11176 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

section, Congress charges the FAA with 

promoting safe flight of civil aircraft in 

air commerce by prescribing regulations 

for practices, methods, and procedures 

the Administrator finds necessary for 

safety in air commerce. This regulation 

is within the scope of that authority 

because it addresses an unsafe condition 

that is likely to exist or develop on 

products identified in this rulemaking 

action. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39 

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation 

safety, Safety. 

The Proposed Amendment 

Accordingly, under the authority 

delegated to me by the Administrator, 

the FAA proposes to amend 14 CFR Part 

39 as follows: 

PART 39—AIRWORTHINESS 

DIRECTIVES 

1. The authority citation for part 39 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701. 

§ 39.13 [Amended] 

2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding 

the following new AD: 

Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation: Docket No. 

FAA–2011–0099; Directorate Identifier 

2010–SW–085–AD. 

Applicability: S–76A, S–76B, and S–76C 

model helicopters with Aero Seats and 

Systems, Inc. (ASI) ASI–500 Life Raft 

Deployment System (LRDS) installed per 

FAA Supplemental Type Certificate 

SR09211RC, pilot or co-pilot life raft 

deployment handle (handle), part number 

(P/N) ASI–700–45, certificated in any 

category. 

Compliance: Required within 100 hours 

time-in-service, unless accomplished 

previously. 

To prevent the bending of the handle, 

which could result in failure of the life raft 

to deploy, resulting in the loss of access to 

the life raft after an emergency ditching on 

water, accomplish the following: 

(a) Install the safety pins, P/N ASI–625–14, 

to lock out the raft deployment pods. 

(b) Remove the pad, P/N BA7601. 

(c) Remove the top cover, P/N ASI–700–73. 

(d) Remove the cotter pin, P/N AN381–2– 

8, from the clevis pin, P/N MS 20392–2C9, 

located at the crew release handle assembly. 

(e) Remove the washer, P/N AN960–10L, 

and clevis pin from the cable, P/N 2604750– 

90. 

(f) Disconnect the cable from the handle, 

and secure the cable to the broom closet to 

prevent it from falling into the lower cover. 

(g) Remove the handle by removing the 

bolt, P/N AN4–11, nut, P/N MS20364–428A, 

and washers, P/N AN960–416L, from the raft 

deployment handle assembly (handle 

assembly), P/N ASI–700–41A. 

(h) Remove the safety pin, P/N ASI–700– 

80. 

(i) Remove and discard any ball bearings, 

and clean all surfaces of the remaining 

handle assembly. 

(j) Install the handle, P/N ASI–700–49A. 

(k) Reinstall the bolt, nut, and washers, 

P/N AN960–416L, and install the washer, 

P/N ASI–700–44, between the handle and the 

mount, 

P/N ASI–700–43, on the left side of the 

broom closet, and torque to 20 in-lb 

maximum. 

(l) Reinstall the safety pin. 

(m) Release the cable from the broom 

closet. 

(n) Reinstall the cable to the handle with 

the clevis pin. 

(o) Reinstall the washer, P/N AN960–10L, 

and the cotter pin on to the clevis pin. 

(p) Reinstall the top cover. 

(q) Reinstall the pad. 

(r) Remove the raft deployment pod lock 

out safety pins. 

Note: Aero Seats and Systems, Inc., Alert 

Service Bulletin No. 76–500–02, Revision C, 

dated September 16, 2010, which is not 

incorporated by reference, contains 

additional information about the subject of 

this airworthiness directive. 

(s) To request a different method of 

compliance or a different compliance time 

for this AD, follow the procedures in 14 CFR 

39.19. Contact the Manager, Rotorcraft 

Certification Office, FAA, Attn: Martin Crane, 

Aerospace Engineer, FAA, Rotorcraft 

Directorate, Rotorcraft Certification Office, 

2601 Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 

76137, telephone (817) 222–5170, fax (817) 

222–5783, e-mail Martin.R.Crane@faa.gov for 

information about previously approved 

alternative methods of compliance. 

(t) The Joint Aircraft System/Component 

(JASC) Code 2564: is: Life raft. 

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on January 27, 

2011. 

Kim Smith, 

Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft 

Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2011–4477 Filed 2–28–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 121 

[Docket No. FAA–2011–0045] 

Proposed Legal Interpretation 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA). 

ACTION: Proposed interpretation. 

