AFS-15-3628-E

Exemption No. 16045

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

WASHINGTON, DC 20591

 

In the matter of the petition of 

 

MARCO EPIFANIO Regulatory Docket No. FAA-2015-3416

 

for an exemption from § 61.73(c) 

of Title 14, Code of 

Federal Regulations 

 

DENIAL OF EXEMPTION

 By letter dated July 14, 2015, Mr. Marco Epifanio (Mr. Epifanio), Air Operations, PSC 

812 BOX 1675, FPO AE 0927-0017, petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 

for an exemption from § 61.73(c) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR). The 

proposed exemption, if granted, would allow eligibility for issuing a Commercial Pilot 

certificate based on training completed as a military pilot of the Armed Forces of a foreign 

contracting State during assignment to pilot duties for flight training.

The petitioner requests relief from the following regulation:

Section 61.73(c) prescribes, in pertinent part, that a person who is a military pilot in the

Armed Forces of a foreign contracting State to the Convention on International Civil 

Aviation and is assigned to pilot duties in the U.S. Armed Forces, for purposes other 

than receiving flight training, may apply for a commercial pilot certificate and ratings

under paragraph (a) of this section.

The petitioner supports its request with the following information:

The petitioner states he was an Italian Navy Officer enrolled in the US Navy flight 

training program and graduated from both fixed wing and helicopter pilot training. He 

was designated a Naval Aviator after completing fixed wing training with VT -31, NAS 

Corpus Christi, TX and was designated a Naval Aviator in May 2008. He was 

designated a Rotary Wing Pilot in March 2009 after completing helicopter training with 

Helicopter Training Squadron 8, NAS Whiting Field, FL. The petitioner states he has
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been a permanent resident of the United States since January 2013, and is in the process 

of becoming a citizen. If this exemption were granted, Mr. Epifanio seeks to receive a 

commercial pilot certificate with instrument rating for both airplane and helicopter

categories, having completed the same training as U.S. Navy pilots. The petitioner 

seeks to work in the United States as a commercial pilot, and to join the US Navy 

Reserve.

The petitioner requests an exemption from the requirement of being assigned to pilot 

duties in the U.S. Armed Forces, for purposes other than receiving flight training. 

The petitioner’s military flight experience shows that he is a military pilot of the Armed 

Forces of a foreign contracting state and was enrolled in the U.S. Navy flight program, 

graduated and was designated a naval aviator in May 2008. Mr. Epifanio states that his 

personal need for an exemption is based on his intent to apply for employment in the 

U.S.

The petitioner believes that granting his request would be in the public interest because 

it would allow him to more fully utilize his training and flying experience in support of 

search and rescue, air evacuation and transport duties. He maintains it also could result 

in his application to the U.S. Navy Reserve Direct Commissioning Program and would 

allow him to serve in the U.S. Navy Reserve.

 

A summary of the petition was published in the Federal Register on October 1, 2015

(80 FR 59222). No comments were received.

The FAA’s analysis is as follows:

Section 61.73 contains special pilot certification rules whereby military pilots or former 

military pilots may apply for pilot certificates or ratings on the basis of their military flight 

training and pilot status rather than on a showing that they meet the specific certification 

requirements of 14 CFR part 61.

Section 61.73(c) requires that a person who is a military pilot in the Armed Forces of a 

foreign contracting State to the Convention on International Civil Aviation and is 

assigned to pilot duties in the U.S. Armed Forces, for purposes other than receiving

flight training, may apply for a commercial pilot certificate and ratings under paragraph 

(a) of this section.

The FAA does not agree with the petitioner that the public interest would be served by 

granting his request. Mr. Epifanio suggests that by seeking employment in US commercial 

aviation and the US Navy Reserve that the public interest will be served. However, the

petitioner underwent US Navy pilot training for a period of seven months, and then returned 

to duty in the Italian Navy. 
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Furthermore, the intent of § 61.73 is to recognize that a fully-qualified, and current, aviator 

serving in the US military, who had taken the appropriate military competence knowledge 

test, would normally be expected to meet the aeronautical knowledge, flight proficiency, and 

aeronautical experience required for the holder of an FAA Commercial Pilot Certificate. He 

has not shown how this period of US Navy training provides the level of safety provided by 

§61.73 and by §61.125, §61.127, and §61.129.

On the basis of his U.S. military pilot designation, the petitioner may have been eligible to 

obtain a commercial pilot certificate while on active flying status if he had been assigned to a 

U.S. military unit as a pilot with flight duties other than receiving flight training. Since 

Mr. Epifanio was only receiving pilot training with the U.S. Navy, he is not eligible to receive 

an FAA airman certificate based on military competency, and is subject to the requirements 

prescribed in part 61 for the certificate or rating sought.

The FAA’s Decision:

 In consideration of the foregoing, I find that a grant of exemption would not be in the 

public interest. Therefore, pursuant to the authority contained in 49 U.S.C. §§ 106(f), 40113 

and 44701, delegated to me by the Administrator, the petition of Mr. Marco Epifanio for an 

exemption from 14 CFR § 61.73(c) is hereby denied. 

Issued in Washington, D.C., on April 6, 2016. .

//s//

John S. Duncan

Director, Flight Standard Services