## REQUEST BY ALASKA AI RLINES FOR CLARIFICA TION OF FLIGHT,

DUTY AND REST REQUIR EMENTS OF 14 CFR 117

Submitted to:

Docket Number FAA

– 2012

– 0358

Dale E. Roberts,

Air Transportation Division,

Flight Standards Service,

Federal Aviation Administration

dale.e.roberts@faa.gov

Alex Zektser, Office of the Chief Counsel,

Regulations Division,

Federal Aviation Administration

alex.zektser@faa.gov

For Your Consideration: 1

2

**Gene ral**  3

Many carriers use FAA

- approved crew tracking and record keeping systems. With the complexity 4

of tracking Flight Duty Period, Flight Time based on time of day and segments, carriers will be 5

making major changes to the current programs u tilized to maintai n compliance with FARs. 6

**What will be the requirement**  **s for the POI to a**  **pprove tracking and record keeping**  7

**systems that provide compliance with**  **14 CFR**  **117?** 8

9

10

**§ 117.1 Applicability.**  11

Subsection (b) and (c) state “

.... if any segment is conducted as a domestic passenger, flag passenger, 12

or supplemental passenger operation

. ” 13

**Please confirm that a line pilot assigned a flight under Part 91, such as a Functional** 14

**Check Fligh t or**  **Maintenance Ferry, and with**  **no additional 121 assignments, is**  **not** 15

**subject to compliance with Part 117**

**. 1** 

1 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 2 / Wednesday, January 4, 2012 / Rules and Regulations

, page 336 16

17

18

19**§ 1.1 General definitions.**  20

Flight time means: 21

Pilot time that commences when an aircraft moves under its own power for the purpose of flight and 22

ends WHEN THE AIRCRAFT CO MES TO REST AFTER LA NDING 23

**§ 117.3 Definitions.**  24

Duty means any task that a flightcrew member performs as required by the certificate holder, 25

including but not limited to flight duty period, flight duty, pre

- and post

- flight duties, administrative 26

work, training, deadhead transportation , AIRCRAFT POSITIONI NG ON THE GROUND , aircraft loading, 27

and aircraft servicing. 28

Flight duty period (FDP) means a period that begins when a flightcrew member is required to report 29

for duty with the intention of conducting a flight, a series of flights, or positioning or ferrying flights, 30

and ends when the aircraft is parked after the last flight and the re is NO INTENTION FOR FUR THER 31

AIRCRAFT MOVEMENT BY THE SAME FLIGHTCREW MEMBER

. 32

**A**

**. Please confirm the following a**  **pplication of these definitions**

**-** 33

**1) Reposition aircraft from International gate for customs to a domesti c gate:**  34

**• No passengers on board**  35

**• Pilot’s**  **obligations end at the domestic gate** 36

**Duty**

**-** Yes **: task that a flightcrew member performs as requ ired by the certificat**  **e** 37

**holder includes aircraft posi tioning on the ground.**  38

**FDP**

**-** Yes **: FDP ends when the aircraft is parked after the last flight and there is no**  39

**intention for further aircraft movement by the same flightcrew member.** 40

**Flight Time**

**-** N o **: flight time**  **ends when the aircraft comes to rest after landing.** 41

42

**2) Block return for mechanical or medical emergency** 

**.** 43

**Duty**

**- Yes**  **: task that a flightcrew member perf orms as req**  **uired by the certificate** 44

**holder**

**.** 45

**FDP**

**- Yes**  **but ends when plane arrives at gate** 

**.** 46

**Flight Time**

**- Yes**  **but ends when plane arrives at gate** 

**.** 47

48

**B . When**  **does FDP stop when the aircraft never departs**  **?** 49

50

51

**§117.5 Fitness for duty.** 52

Subsection (d) states “ As part of the dispatch or flight release, as applicable, each flightcrew member 53

must affirmatively state he or she is fit for duty prior to commencing flight. ” 54

