6331 Bryan Boulevard ∙ Greensboro, NC 27409

October 18, 2011 

VIA ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION 

U. S. Department of Transportation 

Docket Management System 

400 7th Street, SW, Room PL401 

Washington, DC 20591-0001 

Ladies and Gentlemen: 

In accordance with §11.61 of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR), Dynamic Airways 

(2DYA562M) petitions the Administrator for an exemption from §121.434(c)(1)(ii) to the extent necessary to 

substitute a qualified and authorized check airman in place of an FAA Inspector to observe a qualifying pilot 

in command (PIC) while that PIC is performing prescribed duties during at least one flight that includes 

a takeoff and a landing when completing initial or upgrade training as specified in §121.434. 

The specific section 121.434(c)(1)(ii) – OPERATING EXPERIENCE, OPERATING CYCLES, AND 

CONSOLIDATION OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS reads in pertinent part: 

“In addition, if a qualifying pilot in command is completing initial or upgrade training specified 

in FAR 121.424, be observed in the performance of prescribed duties by an FAA Inspector 

during at least one flight leg which includes a takeoff and a landing.” 

This petition requests relief from §121.434(c)(1)(ii) in those circumstances when an FAA Inspector 

is unavailable to observe a qualifying pilot in command during any operating experience flights. 

- Dynamic Airways will nominate qualified check airmen to perform this initial operating experience 

observation. The FAA will approve the qualified check airmen to conduct the observation 

through a letter of authorization. 

- The requirement of §121.434(c)(1)(ii) will be considered fulfilled if the FAA authorized check 

airman performs the observation. The observation requirement will be documented in the 

qualifying pilot’s record. 

- The authorized check airman would be a check airman other than the one who is conducting 

the operating experience flights of the qualifying pilot. 

The original intent of §121.434(c)(1)(ii), issued in 1970, was to validate the training that a pilot 

received in a visual simulator. Since the adoption of the rule, the airline industry has gathered more 

than 30 years of experience with basic and advanced simulation. 

The FAA has the authority to observe any pilot any time at the discretion of the Administrator and 

continues to do so regularly. However, the FAA conducts these routine observations on a schedule 

defined by the local office without the requisite burden of specifying a particular flight or flight series 

necessitated by the carrier’s training and service schedule. Relieving FAA Inspectors from 

§121.434(c)(1)(ii) will allow the FAA to focus the efforts on higher priority safety concerns. 

Operational issues related with this request for exemption are listed below: 

- The majority of Dynamic Airways operations are often short notice and international in nature. Scheduling 

of FAA personnel to observe a qualifying pilot in command on an international operation with 

short notice is difficult to impossible. 
6331 Bryan Boulevard ∙ Greensboro, NC 27409

As a result of these issues, many of our PIC candidates are serving in OE status in excess of the 

hours required for the completion of the qualification segment while waiting for FAA participation. This 

impacts our crew scheduling ability and places unnecessary financial burden on the company. 

Granting of this exemption is in the public interest and would allow the FAA to focus its inspection 

force on higher priority safety issues. It would also provide for a higher level of PIC candidate scrutiny 

by using Dynamic Airways check airman who are more familiar with company operating policies and 

procedures while eliminating delays in OE completion. Additional benefits are realized in increased 

productivity and reducing unnecessary additional costs to the company. 

Granting and using this proposed exemption would have no significant impact upon safety. The 

authorized check airman will be highly trained, experienced, and qualified in the specific aircraft type. 

In addition, any check airman used must be approved by the FAA. Dynamic Airways check airman will 

only be used to satisfy the requirements of §121.434(c)(1)(ii) when a qualified FAA Inspector is not 

available. The FAA has the authority to observe any pilot at any time during line operations. 

Dynamic Airways is aware that the FAA has granted several exemptions to individual operators for similar 

relief sought by this request. Therefore, since granting this exemption is not precedent setting, Dynamic 

Airways requests that publication of this petition in the Federal Register be waived in accordance with 

Section 11.87(b). Any delay in granting this exemption will have an adverse impact upon Dynamic Airways 

operations. 

SUMMARY 

Dynamic Airways Petition for an Exemption to FAR 121.434(c)(1)(ii). 

Dynamic Airways petitions the Administrator for an exemption from §121.434(c)(1)(ii) to the extent 

necessary to substitute a qualified and authorized check airman in place of an FAA Inspector to 

observe a qualifying pilot in command (PIC) while that PIC is performing prescribed duties during at 

least one flight that includes a takeoff and a landing when completing initial or upgrade training as 

specified in §121.434. 

Should you have any questions or need additional information, please contact me at 540.908.9933 or 

rwalters@dynamicairways.com. 

Respectfully Yours, 

R. Rand Walters 

Director, Operations