SUMMARY: The FAA is considering 

clarifying the application of flight time 

limitations and rest requirements in 14 

CFR 121.481 and 121.483 for pilots 

operating in flag operations as part of a 

two-pilot crew and as part of a two-pilot 

crew and one additional flightcrew 

member during a seven-day period. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before May 2, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments 

identified by Docket Number FAA– 

2011–0045 using any of the following 

methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

Mail: Send comments to Docket 

Operations, M–30; U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Room W12–140, West 

Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 

20590–0001. 

Hand Delivery or Courier: Bring 

comments to Docket Operations in 

Room W12–140 of the West Building 

Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 

9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

Fax: Fax comments to Docket 

Operations at 202–493–2251. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara 

Mikolop, Attorney, Regulations 

Division, Office of the Chief Counsel, 

Federal Aviation Administration, 800 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20591; telephone: 202– 

267–3073. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA 

provides flight time and rest 

requirements for flightcrew members 

used in flag operations in 14 CFR 

subpart R. Within subpart R, § 121.481 

provides flight time limitations for oneor two-pilot crews and § 121.483 

provides flight time limitations for 

crews of two pilots and one additional 

flight crewmember. 

The flight time limitations are more 

restrictive for operations under 

§ 121.481 than § 121.483 because the 

crew size is smaller and thus each pilot 

must assume responsibilities for more 

in-flight duties. See Legal Interpretation 

from Donald P. Byrne to James W. 

Johnson (August 24, 1999). In contrast, 

when a crew of two pilots and one 

additional flightcrew member operates 

under § 121.483, the in-flight duties are 

divided among more crewmembers and 

so the overall burden on any one 

crewmember may be reduced as 

crewmembers rotate through flight deck 

duties and may be provided an 

opportunity for rest. See Legal 

Interpretation from Donald P. Byrne to 

James W. Johnson (August 24, 1999). 

Thus, when the number of flightcrew 

members used in a flag operation 

increases, Subpart R allows for 

increased flight time. Compare 14 CFR 

121.481 with 14 CFR 121.483 and 14 

CFR 121.485. 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 40 / Tuesday, March 1, 2011 / Proposed Rules 11177 

1 § 121.483 does not contain a provision that is 

parallel to § 121.481(d). Nevertheless, the flight 

time limits for 48 and 72 hour periods found in 

§ 121.483(b) are less restrictive than the flight time 

limitations in § 121.481(d). 

On July 15, 2010, the FAA received a 

request for a legal interpretation 

regarding how to apply flight time 

limitations and rest requirements for 

pilots engaged in flag operations when 

those pilots participate in varying sizes 

of flightcrews during a seven-day 

period. Specifically, a pilot labor 

organization requested a legal 

interpretation regarding the application 

14 CFR 121.481(d), limiting a two-pilot 

crew to 32 hours of flight time within 

any seven consecutive days, when that 

same crew is augmented with an 

additional pilot during or after the 

completion of 32 hours of flight time 

within a seven-day period. We have not 

previously addressed these questions. 

We do not require an air carrier to use 

a pilot for just one flightcrew 

complement in flag operations. Air 

carriers engaged in flag operations are 

permitted to use the same pilot as part 

of a crew of two pilots, a crew of two 

pilots and one additional flightcrew 

member, or a crew of three pilots and 

one additional flightcrew member. This 

flexibility allows certificate holders who 

use multiple flightcrew complements 

throughout their operations to use 

flightcrew members interchangeably. 

The FAA’s rules have a long history 

of acknowledging that pilots may be 

used in flightcrews of varying sizes, in 

that § 121.487 provides a framework for 

calculating monthly and quarterly flight 

time limitations for such pilots. In an 

early version of the current requirement, 

Special Civil Air Regulation No. 386F, 

it was envisioned that this rule would 

‘‘not allow evasion of the stricter 

limitations applicable to smaller crew 

combinations, but will allow assignment 

of a pilot in any given month to another 

type of crew combination without 

additional flight time limitations if he 

flies not more than 20 hours in the type 

of crew to which the more restrictive 

flight time limitations apply and if such 

assignment is not interrupted more than 

once during such month.’’ See 28 Fed. 

Reg. 2000, 2000 (1963). Although 

§ 121.487 provides a structure for 

calculating monthly and quarterly flight 

time limitations for pilots used in 

varying sizes of flightcrews, neither the 

current § 121.487 nor the regulatory 

history answer the question of how to 

apply daily and weekly flight time 

limitations for these same pilots. 

