Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 64 / Monday, April 5, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 17041 

director compensation policy, 

methodology and/or other related 

materials, that the compensation and/or 

expenses to be paid to the directors are 

not reasonable. In such case, the 

Director may order the Bank to refrain 

from making any further payments 

under that compensation policy. Any 

such order shall apply prospectively 

only and will not affect either 

compensation or expenses that have 

been earned but not yet paid or 

reimbursed or payments that had been 

made prior to the date of the Director’s 

determination and order. 

§ 1261.24 Board meetings. 

(a) Number of meetings. The board of 

directors of each Bank shall hold as 

many meetings each year as necessary 

and appropriate to carry out its 

fiduciary responsibilities with respect to 

the effective oversight of Bank 

management and such other duties and 

obligations as may be imposed by 

applicable laws, provided the board of 

directors of a Bank must hold a 

minimum of six in-person meetings in 

any year. 

(b) Site of meetings. The bank usually 

should hold board of director and 

committee meetings within the district 

served by the Bank. The Bank shall not 

hold board of director or committee 

meetings in any location that is not 

within the United States, including its 

possessions and territories. 

Dated: March 27, 2010. 

Edward J. DeMarco, 

Acting Director, Federal Housing Finance 

Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2010–7418 Filed 4–2–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Parts 27, 29, 91, 121, 125, and 

135 

[Docket No. FAA–2005–20245; Amendment 

No. 27–45, 29–52, 91–313, 121–349, 125– 

60 and 135–121] 

RIN 2120–AJ65 

Extension of the Compliance Date for 

Cockpit Voice Recorder and Digital 

Flight Data Recorder Regulations 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: On March 7, 2008, the FAA 

published a final rule titled ‘‘Revisions 

to Cockpit Voice Recorder and Digital 

Flight Data Recorder Regulations.’’ The 

rule required certain upgrades of 

cockpit voice recorder and digital flight 

data recorder equipment on certain 

aircraft beginning April 7, 2010. That 

compliance date is being changed for 

certain requirements on certain aircraft. 

DATES: These amendments are effective 

April 5, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

technical questions concerning this final 

rule contact Timothy W. Shaver, 

Avionics Maintenance Branch, Flight 

Standards Service, AFS–360, Federal 

Aviation Administration, 950 L’Enfant 

Plaza, SW., Washington, DC 20024; 

telephone (202) 385–4292; facsimile 

(202) 385–4651; e-mail 

tim.shaver@faa.gov. For legal questions 

concerning this final rule contact Karen 

L. Petronis, Regulations Division, AGC– 

200, Office of the Chief Counsel, Federal 

Aviation Administration, 800 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 

267–3073; facsimile (202) 267–7971; 

e-mail karen.petronis@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority for This Rulemaking 

The FAA’s authority to issue rules on 

aviation safety is found in Title 49 of the 

United States Code. Subtitle I, Section 

106 describes the authority of the FAA 

Administrator. Subtitle VII, Aviation 

Programs, describes in more detail the 

scope of the agency’s authority. 

This rulemaking is promulgated 

under the authority described in 

Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart III, Section 

44701. Under that section, the FAA is 

charged with prescribing regulations 

providing minimum standards for other 

practices, methods and procedures 

necessary for safety in air commerce. 

This regulation is within the scope of 

that authority since flight data recorders 

are the only means available to account 

for aircraft movement and flightcrew 

actions critical to finding the probable 

cause of incidents or accidents, 

including data that could prevent future 

incidents or accidents. 

I. Background 

A. History of the Regulatory 

Requirements 

In February 2005, the FAA issued a 

notice of proposed rulemaking 

proposing to amend the digital flight 

data recorder (DFDR) and cockpit voice 

recorder (CVR) regulations for much of 

the U.S. fleet of aircraft (70 FR 9752; 

February 28, 2005). Some of the changes 

proposed were based on 

recommendations from the National 

Transportation Safety Board (NTSB or 

Board) that were issued as a result of the 

Board’s investigations of several aircraft 

accidents and incidents. A full 

discussion of the NTSB’s 

recommendations and the FAA’s 

proposed changes can be found in the 

2005 NPRM. 

In March 2008, the FAA issued a final 

rule adopting many of those proposals 

(73 FR 12541; March 7, 2008). The 

requirements were adopted as aircraft 

certification or operating rules, some of 

which take effect on April 7, 2010, and 

include: 

