AFS-13-152-E February 14, 2013

Exemption No. 10426B Regulatory Docket No. FAA-2011-0981

Mr. Michael C. Hurst

Chief Pilot
PHI, Inc.

P.O. Box 90808 Lafayette, LA 70509

Dear Mr. Hurst:

This letter is to inform you that we have amended and extended Exemption No. 10426, as amended. It explains the basis for our decision, describes its effect, and lists the revised

conditions and limitations.

The Basis for Our Decision

On January 6, 2012, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued Exemption No. 10426, as amended, to PHI, Inc. (PHI) for relief from § 61.3(a)(1) and (c)(1) of Title 14,Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR). That exemption allows PHI to issue companyprovided facsimiles of pilot and medical certifi cates to its pilot crewmembers when those certificates are lost, destroyed, or misplaced.

The FAA has issued several grants of exemption with relief similar to that in Exemption No. 10426. In those exemptions (beginning with Exemption No. 8700, issued on March 23, 2006) we decided that the public interest was served only when the relief was limited to scheduled air carrier operations. For that reason, in the conditions and limitations sections of those exemptions, we limited the relief to scheduled air carrier flights.

The FAA has reconsidered the public interest position for this relief. We have concluded that the public interest is served, albeit to a lesser extent, for nonscheduled air carrier flights. We find it is no longer practical or appropriate to prohibit this relief for air carriers engaged in2

nonscheduled operations. We have therefore amended the conditions and limitations section of this exemption to allow relief for scheduled and nonscheduled operations. The relief is still restricted for operations conducted under pa rt 91 (including part 91, Subpart K).

In this amendment, we have made minor format changes to the conditions and limitations and extended the relief for an additional two years.

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 PHI, Inc. an exemption from 14 CFR § 61.3(a)(1) and (c)(1) to the extent necessary to allow PHI to issue company-provided facsimiles of pilot and medical certificates to its pilot crewmembers when those certificates are lost, destroyed, or misplaced, subject to the conditions and limitations described below.

Conditions and Limitations

1. A copy of this exemption must be carried onboard the aircraft whenever a PHI pilot flight crewmember operates a flight under this exemption.

2. Before conducting operations under this exemption, PHI must develop, submit to, and have approved by its FAA principal operations inspector (POI) a plan outlining the procedures it expects to employ in issuing a temporary confirmation document to pilot flight crewmembers who do not have in their personal possession the airman or medical certificate required under the regulations for a particular flight.

3. PHI’s procedures, as specified in Condition No. 2, must include a method to ensure positive identification of the pilot flight crewmember when the pilot flight crewmember no longer has any identification.

4. Each pilot flight crewmember who operates a flight under this exemption must comply with § 61.29(e) and ensure a request for a facsimile from the FAA confirming the applicable certificate is made within 72 hours of the initiation of any flight conducted under this exemption. PHI is authorized to make this application to the FAA on behalf of the p ilot flight crewmember. The pilot flight crewmember must provide a copy of the facsimile to PHI within 24 hours of the receipt of that facsimile.

5. The PHI confirmation document must include the written words “Issued under the authority of Exemption No. 10426.”

6. The privileges of this exemption may be exercised only when the affected pilot flight crewmember operates totally within the District of Columbia and the contiguous United States. The privileges of this exemption may not be exercised in

Alaska or Hawaii.3

7. The privileges of this exemption may be exercised for scheduled or nonscheduled air carrier flights operated under part 135. The privileges of this exemption may not be exercised for operations under part 91 (including part 91 Subpart K).

This exemption terminates on February 28, 2015, unless sooner superseded or rescinded.

Sincerely,

/s/

John M. Allen Director, Flight Standards Service

Enclosure