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Docket Management Facility U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12

- 140 Washington, D.C. 20590

Re: Petition for Exemption Via Electronic Filing and U.S.P.S.

Dear Sir or Madam:

Pursuant to 14 CFR Part 11, this is a Petition for Exemption from specific portions of 14

CFR.

I. Name and mailing address: Richard J. Durden, Gen eral Counsel, Gulf & Caribbean

Ca rgo, Inc. , 6860 S. Service Drive, Waterford, Michigan 48327, 248

- 666

- 19 61, direct line (cell) 616

- 901

- 6516, email rdurden@iflgroup .com.

II. Relief is sought from 14 CFR Part 121.436 as it applies to pilots employed by Gulf & Caribbean Cargo, Inc. for cargo flights conducted both inside and outside the United States
to exp and its scope and applicability with regard to the experience requirement for a pilot
in command in 14 CFR Part 121 cargo operations and its limiting reference to 14 CFR Part
135

. 243 (a)(1) so as to allow the pilot in command of turbojet airplanes in 14 CFR Part 135 operation s to count that pilot in command time toward the experience requirement of 14

CFR Part 121.436 in Gulf & Caribbean Cargo, Inc. cargo operations rega rdless of whether the airplane wa s configured to carry passengers or freight.

III. Exte nt of relief sought and reasons: We are seeking an exemption for pilots employed by our company from 14 CFR Part 121.436 to expand its scope and applicability with regard to the experience requirement for a pilot in command in cargo only Part 121 operations and its reference to Part 135.243(a)(1) to allow the pilot in command of a turbojet airplane, whether carrying passengers or freight, to count that pilot in command2

time toward the experience requirement of Part 121.436 for cargo fli ghts inside and
outside the United States.

Background: Written in the disjunctive, Part 135.243(a)(1) sets out requirements for a person to fly as pilot in command in passenger

- carrying operations of three types of airplanes: (1) all turbojets; (2) airp lanes having a passenger

- seat configuration, excluding each crewmember seat, of 10 seats or more (which can include such airplanes as the single

engine turboprop Cessna 208 Caravan, piston twin Cessna 404 and unpressurized turboprop Beech 99 Airliner); and (3) multi

- engine airplanes in a commuter operation as defined in Part 119. The FAA Inspector’s Handbook , FAA Order 8900.1, defines and interprets Par t 135.243(a)(1) in this manner in section 3

- 1275.

Gulf & Caribbean Cargo, Inc. operate s Convair turboprops and Boeing 727 turbojets under

Part 121 in cargo

- only operations

. We note that Part 135 turbojet capt ains/pilots in command undergo standard training prescribed by the FAA for Part 135 turbojet operations. The training is applicable for

carri age of passengers or freight

— no distinction is made in the training or the oversight carried out by the local FAA office with regard to passenger or freight operations

. Whether carrying passengers or freight, the crews fly through the same weather, in the same type airplanes, manage the same fatigue and operate in the same ATC system.

As written, Part 121.436 requires that a pilot in command in Part 121 cargo operations must have a certain level of experience, either as second in command in Part 121

opera tions, pilot in command in “fractional” aircraft under Part 91

— the lowest level of safety under the Federal Aviation Regulations

— or as pilot in command in passenger carrying operations falling under Part 135.243(a)(1).

Because the training, operational re quirements and FAA oversight for a Part 135 turbojet captain are far more rigorous than for a fractional operator under Part 91.1053, allowing credit for experience for the much lower level of safety of a Part 91 pilot in command but
not for a Part 135 tur bojet pilot in command carrying freight, defies understanding and lacks any rational basis

— whether safety of flight or level of rigor of the total operational experience.

It also makes no sense that a pilot in command of an airplane such as a Cessna 208 o r Cessna 404 configured for 12 passengers (or in commuter operations) and unable to operate in the Flight Levels because it is not pressurized, can count her or his experience
toward the Part 121 cargo pilot in command requireme nt when a captain of a turbo jet carrying freight and operating in the same environment as a Boeing 747 cannot count her or his time just because the airplane doesn’t have seats in it.3

In addition, because pilots employed to fly as pilot in command of turbojets for Part 135

carriers fly in precisely the same weather, with precisely the same training and under the same FAA regulatory oversight whether the airplane is configured for passengers or freight , it make s utterly no sense that they may only count the time carrying passengers in those jets toward the experience requirement of Part 121.436 for an all

- cargo carrier

.
Further, it makes no sense to not give credit toward the experience requirement of 121.243 for cargo operations to captains flying turbojets carrying cargo under circu mstances that are more rigorous than pilots of passenger

- configured Cessna Caravans and captains flying fractional jets under the much less restrictive regulations of Part 91.

The level of safety for Part 135 turbojet freight operations is every bit as hi gh as for Part
135 turbojet passenger carrying operations.

From an economic point of view, our company has already experienced the difficulty in locating and hiring pilots that meet the experience requirements mandated by the recent changes to the Federa l Aviation Regulations that was predicted by so many commentators
whe n the changes were proposed. T here is no incentive for pilot s to seek a job flying for a
Part 135 turbojet cargo operation because the pilot in command time cannot be counted
toward Part 121 experience requirements

— creating a hardship for us in finding pilots. From the standpoint of an applicant for a captain’s p osition in a freight

- hauling turbojet

, why go through the intensive training and the exacting FAA oversight for a flying job wh ere the hours she or he builds don’t count?

It makes no sense that a Part 135 turbojet freight captain receive s more, and more involved training th an fractional jet crews, and is subject to much more intensive FA A scrutiny, but
because she or he is flyin g freight, that pilot is treated as second

- class in the eyes of 121.436, without any safety justification or rational basis.

Accordingly, this is to apply for an e xemption that would allow Gulf & Caribbean Cargo, Inc. employees who have flown as pilot in command of a turbojet airplane under Part 135, whether configured for freight or passengers, to count that pilot in command time toward the experience requirement of Part 121.436 for our Part 121 cargo operations in and
outside of the United States.

IV. Public Benefit: The exemption would increase the number of highly trained and experienced pilots who are qualified to fly as pilot in command in Part 121 cargo operations for our company , thus allowing us to select from deeper pool of and thereby

incr ease the level of safety for the public.

V. Reasons the exemption would not adversely affect safety, or how the exemption would provide a level of safety at least equal to the current rule: The overall level of safety4

provided by this exemption is mark edly increased over the current rule because more pilots with more extensive training and demanding experience become available for Part
121 cargo operations. Currently, the regulations allow pilots flying under far less rigorous conditions than Part 135 turbojet captains

— flying a Cessna 404 at 200 knots at 8,000 feet does not begin to provide the experience for Part 121 that flying a turbojet in the flight levels, and flying a fractional jet under Part 91 does not provide the demanding operational rigor t hat operation under Part 135 provides. The exception helps overcome the lower level of safety currently set up by al lowing pilots in a less demanding operating environment count the time toward cargo Part 121 experience.

VI. Summary for the Federal Reg ister: 14 CFR Parts 121.436 and 135.243(a)(1) Gulf and Caribbean Cargo, Inc. seek s an exemption from 14 CF R Part 121.436 for its pilots for cargo operations to allow the pilot in command of turbojet airplanes in Part 135 operations to count that pilot in command time toward the experience requirement of 14 CFR Part 121.436 regard less of whether the airplane was configured to carry passengers or

cargo.

Very truly yours,

Richard J. Durden General Counsel