• The recording of datalink 

communications, when the 

communications equipment is installed 

on or after April 7, 2010; 

• Wiring requirements related to 

single electrical failures and their effect 

on the DFDR and CVR systems; 

• The addition of a 10-minute 

independent power source for the CVR; 

• Requirements regarding the CVR 

location and housing; 

• Requirements for the duration of 

DFDR recording; 

• Requirements for the duration of 

CVR recording; and 

• Increased sampling rates for certain 

DFDR parameters. 

A detailed discussion of the 

individual requirements and where they 

appear in the regulations can be found 

in the preamble to the 2008 final rule, 

beginning at page 12556 (Section-BySection Analysis). Some of the 

requirements were promulgated to be 

effective in two years, while others were 

required within four years of April 7, 

2008. 

Between May 1, 2009 and December 

14, 2009, the FAA received seven 

petitions from aircraft manufacturers 

and two from industry associations 

requesting either that the effective dates 

in the regulations be changed or that 

other relief from several of the 2008 

requirements be granted for aircraft 

manufactured on or after April 7, 2010. 

In a notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM) published on January 7, 2010 

(75 FR 943), the FAA denied all of the 

petitions and instead proposed that 

some of the requirements for newly 

manufactured aircraft be extended from 

the April 7, 2010 compliance date. 

Specifically, the FAA proposed that: 

1. For increased DFDR sampling rates, 

the compliance date for newly 

manufactured aircraft operated under 

part 121, 125, or 135 would be extended 

until December 6, 2010. 

2. For the datalink recording 

requirements, the compliance date after 

which the installation of datalink 

communications must include recording 

equipment would be extended until 

December 6, 2010 for aircraft operating 

under part 121, 125, or 135. 


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3. For the ten-minute backup power 

source for CVRs, the compliance date 

for part 91 operators (only) would be 

extended to April 6, 2012. 

4. For increased DFDR sampling rates, 

the compliance date for newly 

manufactured aircraft operated under 

part 91 would be extended until April 

6, 2012. 

5. For aircraft operating under part 91, 

datalink communications would have to 

be recorded when datalink 

communication equipment is installed 

on or after April 6, 2012. 

These proposed changes were the 

ones the FAA found to be potentially 

justified by the petitions submitted. All 

other compliance dates in the 2008 final 

rule remained as adopted, including the 

wiring requirements for CVRs and 

DFDRs; 25-hour solid state memory 

DFDRs; two-hour solid state memory 

CVRs; the CVR and DFDR housing 

requirements; and the ten-minute 

backup power source for CVRs on 

aircraft operated under part 121, 125, or 

135. A more complete discussion of the 

requests and the FAA’s proposal can be 

found in the preamble to the NPRM. 

B. General Response to the NPRM 

In the NPRM, the FAA invited 

comment from manufacturers and 

affected operators that may not consider 

the proposed extension to be sufficient. 

The agency requested that comments 

include specific, detailed information 

regarding their actions toward 

compliance, and reasons (such as lack of 

equipment availability) that continue to 

affect timely compliance with the 2008 

regulations. 

The FAA received 14 comment 

documents to the NPRM, including five 

from airframe manufacturers, three from 

avionics equipment manufacturers, two 

from industry trade associations, three 

from air carriers, and from the NTSB. 

The comments generally supported the 

proposed changes, while three 

manufacturers requested further 

extension of the compliance dates based 

on continuing issues with compliance 

for certain models. One avionics 

equipment manufacturer stated that it 

had been ready to supply equipment 

and that an extension would serve as a 

reward to suppliers who did not provide 

compliant systems by the date required 

in the 2008 regulations. 

The NTSB supported the FAA and 

stated that our proposed extension of 

certain compliance dates was 

‘‘reasonable and realistic.’’ The NTSB 

opposed any further delay that might be 

requested, and suggested that some of 

the original four-year compliance times 

could be shortened. 