In the preamble 2

2 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 2 / Wednesday, January 4, 2012 / Rules and Regulations , page 350 it states “ The affirmation on the dispatch or flight release simply needs to s tate that 55

the undersigned flightcrew members affirm that they are fit for duty. THE DISPATCH OR FLIG HT 56

RELEASE CONTAINING T HE AFFIRMATION MUST BE SIGNED BY EACH FL IGHTCREW MEMBER . This 57

requirement applies to each flight segment and each air carrier should inform its flightcrew members 58

about the significance of signing a fitness

- for

- duty affirmation

. ” 59

**Confirm that flightcrew members can use various electronic means provided by the** 60

**carrier to record the fitness for duty statement such as ACARS, cell phone app, or** 61

**other proprietary method and keep this record for a period of 3 months IAW**  62

**§ 121.695**  **(b).** 63

64

65

66**§117.9 Fatigue education and awareness training program.** 67

Subsection (a) states: “ Eac h certificate holder must develop and implement an education and 68

awareness training program, APPROVED by the Administrator ” . Yet subsection (c)(1) states: “ Each 69

certificate holder must update its fatigue education and awareness training program every two yea rs 70

and submit the update to the Administrator for review and ACCEPTANCE ”

. 71

**A**

**. Is the fatigue training an FAA approved course of**  **training or an accepted training**  72

**program?** 73

74

**•** ASAA, Pilot Training programs (AQP) are approved by the local CMO as well as AFS

- 230. Now we 75

have a third party approving one specific topic within the Qualification and Continuing 76

Qualification curriculum, AFS

- 220

. 77

**•** ASAA Dispatcher Training, under Subpart N & O of 14 CFR 121

, is approved by the CMO. 78

**B**

**. If**  **the answer to A above establishes this is**  **an approved training**  **curriculum , who**  79

**will represent the Administrator in approving this training**

**– the CMO, AFS** 

**- 220, or**  80

**in the case of our Pilot training program, AFS**

**- 230?**  81

82

Subsection (a) further defines the disciplines that must take this training : “ employees responsible for 83

administering the provisions of this rule including flightcrew members, dispatchers, individuals 84

directly involved in the scheduling of flightcrew members, individuals directly involved in operational 85

control, and any employee p roviding direct management oversight of those areas ”

. 86

This training will be part of the Pilot’s and Dispatcher’s FAA approved training curriculum and will 87

in part

, establish their qualifications. Therefore if a Pilot or Dispatcher does not complete this 88

tra ining they are not qualified to perform their duties. 89

**C**

**. For all other functions listed in subsection (a), what are the consequences for not**  90

**completing the required training within a y ear?**  91

**D**

**. Is this training mandated every 12 calendar months or once in a**  **calendar year? If I**  92

**take the training in January 2014, then again in December of 2015, am I legal to** 93

**perform my duties administering the provisions of this rule**  **during 2015?** 94

95

Subsection (b) list the topics that must be incorporated into the training progra ms: 96

(1) Fatigue; 97

(2) The effects of fatigue on pilots; and 98

(3) Fatigue countermeasures 99

ASAA Pilot Qualification and Continuing Qualification programs have included these subjects for 100

well over three years. 101

**E**

**. Will there be credit for previous training?**  102

103

Subsection (c) (1) & (2) mandates the carrier update its fatigue education and awareness training 104

program every two years , and that the FAA will take no longer than 12 months to approve (accept) 105

this revision. Under 14 CFR 121 Subpart Y

- A d vanced Qualific ation Program

, Continuing 106

Qualification training for ASAA Pilots changes each year. 107

**F**

**. Will a carrier be afforded the opportunity to amend their Continuing Qualification**  108

**curriculum each year?** 109

**G**

**. Clarify that the carrier will need to submit changes to its p**  **rogram a full year** 110

**before we can implement them and must continue to use the existing FAA** 111

**approved curriculum until such time the amendment is approved.** 112

**H . When does initial fatigue education**  **and awar e**  **ness training need to be completed?**  113

114

115

116**§ 117.11 Flight**  **time limitation.** 117

Subsection (b) states: If unforeseen operational circumstanc es arise after takeoff that are beyond the 118

certificate holder’s control, a f lightcrew member may exceed the m aximum flight time specified in 119

paragr aph (a) of this section and the c umulative flight time limits in 117.2 3(b) TO THE EXTENT 120

