AFS

- 14

- 001

- E Exemption No. 11038

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON, DC 20591

In the matter of the petition of

HYANNIS AIR SERVICE, INC. Regulatory Docket No. 2013

- 0874

D.B.A

. CAPE AIR/NANTUCKET

AIRLINES

for an exemption from § § 119.21(a)(4) and 135.243(a)(1) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations

DENIAL OF EXEMPTION

By letter dated September 25, 2013 , Ms. Linda A. Markham, President, Hyannis Air Service Inc. d.b.a Cape Air/Nantucket Airlines ( Cape Air ), 660 Barnstable Road, Hyannis, Massachusetts 02601, petitioned the Federal Aviation Ad ministration (FAA) on behalf of Cape Air for an exemption from § § 119.21(a)(4) and 135.243(a)(1) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR). The petition for exemption, if granted, would allow a pilot flying under the Cape Air part 135 certificate, conducting scheduled commuter operations, to act as pilot in command (PIC) with a commercial pilot certificate with multiengine land and instrument airplane ratings instead of an airline transport pilot (ATP) certificate.

The petitioner requests relief fr om the following regulations:

Section 119.21(a)(4) prescribes, in pertinent part, that each person who conducts airplane operations as a commercial operator engaged in intrastate common carriage of persons or property for compensation or hire in air commer ce, or as a direct air carrier, shall comply with the certification and operations specifications requirements in subpart C of this part, and shall conduct its commuter operations in accordance with the applicable requirements of part 135 of this chapter, and shall be issued operations specifications for those operations in accordance with those requirements.

Section 135.243(a)(1) prescribes, in pertinent part, t hat n o certificate holder may use a person, nor may any person serve, as pilot in command in pa ssenger

- carrying operations o f a2

multiengine airplane in a commuter operation as defined in part 119 of this chapter, unless that person holds an airline transport pilot certificate with appropriate category and class ratings and, if required, an appropria te type rating for that airplane.

The petitioner supports its request with the following information:

The petitioner states that §135.243(a)(1) requires a PIC in part 135 scheduled commuter operation s to possess an ATP certificate

. The p etitioner notes th at, after July 31, 2014, applicants for an ATP certificate must complete an ATP certification training program (CTP)

under § 61.156 as part of the Pilot Certification and Qualification Requirements for Air Carrier Operations final rule issued by the FAA on July 15, 2013 ( 78 FR 42324, ) . The petitioner characterizes the flight training portion of the ATP CTP as requir ing 10 hours of simulation experience, including at least 6 hours in a Level C or higher full flight simulator (FFS), including a number of hig h

- altitude learning objectives, as well as 4 hours in a flight training device (FTD) with a minimum equipage of glass cockpit and flight management system (FMS).

The petitioner further states that while these requirements would be valuable for flightcrew members assigned to jet and turboprop aircraft certified in accordance with 14 CFR part 25 Airworthiness Standards: Transport category airplanes, for which applicable FFS and FMS simulation is readily available, Cape Air’s aircraft operating under part 13 5 are certified in accordance with part 23 Airworthiness standards: Normal, utility, acrobatic, and commuter category airplanes. There are no Level C FFSs that even approximate the performance and flight characteristics of aircraft currently used in Cape Air’s part 135 operation.

The petitioner believes that a Cape Air PIC flying in part 135 scheduled operations can operate at an equivalent level of safety, exercising the privileges of a commercial pilot certificate with multiengine land and instrument r atings, and offers that a Cape Air pilot

would meet the following conditions if an exemption is granted :

1. Successfully completes the existing Cape Air training curriculum as approved by the FAA ;

2. Meets the aeronautical experience required in § § 61.159(a ) an d ( b) ;

3. Successfully passes a check ride meeting existing 2013 Airline Transport Pilot Standards (FAA

- S

- 8081

- 5F) , including the practical test standard (PTS) criteria that is more exacting than current commercial PTS, except that the ATP knowledge test requ irement will not be completed ;

4. Successfully completes initial operating experience (IOE) with a minimum of 15 hours and without any reduction permitted in § 135.244(b)(4) ; and

5. Satisfies requirements of an internal evaluation program (IEP) to evaluate Cape Air training written test performance and effectiveness of the training program

and line operations

.3

The petitioner believes the public interest will not be served by requiring simulation training in aircraft over 40,000 pounds for Cessna 402 pilots. T he petitioner further states the learning outcomes will not be applicable to a light multiengine airplane of 7,200 pounds operating at altitudes at or below 10,000 feet mean sea level (MSL). The petitioner believes it would likely be years before a Cape A ir pilot would be able to use the learning outcomes of the ATP CTP in a meaningful way by flying another simulator, swept

- wing jet, or turboprop aircraft in part 121 operations or working with an FMS.

The petitioner asserts that the rule requiring the ATP CTP was meant to be applied to pilots gaining ATP certificates immediately prior to or coincident with their employment as first officers for part 121 air carriers in transport category aircraft. Cape Air further states that applying the new rule early t o pilots in part 135 scheduled passenger operations flying relatively unsophisticated

, non

- pressurized

, reciprocating twin engine airplane s at low altitude places an inapplicable learning burden on its demanding and proven flight training

curriculum.