C. Aligning Requirements for Parts 91 

and 135 

The General Aviation Manufacturers 

Association (GAMA) and Bombardier, 

Inc. (Bombardier) each submitted a 

comment encouraging the FAA to 

extend the dates for part 135 operation 

compliance to match those proposed for 

part 91. Each of the commenters noted 

that it is common for a business aircraft 

to spend part of its time operating under 

the regulations of part 91, and part of its 

time operating under part 135. 

The GAMA stated that the 

manufacturers of these aircraft have 

made significant progress toward 

compliance in the last 18 months, but 

that technical difficulties remain with 

full compliance. Since the 

manufacturers seek to deliver aircraft 

that meet their customers’ need to 

change operating parts, it means that 

part 135 compliance is required, but 

that it cannot be integrated into the 

manufacturing process for deliveries 

made beginning April 8, 2010. The 

proposed part 91 compliance date 

extension would provide no relief for 

most of the aircraft they manufacture 

because of the dual operational use of 

the aircraft. 

Bombardier noted that its primary 

avionics equipment suppliers focused 

on the commercial aircraft market (for 

parts 121 and 125) with their more 

generalized system architectures as their 

primary goal for 2010 compliance. 

Accordingly, Bombardier’s aircraft 

produced for part 121 and 125 operators 

will meet the April 7, 2010, date 

without needing to make use of the 

proposed extension for those operations. 

But those compliance efforts have 

resulted in the engineering for 

Bombardier’s business aircraft, which it 

describes as having ‘‘more exotic bus 

architectures and systems that * * * 

cannot be supported by other suppliers’’ 

remaining incomplete. Bombardier also 

noted that its Challenger aircraft model 

will need unanticipated hardware 

upgrades to meet the 8Hz sampling 

rates, and these costs and the 

underlying engineering were 

unanticipated in the 2008 final rule. 

This has taken the Challenger aircraft 

even further out of the normal 

manufacturing sequence and efforts to 

achieve compliance with the 2008 

regulations. For its Challenger and BD– 

700 aircraft models, the proposed 

extension for increased sampling rates 

to December 2010 would decrease the 

number of noncompliant aircraft, but 

would not completely eliminate the 

need for exemptions to operate under 

part 135. 

Honeywell Aerospace also 

recommended that part 135 operations 

be aligned with part 91 and the 

compliance date for them be extended 

to 2012, noting the crossover in 

operations and the lack of available 

compliant solutions for those aircraft. 

Gulfstream also requested that the 

proposed part 91 compliance extension 

be extended to part 135 operations for 

aircraft with a capacity of 19 or fewer 

passengers, but did not detail its 

specific equipment or certification 

issues. 

The FAA disagrees that aircraft 

operated under part 135 should be 

treated the same as aircraft operated 

under part 91. It is true that the same 

aircraft may be used in both part 91 and 

part 135 operations. The FAA has 

addressed differing equipage and 

maintenance requirements in the past 

by requiring that the higher standard be 

met for all operations when there is 

mixed use. The agency sees no reason 

to change that practice in this instance. 

The FAA considers part 135 operators 

more akin to those of part 121 than 

those of part 91, and proposed the same 

compliance date extension for both part 

121 and 135. The general public, in 

purchasing air transportation, expects a 

level of equipage and safety that it 

would not necessarily expect to see in 

general aviation. The FAA has always 

maintained higher standards for aircraft 

operated for compensation or hire and 

sees no reason to change its position 

here. As a practical matter, the shorter 

compliance date will likely result in the 

aircraft used solely in part 91 operations 

complying before the April 2012 

compliance date. 

No changes are being adopted based 

on these comments. For part 135 

airplanes, the installation of increased 

DFDR sampling rates and datalink 

recording equipment is extended until 

December 6, 2010, as proposed. 

D. Rule Language Discrepancy 

Several commenters, including the 

Boeing Company (Boeing), Airbus, and 

Avianca Airlines, identified a 

discrepancy between the text of current 

§ 121.359(k) and the proposed rule text 

of § 121.359(j) regarding the datalink 

message set requirements in 

§ 25.1457(a)(6). 

