AFS

- 16

- 0925

- E Exemption No. 10016C

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON, DC 20591

In the matter of the petition of

NATIONAL AVIATION Regulatory Docket No. FAA

- 2010

- 0097

ACADEMY for an exemption from § 65.75(a) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations

PARTIAL GRANT OF EXEMPTION

By letter dated October 12, 2015, Mr. Douglas W. Ecks, Director of Education, National Aviation Academy (NAA ), 6225 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater, FL 33760 petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on behalf of NAA for an extension and amendment

to exemption No.10016, from § 65.75(a) of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Reg ulations (14 CFR). The exemption, if granted, woul d allow students enrolled in NAA ’s P art 147

Aviation Maintenance Technician S chool (AMTS) in Clearw ater FL , operating under Air Agency Certificate DV9T100R , to take the Aviation Mechanic General (AMG), Aviation Mechanic Airframe (AMA), and Aviation Mechanic Powerplant (AMP) written tests after completing the corresponding portion of the curriculum, but prior to meeting the experience requirements of 14 CFR § 65.77. We grant in part and deny in p art. Specifically, we grant

NAA an exemption with respect to the AMG written test but deny the petition for an exemption with respect to the AMA and AMP written tests.

The petitioner requests relief from the following regulation :

Section 65.75(a) requires, in pertinent part, that “ [ e ] ach applicant for a mechanic certificate or rating must, after meeting the applicable experience requirements of § 65.77 , pass a w ritten test covering the construction and maintenance of aircraft appropriate to the rating he seeks,2

the regulations in [subpart D (Mechanics),] and the applicable provisions of parts 43 and 91.” (Emphasis added)

.

The FAA has determined that good cause exists for waiving the requirement for Federal Register publication because the exemption, if granted, would not set a precedent, and any delay in acting on this petition would be de trimental to NAA

.

The FAA's analysis is as follows:

The FAA has conducte d a reevaluation of the § 65.75(a) exemptions based on our discovery of a loophole that could potentially have allowed students to totally circumvent our experience requirements. Students must, among other things, take written, oral, and practical tests t o obtain a mechanic certificate. Section 65.80 allows an AMTS, under some circumstances, to administer a student’s required oral and practical tests before the student satisfies the experience requirements of § 65.77. Under § 65.75(a), however, all stude nts must satisfy § 65.77 before taking any written tests.

By granting NAA ’s request to allow students to take the AMA and AMP written tests before completing the experience requirements in § 65.77, we could inadvertently enable those students to totally circumvent our experience requirements, because a student could obtain a copy of his or her academic record indicating that the student has passed the AMA or AMP examinations, and provide that record to another school

, without disclosing that the student never satisfied the appropriate experience requirements.

The FAA does not have the same concerns regarding students who take the AMG examination before satisfying § 65.77. A student who successfully completes the AMG exam is not eligible to receive a m echanic certificate until after the student also completes the AMP or AMA exams. There is, therefore, no risk that a student who completes the AMG exam prior to satisfying the § 65.77 experience requirements will circumvent our regulations.

In addition, certain conditions and limitations included in this partial grant are necessary to ensure an equivalent level of safety with § 65.75(a ). The conditions

— requiring NAA to develop written testing procedures, include those procedures in its approved operating document or manual, and obtain approval of those procedures from its Certificate Holding

D istrict Office

— ensure that NAA ’s educational program and curricula continue to meet FAA regulatory standards.

Another condition and limitation of this exe mption r equires that, before NAA may retest any student who has failed the AMG test and who also does not meet the experience requirements of § 65.77, NAA ( must require the student to repeat each instructional item associated with

the failed test and authorize the student to retake the test. To be clear, any student who is eligible to take the AMG test on the basis of his or her own experience, who does not need to rely on this exemption, may retrain according to § 65.19

— including with any appropriately3

certificat ed airman. However, this exemption also creates a population of students who do not satisfy the § 65.77 experience requirements, and who are eligible to retake the AMG test only

because of NAA ’s exemption. To maintain an equivalent level of saf ety, this exemption requires NAA to retrain these students itself, using FAA

- approved curricula and in accordance with the FAA’s AMTS standards, including the quality of instruction standards codified in
§ 147.38 ( a )

.

The FAA’s Decision

For the reasons described ab ove, the FAA continues to withdraw or amend all previously granted exemptions to § 65.75(a) which enabled an AMTS to administer the AMG, AMA, and AMP written tests immediately following a student’s successful completion of the corresponding curricula. The FAA’s new and revised exemptions to § 65.75(a) will allow an AMTS to administer the AMG examination immediately after students complete the corresponding curriculum and prior to satisfying the experience requirements of § 65.77, but

will not allow AMTS t o administer the AMA or AMP examinations before students satisfy § 65.77.

In consideration of the foregoing, we find in the present case that a partial grant of exemption is in the public interest. We therefore issue this partial gran t of exemption, wh ich allows

NAA students to take the AMG examination immediately after completing the corresponding curriculum, but does not allow students to take the AMA or AMP examinations before completing the corresponding curricula.

Pursuant to the authority conta ined in 49 U.S.C. §§ 106(f), 40113, and 44701, which the Administrator has delegated to me, I hereby grant National Aviation Academy (NAA) an exemption from § 65.75(a) to t he extent necessary to allow NAA Clearwater

, FL , under Air Agency Certificate DV9T10 0R , to administer the AMG written test to any student immediately following his or her successful completion of the general curriculum, and before meeting the experience requirements of 14 CFR § 65.77, subject to the revised conditions and

limitations list ed below.

Conditions and Limitations

1. NAA must develop written procedures for administering the AMG writ ten test to

NAA students immediately following successful completion of the general curriculum.

2. NAA must ensure these procedu res are available for use in NAA ’s approved operating or curriculum procedures document or manual.

3. Before retesting a student who has failed the AMG examination

, and also does not meet the experie nce requirements of 14 CFR § 65.77, NAA must require the student to
repeat each inst ructional item associated with the failed test and receive authorization

from NAA to retake the test. NAA must have procedures for documenting and tracking compliance with all retesting procedures.4

4. Before exercising the p rivileges of this exemption, NAA must provide the revised procedures to its Certificate Holding District Office for review and approval.

NAA ’s request for an exempti on from § 65.75(a) to enable NAA to administer the AMA and the AMP written tests to a student after that student has comple ted the corresponding portion(s) of the curriculum, but prior to meeting the experience requirements of 14 CFR § 65.77, is denied.

Th is exemption terminates on February 28, 2018 , unless sooner superseded or rescinded.

Iss ued in Washington, D.C., on February 1 0 , 2016

.

/s/

John S. Duncan Director, Flight Standards Service