Ca pe Air believes a grant of exemption would provide an equivalent or better level of safety by meeting all of the current experience requirements for ATP certification with applicable learning outcomes scaled to the company’s equipment and operating environ ment. Cape Air also asserts that there would be negative learning from FFS and FTD ATP CTP training on a platform with no transferability to its operating environment. The petitioner believes that

s ubjecting a pilot to the potential confusion of switchin g between different aircraft systems, aerodynamic concepts, limitations, and procedures for large turbine aircraft while they are actually training for a light reciprocating engine aircraft would undermine the intended

benefits of the ATP CTP.

A summary o f the petition was published in the Federal Register on March 13, 2014 ( 79 FR 14327)

. T hree comments were received.

The Regional Air Cargo Carriers Association (RACCA) , John Hazlet and Kent Lovelace

submitted comme nts supporting Cape Air’s petition and r eiterat ing many points that Cape Air made in its petition for exemption. RACCA and John Hazelet specifically stated a grant of exemption would be in the public interest because if the petition was denied, Cape Air would be unable to employ pilots resultin g in a reduction or cancellation of flights, many of which are the sole scheduled air service option and are supported by Essential Air Service contracts.

The FAA's analysis is as follows:

The FAA fully considered Cape Air’s petition for exemption, its su pporting information, and the public comments. However, in reviewing all relevant information provided by the petitioner, t he FAA finds that under its petition for exemption, Cape Air would not provide a level of safety at least equal to that provided by the rule from which Cape Air seeks an exemption

. Granting this petition would result in the omi ssion of the ATP CTP and, therefore, t he knowledge a pilot should have prior to entering an air carrier environment will not be addressed. Cape Air’s petition for exemption essentially reflects the ATP requirements4

in place prior to the Pilot Certification final rule, where no flight or academic training is required to obtain the certificate.

In s ection 217 of the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administr ation Extension Act of

2010

, Congress directed the FAA to modify requirements for the issuance of an airline transport pilot certificate . Congress wanted to ensure pilots function ed effectively in an air carrier/multipilot environment

, in adverse weather conditions including icing conditions and during high altitude operations while adhering to the highest professional standards. The Act

stated that the FAA could consider academic training, flight training, or operational experience as a means of ensuring pilots have the skills identified in the public law.

Th e FAA implemented regulations to require the ATP CTP training at the ATP certification

level to address the gap in knowledge between a commercial pilot certificate and the knowledge a pilot should h ave prior to entering an air carrier environment. The academic portion of the ATP CTP focuses on providing pilots with foundational knowledge on the areas

identified in the Act as well as other topics identified by the First Officer Qualification

Aviation Rulemaking Committee

. The training in the flight simulation training device ( FSTD ) portion of the course consolidates the academic concepts with scenario

- based training, practical applications, demonstrations, and multiengine experience. The course will

co nsolidate many broader topics and focus on its applicability to air carrier

- like operations. Combining the academic training requirements with the FSTD experience is the most effective method to consolidate the learning and deliver the training and experie nce mandated by the Act.

The FAA disagrees with Cape Air’s position that the ATP CTP was meant to be applied to pilots immediately prior to or coincident with their employment as a pilot in a part 121 operation. The ATP CTP is training required at the AT P certification level , not an employment requirement

.

The FAA makes the distinction that the ATP CTP teaches high

- level concepts and does not require students to learn specific aircraft systems, limitations, and procedures or perform maneuvers to profic iency. Also, Cape Air’s pilots would not be taking the ATP CTP concurrently with Cape Air’s initial pilot training program , since the two courses are required to be separate. 1 Therefore, Cape Air’s assertions that pilots would be confused by learning

conc epts applicable to large transport category aircraft while they are actually training for a light reciprocating engine aircraft are unfounded. The FAA contemplated th e differences in ATP CTP flight training versus air carrier flight training in the Pilot C ertification final rule preamble and stated

, “The FAA reiterates that this framework of academic training and flight training is consistent with that of other pilot certificates

... The training received in the ATP

CTP will also be the last basic certification training a pilot receives. It will address topics not covered at the commercial pilot certificate level and establish a knowledge base that additional aircraft type

- specific and air carrier

- specific training can build upon when a pilot is trained to fly f or an air carrier. ”

1 § § 121.410(a) and 135.336(a)

.5

In addition, t he FAA disagrees with Cape Air’s assertion that the academic and flight training required by the ATP CTP is only applicable to pilots flying large transport category airplanes. There are numerous topics required by § 61. 156 and are directly applicable to pilots involved

in part 135 scheduled commuter operation s such as meteorology

, to includ e weather detection

systems and adverse weather conditions

, checklist philosophy

, operational control

, minimum equipment list/configu ration deviation list

, ground operations, navigation

, leadership and professional development

, safety culture

, low energy states/stalls

, and upset recovery techniques. While the ATP CTP does include some topics a pilot of a reciprocating engine airplane e mployed at Cape Air may not use in his or her present position, the FAA believes, as stated in the final rule preamble, that pilots routinely receive basic certification flight training in one type of aircraft and then move on to fly many other types of ai rcraft without a negative transfer of learning.

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

a nd 44701 delegated to me by the Administrator, the petition of Hyannis Air Service Inc.

d.b.a

. Cape Air/Nantucket Airlines for an exemption from 14 CFR § § 119.21(a)(4) and 135.243(a)(1) is hereby denied.

Issued in Washington, DC, on July 29, 2014.

.

/S/ John Barbagallo Acting Deputy Director, Flight Standards Service