NECESSA RY TO SAFEL Y land the aircraft at the next destination airport or alternate, as appropriate

. 121

**A**

**. The regulation does not address an**  **unanticipated grou nd event, such as a gate**  122

**hold, a major weather event which strikes an airport earlier or later that** 123

**forecasted, or an unanticipated runway closure.**  **Is this consistent**  **with the** 124

**Customer Service Commitment?** 125

**B**

**. If the unforeseen**  **circumstance requires a divert to an airport other that the** 126

**destination or alternate, do you**  **re**

**- enter Table B to adjust the Flight Duty Period,**  127

**even though this section states that I may exceed the limits**  **as necessary to safely** 128

**land at the destination or alternate?** 129

130

Subsection (c) states in part that the certificate hol der must report to the Administrator within 10 131

days any flight time that exceeded the maximum flight time limits permitted. The report must 132

include a description for the exceeded flight time, and if the certificate holder could have 133

intervened, a correctiv e action to minimize future extensions. 134

**C**

**. Please confirm that if the circumstances were beyond**  **the certificate holder’s** 135

**control, a report is required but corrective actions need not be provided.** 136

137

138

**§117.13 Flight duty period: Unaugmented operations.** 139

**TABLE B TO PART 117** 

**— FLIGHT DUTY PERIOD: UNAUGMENTED OPERATIONS**  140

Table B bases the length of a Flight Duty Period (FDP) on the Scheduled time of start and number of 141

segments. 142

**A**

**. If a diversion occurs in a non** 

**- augmented flight does this now count as a segment**  143

**towards limitations, thereby possibly changing a flightcrew member’s maximum** 144

**FDP?** 145

**B**

**. if a delay is known prior to the report time of the pilot (day before or even earlier**  146

**in the day), can the carrier reset the pilot to the new report time which alters the** 147

**pilot’s duty day to begin at this new time within**  **the chart? For example, the flight**  148

**was originally scheduled to depart LAX at 12:30 pm. The flight is delayed for 5** 149

**hours and the crew is notified the day prior. Can the carrier reset the duty day to** 150

**begin a t 17:30 pm the next day?**  151

The times listed in Table B are based on the acclimation of the flight crewmember in theater. There 152

can be multiple time zones within 60° lines of longitude. A pilot can be rested in a different time 153

zone of their base but still i n the same theater

. 154

**C**

**. Please verify that we enter the table using the time zone the flight**  **crewmember is** 155

**acclimated to. For e xample, if the Pilot was based in SEA, and had less than 36**  156

**hours of rest in BOS, the scheduled time of start in Table B would be SEA time.**  157

158

159

160**§117.19 Flight duty period extensions.** 161

Subsection (b) states: “ for unforeseen operational circumstances after takeoff limit the number of 162

extensions of more than 30 minutes to once prior to receiving a rest period described in §117.25(b) ”

. 163

**A**

**. Please clarify**  **that because this rule discusses operations after takeoff, and limits** 164

**them to one a week period**  **, what is the Administrator ’**  **s expectation**  **if a crew has** 165

**had one extension then encounters a weather delay just a few days later whic h**  166

**will put them over 30 minutes?** 167

**B**

**. Why are the reporting requirement different for §117.19(a)(4) and (b)(4)?**  168

169

170

**§ 117.21 Reserve status.**  171

Subsection (b) states: “ F or airport/standby reserve, al l time spent in a reserve status is part of the 172

flightcrew member’s flight duty period

. ” Yet, the definition of Flight duty period (FDP) includes the 173

assumption that a flight occurs:

