AFS-16-3345-E 

March 15, 2016 

 Exemption No. 9835C 

 Regulatory Docket No. FAA-2002-13066 

Mr. Laurence S. Dibble 

Director of Plans, Policy and Programs 

Department of the Army 

9325 Gunston Road, Suite N319 

Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-5582 

Dear Mr. Dibble: 

This letter is to inform you that we have granted your petition to extend Exemption No. 9835, 

as amended. It transmits out decision, explains its basis, and gives you the conditions and 

limitations of the exemption, including the date it ends. 

The Basis for Our Decision 

By letter dated December 4, 2015, you petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 

on behalf of the Department of the Army (U.S. Army) for an extension of Exemption 

No. 9835, as amended. That exemption from § 91.209 (a)(1) and (2) of Title 14, Code of 

Federal Regulations (14 CFR) allows the U.S. Army to operate at night without the use of 

aircraft position lights. 

In your petition, you indicate that there has been no change in the conditions and reasons 

relative to public interest and safety that were the basis for granting the original exemption. 

The FAA has determined that good cause exists for not publishing a summary of the petition 

in the Federal Register because the requested extension of the exemption would not set a 

precedent, and any delay in acting on this petition would be detrimental to the U.S. Army. 

Our Decision 

The FAA has determined that the justification for the issuance of Exemption No. 9835, as 

amended, remains valid with respect to this exemption and is in the public interest. 
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Therefore, under the authority provided by 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 40113 and 44701, which the 

FAA Administrator has delegated to me, I grant the Department of the Army (U.S. Army) an 

exemption from 14 CFR § 91.209 (a)(1) and (2) to operate at night without the use of aircraft 

position lights, subject to the following conditions and limitations. 

Conditions and Limitations 

1. This exemption is limited to night vision flight training in U.S. Army tactical 

helicopters. 

2. Safety Observers. 

a. An airborne training operation – 

 

i. May be conducted in a flight of two or more helicopters with a 

dedicated observer on duty aboard each helicopter. The flight shall be 

conducted in such a manner as to enable the observers collectively to 

survey fully about the entire flight for nonparticipating aircraft; or 

ii. Shall be escorted by a properly lighted aircraft serving as an 

observation platform dedicated to surveillance for nonparticipating 

aircraft. 

b. Traffic notifications from the observer to the training flight shall be timely 

commensurate with the position and speed of the observed nonparticipating 

traffic. 

c. When nonparticipating traffic is relevant, the pilot of each training flight 

aircraft shall light that aircraft’s position lights and keep them lighted until the 

traffic is no longer relevant. 

3. Airborne operations may not be conducted above 500 feet above the surface and must 

be contained within a prescribed and publicized area that: 

a. Is simply defined, e.g., the radius area of a point or location; 

b. Is established in an area of low traffic density; 

c. Is not within 4 nautical miles of any public use airport; 

d. Does not infringe upon FAA-designated airspace areas; and 

e. Has been coordinated with the appropriate FAA region’s Air Traffic Division 

and Flight Standards Division offices. 

4. Notwithstanding paragraph 3 above, each operation must be conducted in accordance 

with 14 CFR § 91.119, Minimum safe altitudes: General. 
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5. Ground (airport/staging area) operations under this exemption may be conducted at 

locations where only the U.S. Army’s aircraft involved in night vision flight training 

area operating, and suitable alternative measures for collision avoidance are instituted. 

6. The U.S. Army shall establish procedures for collision avoidance for its aircraft 

operating pursuant to this exemption, including observer aircraft. 

7. Each pilot who will conduct operations under this exemption must be thoroughly 

familiar with its provisions. 

8. The U.S. Army shall advertise all currently approved training areas, and any 

subsequently approved training areas, to operators at all airports within 50 miles of the 

area for 60 days preceding their initial use. 

9. The U.S. Army shall provide notice through the use of Notice to Airmen 

(NOTAMS)/Special Notices disseminated at least 72 hours in advance of scheduled 

exercises. The training airspace will be identified by name (if applicable) or by 

latitude/longitude. The NOTAMs will advise that, during the course of flight 

planning, potential users of the operational area will be provided with information on 

the time and place of the proposed lights-out operations. The NOTAMs must be made 

available to the civil aviation community and must be capable of being disseminated 

among civil users of the National Airspace System. 

The Effect of Our Decision 

Our decision extends the termination date of Exemption No. 9835, as amended, to March 31, 

2019, unless sooner superseded or rescinded. 

Sincerely, 

//s// 

John Barbagallo 

Deputy Director, Flight Standards Service