administrator, by the 15th day of each
> month, reports that include the information listed below during the
> preceding calendar month. The POI is authorized to delete this
> reporting requirement once American has conducted operations under
> this exemption satisfactorily for at least 24 continuous calendar
> months and sufficient data to thoroughly evaluate operational
> performance have been obtained. Reports must contain the following
> information:
>
> a\. The total number of flights operated by American under domestic
> rules to destinations within the 48 contiguous States and the District
> of Columbia.
>
> b\. The total number of flights operated under this exemption,
> including those flights conducted under the appropriate provisions and
> limitations of OpSpec A012. For each flight operated, the dates,
> airport pairs, flight numbers, aircraft make, model, and serial
> number, trended or graphical summary of flight planned fuel versus
> actual arrival fuel, and contingency fuel must be listed. Report
> format must be in chronological order by fleet type.
>
> c\. The total number of flights that divert to an alternate airport.
>
> d\. The total number of flights that divert to an alternate airport
> that are operated under this exemption, and the reason for each
> diversion, such as weather conditions, mechanical problem, fuel
> quantity, passenger problem, air traffic, crewmember, or any other
> reason. American must document fully each diversion.
>
> e\. The total number of American flights operated under this exemption
> that declare an emergency and the reason for such declaration, or
> during which flight a low fuel state occurs that results in actions
> being taken by ATC and/or dispatch to provide priority handling, even
> if no emergency is declared.

This exemption terminates on December 31, 2009, unless sooner superseded
or rescinded.

Issued in Washington, D.C., on December 11, 2007

/s/

James J. Ballough

Director, Flight Standards Service