The proposed rule text did contain an 

error. A similar error exists in other 

proposed operating rule sections. This 

final rule corrects the references in 

§§ 91.609(i), 121.359(j), 125.227(h), and 

135.151(g)(1) and (g)(2) to indicate the 

correct compliance date for datalink 

recording requirements. 


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E. Miscellaneous Comments 

Boeing noted that in July 2009, it had 

requested a one-year exemption for all 

of its production models from the 

requirement for a ten-minute CVR 

independent power source. Boeing 

indicated that it has made significant 

advancements toward compliance since 

its original request, and expects to 

achieve compliance for all models 

except the Boeing 737. Boeing requested 

that the compliance date for 737s be 

changed from April 7, 2010 to July 6, 

2010, noting that about 15 aircraft are 

expected to be produced during that 

time, which is before the power source 

equipment can be certificated and 

installed. 

The FAA will not extend the 

compliance date in the rule for a single 

model of aircraft. The agency 

appreciates Boeing’s renewed efforts at 

timely compliance, and will address the 

need for individual model 737 aircraft 

to be granted temporary operating 

exemptions when requested by the 

operators taking delivery of the affected 

aircraft. Requests for exemption need to 

be filed by the affected operators under 

the procedures of 14 CFR part 11. Any 

aircraft granted an exemption will need 

to be retrofitted with the power source 

equipment before any granted 

exemption expires. 

In its comment, Airbus included 

detailed descriptions of its efforts 

toward compliance since it filed a 

petition for exemption in June 2009 on 

behalf of affected operators of its 

aircraft. Airbus indicated that it cannot 

guarantee that design changes necessary 

to implement the increased DFDR 

sampling rates will be ready before the 

December 6, 2010 extension proposed in 

the NPRM, and renewed its request that 

the compliance date be extended a full 

year. 

The FAA has determined that the 

compliance date for part 121, 125, and 

135 aircraft DFDR sampling rates will be 

extended until December 6, 2010, as 

proposed. Operators that require relief 

for aircraft manufactured after that date 

may apply for temporary exemption 

relief under 14 CFR part 11. 

Airbus also renewed its request to 

extend the compliance time for datalink 

recording by one year from the current 

rule, indicating that the alternative is to 

have inactive datalink communication 

equipment installed. 

The FAA has again concluded that 

any future benefit of using datalink 

equipment alone is outweighed by the 

risk of not having the communications 

recorded. Once datalink equipment is 

installed and is in use for instructions 

that affect the movement of the aircraft, 

a record of those instructions becomes 

a critical element for post accident and 

incident investigation. The data 

provided by these and other recordings 

play a critical part in understanding the 

actions and events that lead up to the 

accident or incident. Once probable 

cause has been determined, actions can 

be taken to prevent future accidents of 

the same type from occurring. The 

elimination of voice communication 

and the requirements that it be recorded 

must be accomplished in a manner that 

maintains the integrity of the 

information, and that will occur when 

datalink communications are recorded. 

The implementation of the recording 

requirement cannot be further delayed 

in favor of some generalized benefit of 

lessened environmental operational 

impact and eventual international 

harmonization. The FAA notes that 

datalink communication remains 

optional under our regulations. But 

when chosen to be installed, the safety 

issues that attach to its use require that 

recordation of those communications 

not be delayed any further. 

Nor does the FAA accept the 

argument that since some datalink 

communications are captured on the 

ground, it would be an acceptable 

alternative to onboard recordation. Such 

activities are not recognized by federal 

regulation and raise questions with 

regard to who intercepts and maintains 

the record of such communications and 

to whom they would be accessible. Nor 

are there any industry standards for the 

capture or maintenance of data recorded 

by ground-based systems. While such 

activities may become acceptable in the 

future as the technology advances, it 

does not change the need for recording 

datalink communications on board an 

aircraft now. 

The Air Transport Association (ATA) 

commented on behalf of its member 

operators that the proposed extensions 

will reduce the number of airplanes that 

are unable to comply, but will not 

eliminate the potential need for 

temporary exemptions. The ATA also 

renewed its request for a change in the 

date after which in-service aircraft need 

to add datalink recording capability 

when new datalink equipment is 

installed. 