We did not intend, however, for this 

flexibility to be used by a certificate 

holder to select less restrictive flight 

time limitations for a flightcrew by 

augmenting that flightcrew midway or 

at the completion of a scheduling 

period. For example, the flight time 

limits of 14 CFR 121.481(d) would be 

circumvented if a certificate holder 

schedules a two-pilot crew for a series 

of operations and then augments that 

two-pilot flightcrew during or at the 

completion of a 32 hours of flight time 

within any seven-day period, for the 

purposes of extending the flightcrew’s 

flight time under the less restrictive 

framework of § 121.483. 

Although we have not clarified the 

effects of augmenting a two-pilot 

flightcrew within a seven-day period, in 

a Legal Interpretation issued August 24, 

1999, we examined the application of 

§§ 121.481 and 121.483 when a twopilot flightcrew is augmented so as to 

extend the duty times for the original 

two-pilot flightcrew members within a 

24-hour period. See Legal Interpretation 

from Donald P. Byrne to James W. 

Johnson (August 24, 1999). As 

previously stated, § 121.481 applies 

when a certificate holder conducts flag 

operations with a one- or two-pilot 

crew. When a certificate holder 

conducts flag operations with a twopilot crew with one additional 

flightcrew member, § 121.483 applies. 

However, in an August 24, 1999 Legal 

Interpretation, we stated that once an air 

carrier conducting flag operations 

schedules a pilot to fly under § 121.481 

and the pilot completes the flight time, 

it would be contrary to the intent of 

§ 121.481 to then schedule that pilot to 

fly under § 121.483 without providing 

the rest required within a 24-hour 

period as required by §§ 121.481(a) or 

(b). See Legal Interpretation from 

Donald P. Byrne to James W. Johnson 

(August 24, 1999) (stating that the 

regulations prohibit augmenting a twopilot crew after completing a 55 minute 

flight, subject to § 121.481, so that those 

two pilots may then continue on to 

operate a 9 hour and 50 minute flight 

subject to § 121.483(b) without 

providing the rest required by 

§ 121.481(a) or (b)). The August 24, 

1999, Legal Interpretation ensures that 

pilots who have operated as part of a 

two-pilot crew receive the rest intended 

by 14 CFR 121.481(a) and (b). 

Finally, our knowledge regarding the 

causes and effects of fatigue has 

significantly increased since the 

regulations on flight time limitations 

were drafted. We now know that the 

longer one has been awake and the 

longer one spends on task, the greater 

the likelihood of fatigue. We also know 

more about transient and cumulative 

fatigue. Transient fatigue and 

cumulative fatigue are conditions 

brought on by sleep restriction that 

occurs over one or two days or a series 

of days respectively, thus making the 

daily and weekly flight time limitations 

and rest requirements a significant 

safeguard to ensure adequately rested 

pilots. 

Therefore, similar to the principle 

articulated in the August 24, 1999 legal 

interpretation and considering what we 

now know about fatigue, to fulfill the 

intended rest requirements of 

§ 121.481(d), the FAA has tentatively 

determined that once a flightcrew has 

completed 32 hours of flight time under 

14 CFR 121.481(d), that flightcrew must 

be provided the rest required by 

§ 121.481(d) before being scheduled 

under § 121.483. Further, should an air 

carrier engaged in flag operations use 

two pilots in both a two-pilot flightcrew 

and a flightcrew of two pilots and one 

additional flightcrew member, within 

any seven consecutive days, then the 

flight time limitations and rest 

requirements of § 121.481(d) would 

apply to the two pilots who have moved 

between crew complements.1

This clarification would fulfill the 

intent that pilots serving in two-pilot 

crews in flag operations are afforded the 

rest contemplated by § 121.481. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on February 22, 

2011. 

Rebecca B. MacPherson, 

Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulations, 

AGC–200. 

[FR Doc. 2011–4271 Filed 2–28–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

18 CFR Part 35 

[Docket Nos. RM11–7–000; AD10–11–000] 

Frequency Regulation Compensation 

in the Organized Wholesale Power 

Markets 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, DOE. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (Commission) is 

proposing to revise its regulations to 

remedy undue discrimination in the 

procurement of frequency regulation 

service in the organized wholesale 

electricity markets. The emergence of 

technologies capable of responding 

more quickly than the generators that 

have historically provided frequency 

regulation service has prompted the 


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