.... “ wit h the intention of conducting a flight, a se ries of flights, or 174

positioning or ferr ying flights, and ends when th e aircraft is parked after the last flight

... . ” 175

**A. If an Airport Standb**  **y Reserve does not fly, does**  **the ti me they spent on Airport**  176

**Standb y count toward FDP?**  177

**B. If a short call pilot is assigned a trip do they have the same FDP extension**  178

**capabilities as a lineholder?** 179

180

**§ 117.25 Rest period.**  181

The language in subsection (a), “ N o certificate holder MAY ASSIGN and no flightcrew member may 182

ACCEPT ASSIGNMENT to any reserve or duty ” , and s ubsection (e)

, “ No certificate holder MAY 183

SCHEDULE and no flightcrew member may ACCEPT AN ASSIGNMENT for any res erv e or flight du ty 184

period ”

. 185

**A. Confirm that if the carrier is not assigning duty**  **during a**  **rest period, the**  **y are** 186

**allowed to contact the crew**  **or the crew can**  **check a calendar**

**, during the**  **period** 187

**break for an assig nment** 

**, to extend/reduce their rest period**  **or amend their**  188

**schedule?** 189

S ubsection (e) also states: “ the flightcrew member is given a rest period of at least 1 0 consecutive 190

hours immediately before beginning the reserve or flight duty pe riod measured from the time the 191

fli ghtcrew member is released from dut y. The 10 hour rest period must provi de the flightcrew me mber 192

with a mini mum of 8 uninterrupted hours of sleep opportunity ” 193

**B. Confirm th**  **at a carrier can require a pilot to check text, email, or calendar**  **during** 194

**the 10 consecutive hours or 8 hours of sleep opportunity**

**.** 195

**C. Confirm that the earliest point that rest will begin is at the time of release from**  196

**duty.** 197

198

The language in subsection s (b ) and (e) are inconsistant : “

... assignment for ANY RESERVE OR FLIGH T 199

DUTY PERIOD

... ”. T he language in subsection (f) states: “ The flightcrew member cannot r eport for 200

the ASSIGNED FLIGHT DUTY PERIOD

... ” 201

**D. Is this inconsistent language intentional? Could a flightcrew member begin a**  202

**reserve period even if the flightcrew member determined he/she did not receive** 203

**the rest required by paragraph (e)?** 204

205

206

207**§ 117.27 Consecutive nighttime**  **operations.** 208

This section in part states : “ A certificate holder may schedule and a fli ghtcrew member may accept up 209

to five consecutive flight duty periods that infringe on the window of circadian low if

.... The rest 210

opport unity must be at least 2 hours, measured from the time that the flightcrew member reaches the 211

suitable acco mmodation ” , and is provided betwe en the hours of 22:00 and 05:00 local time. 212

**Please c onfirm that**  **this section only applies to operations that b**  **egin before and** 213

**operate into the WOCL or**  **for FDPs that begin before the WOCL and end after the** 214

**WOCL. A flight crew**  **that is reporting at 0500 may report for five (5) days in a row.** 215

216

217

**§121.467 Flight atten dant duty period limitations and rest requirements: Domestic, flag, and**  218

**supplemental operations.** 219

Subsection (c) states “ Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this section, a certificate holder conducting 220

domestic, flag, or supplemental operations may apply the flightcrew member flight time and duty 221

limitations and REQUIREMENTS of part 117 of this chapter to flight attendants for all operations 222

conducted under this part provided that ....” 223

**Do all “requirements of Part 117” include Flight Attendants:**  224

**• C**  **omplying with f**  **atigue education and awareness**  **training program ?**  225

**• D**  **eclaring t**  **hei r fitness for duty on**  **the flight release ?**  226

227

228

Jim Winkelman 229

Alaska Airlines 230

Director, Flight Operations Compliance, Quality Management, Technical Publications and Safety 231

Management System Implementation 232

(206)392

- 6347 233

Jim.Winkelman@AlaskaAir.com 234