The FAA understands that the 

compliance extensions for part 121, 125, 

and 135 operations adopted in this final 

rule may not capture every aircraft 

manufactured in 2010. As we noted in 

response to the Boeing 737 issue with 

the CVR independent power source, the 

FAA anticipates that some exemption 

requests will be filed. The FAA has 

found that the proposed compliance 

extension is appropriate under the 

circumstances described by the 

industry, but that further extension is 

not. The FAA notes that no matter how 

far in advance compliance dates are set, 

the agency is almost always faced with 

requests for temporary exemption as 

those dates approach. As indicated in 

the preamble to the proposed rule, the 

agency has not been persuaded that a 

different compliance time is either 

necessary or appropriate for in-service 

aircraft adding optional new datalink 

equipment. In response to industry 

inquiries, the FAA plans to publish on 

its Web site additional guidance on 

datalink recording compliance for 

upgrades to existing aircraft. 

F. Rotorcraft Corrections 

In the NPRM, we also proposed 

changes to the certification rules of parts 

27 and 29 to correct references to 

airplanes that were inadvertently placed 

in the rotorcraft certification rules. No 

comments were received on these 

proposed changes and they are adopted 

as proposed. 

G. Final Rule Summary 

As compared with the final rule 

adopted in March 2008, this final rule 

adopts the following flight recorder 

equipment compliance times: 

1. For the ten-minute backup power 

source for CVRs, the compliance date 

for newly manufactured aircraft 

operating under part 91 is April 6, 2012. 

2. For increased DFDR sampling rates, 

the compliance date for newly 

manufactured aircraft operating under 

part 91 is April 6, 2012. 

3. For increased DFDR sampling rates, 

the compliance date for newly 

manufactured aircraft operating under 

part 121, 125, or 135 is December 6, 

2010. 

4. For recordation of datalink 

communications, the compliance date 

after which newly installed datalink 

systems must include recording 

capability for aircraft operating under 

part 91 is April 6, 2012. 

5. For recordation of datalink 

communications, the compliance date 

after which newly installed datalink 

systems must include recording 

capability for aircraft operating under 

part 121, 125, or 135 is December 6, 

2010. 

II. Regulatory Notice and Analysis 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3507(d)) requires that the 

FAA consider the impact of paperwork 

and other information collection 

burdens imposed on the public. We 

have determined that there is no current 


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17044 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 64 / Monday, April 5, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

or new requirement for information 

collection associated with this 

amendment. 

International Compatibility 

In keeping with U.S. obligations 

under the Convention on International 

Civil Aviation, it is FAA policy to 

comply with International Civil 

Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards 

and Recommended Practices to the 

maximum extent practicable. The FAA 

has determined that there are no ICAO 

Standards and Recommended Practices 

that correspond to these regulations. 

Regulatory Evaluation, Regulatory 

Flexibility Determination, International 

Trade Impact Assessment, and 

Unfunded Mandates Assessment 

Changes to Federal regulations must 

undergo several economic analyses. 

First, Executive Order 12866 directs that 

each Federal agency shall propose or 

adopt a regulation only upon a reasoned 

determination that the benefits of the 

intended regulation justify its costs. 

Second, the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

of 1980 (Pub. L. 96–354) requires 

agencies to analyze the economic 

impact of regulatory changes on small 

entities. Third, the Trade Agreements 

Act (Pub. L. 96–39) prohibits agencies 

from setting standards that create 

unnecessary obstacles to the foreign 

commerce of the United States. In 

developing U.S. standards, the Trade 

Act requires agencies to consider 

international standards and, where 

appropriate, that they be the basis of 

U.S. standards. Fourth, the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 

104–4) requires agencies to prepare a 

written assessment of the costs, benefits, 

and other effects of proposed or final 

rules that include a Federal mandate 

likely to result in the expenditure by 

State, local, or tribal governments, in the 

aggregate, or by the private sector, of 

$100 million or more annually (adjusted 

for inflation with base year of 1995). 

This portion of the preamble 

summarizes the FAA’s analysis of the 

economic impacts of this rule. 

