AFS-13-536-E

October 21, 2013

 Exemption No. 10877

 Regulatory Docket No. FAA-2013-0785

Mr. Manuel Lopez

Parent of Hector Lopez

1171 Sherwood Avenue

Elgin, IL 60120

Dear Mr. Lopez:

This letter is to inform you that we have granted your request for exemption. It transmits our 

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 September 5, 2013, you petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

on behalf of Hector Lopez for an exemption from § 121.311(b) of Title 14, Code of Federal 

Regulations (14 CFR). The exemption, if granted, would permit Hector Lopez to travel in a 

Columbia Medical Spirit Adjustable Positioning System without occupying an FAA-approved 

seat or berth with a separate belt properly secured about him during movement on the surface, 

takeoff, and landing. 

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

in the Federal Register because the requested exemption would not set a precedent and any 

delay in acting on this petition would be detrimental to Hector.

The FAA has issued a grant of exemption in circumstances similar in all material respects to 

those presented in your petition. In Grant of Exemption No. 7831 (copy enclosed), the FAA 

found that the proposed exemption provided an equivalent level of safety to the affected 

section. In this grant, the airplane seatbelt required by § 121.311(b) that was to be fastened 

about the individual would instead secure either the Ortho Kinetics Travel Chair Model 6332 

or the MERU Travel Chair into the passenger seat. The FAA further found that the petition, if 
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granted, would not set any new precedents regarding the use of restraint systems by persons 

with disabilities.

Having reviewed your reasons for requesting an exemption, I find that—

• they do not differ materially from those presented by the petitioner in the enclosed Grant

of Exemption No. 7831.

• the reasons stated by the FAA for granting the enclosed Grant of Exemption No. 7831 also 

apply to the situation you present; and 

• a grant of exemption is in the public interest.

Our Decision

Under the authority contained in 49 U.S.C. 40113 and 44701, which the FAA Administrator 

has delegated to me, I hereby grant Hector Lopez exemption from § 121.311(b). In addition, 

any air carrier or commercial operator operating under part 121 while Hector is aboard its 

aircraft is granted an exemption from 14 CFR § 121.311(b) to the extent necessary to allow 

him to use the Columbia Medical Spirit Adjustable Positioning System aboard a U.S. aircraft.

All operations under this exemption must be conducted with a caregiver accompanying

Hector. Hector, while seated in the Columbia Medical Spirit Adjustable Positioning System, 

must be secured with the internal restraint system. The Columbia Medical Spirit Adjustable

Positioning System must be secured in the airplane passenger seat by means of the airplane 

passenger seatbelt in accordance with the instructions provided with the Columbia Medical 

Spirit Adjustable Positioning System. In addition, Hector’s caregiver must carry a copy of 

this exemption and advise the air carrier about the contents of the exemption at least 48 hours

before the date of each flight.

This exemption terminates on October 31, 2018, unless sooner superseded or rescinded.

Sincerely,

/s/

Michael J. Zenkovich

Deputy Director, Flight Standards Service

Enclosures