Department of Transportation Order 

DOT 2100.5 prescribes policies and 

procedures for simplification, analysis, 

and review of regulations. If the 

expected cost impact is so minimal that 

a proposed or final rule does not 

warrant a full evaluation, this order 

permits that a statement to that effect 

and the basis for it is to be included in 

the preamble if a full regulatory 

evaluation of the cost and benefits is not 

prepared. Such a determination has 

been made for this rule. The reasoning 

for this determination follows: 

In response to its 2010 NPRM, the 

FAA received several comments that 

generally supported the proposed 

compliance dates. As discussed in the 

NPRM, the FAA recognizes that 

technical difficulties have necessitated 

the extension of certain compliance 

dates. By extending the compliance 

dates, this rule will eliminate some 

retrofit and airplane downtime costs. 

Some commenters requested that the 

proposed part 135 compliance date be 

aligned with the proposed part 91 

compliance date because some newly 

manufactured airplanes will operate 

under both part 91 and part 135. The 

FAA has determined that part 135 

operations are more like part 121 

operations, and the same compliance 

date extension is being adopted for 

those two parts. 

The FAA has determined that this 

rule is cost relieving, is not a 

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ as 

defined in section 3(f) of Executive 

Order 12866, and is not ‘‘significant’’ as 

defined in DOT’s Regulatory Policies 

and Procedures. 

Regulatory Flexibility Determination 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 

(Pub. L. 96–354) (RFA) establishes ‘‘as a 

principle of regulatory issuance that 

agencies shall endeavor, consistent with 

the objectives of the rule and of 

applicable statutes, to fit regulatory and 

informational requirements to the scale 

of the businesses, organizations, and 

governmental jurisdictions subject to 

regulation. To achieve this principle, 

agencies are required to solicit and 

consider flexible regulatory proposals 

and to explain the rationale for their 

actions to assure that such proposals are 

given serious consideration.’’ The RFA 

covers a wide-range of small entities, 

including small businesses, not-forprofit organizations, and small 

governmental jurisdictions. 

Agencies must perform a review to 

determine whether a rule will have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. If 

the agency determines that it will, the 

agency must prepare a regulatory 

flexibility analysis as described in the 

RFA. 

The compliance dates extensions will 

reduce the costs by delaying the date 

after which certain production aircraft 

must record some parameters at a higher 

sampling rate. Since these aircraft 

would not have been able to comply 

with the original date, this final rule 

reduces some of these costs. The 

expected outcome will benefit small 

operators that purchase new aircraft. 

Therefore, as the FAA Administrator, 

I certify that this rule will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

International Trade Impact Assessment 

The Trade Agreements Act of 1979 

(Pub. L. 96–39) prohibits Federal 

agencies from establishing any 

standards or engaging in related 

activities that create unnecessary 

obstacles to the foreign commerce of the 

United States. Legitimate domestic 

objectives, such as safety, are not 

considered unnecessary obstacles. The 

statute also requires consideration of 

international standards and, where 

appropriate, that they be the basis for 

U.S. standards. The FAA has assessed 

the potential effect of this rule and has 

determined that it will reduce costs on 

both domestic and international entities 

and thus has a neutral trade impact. 

Unfunded Mandates Assessment 

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4) 

requires each Federal agency to prepare 

a written statement assessing the effects 

of any Federal mandate in a proposed or 

final agency rule that may result in an 

expenditure of $100 million or more (in 

1995 dollars) in any one year by State, 

local, and tribal governments, in the 

aggregate, or by the private sector; such 

a mandate is deemed to be a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action.’’ The FAA currently 

uses an inflation-adjusted value of 

$141.3 million in lieu of $100 million. 

This rule does not contain such a 

mandate; therefore, the requirements of 

Title II of the Act do not apply. 

Executive Order 13132, Federalism 

The FAA has analyzed this final rule 

under the principles and criteria of 

Executive Order 13132, Federalism. We 

determined that this action will not 

have a substantial direct effect on the 

States, or the relationship between the 

Federal Government and the States, or 

on the distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government, and, therefore, 

does not have federalism implications. 

Regulations Affecting Intrastate 

Aviation in Alaska 

Section 1205 of the FAA 

Reauthorization Act of 1996 (110 Stat. 

3213) requires the FAA, when 

modifying its regulations in a manner 

affecting intrastate aviation in Alaska, to 

consider the extent to which Alaska is 

not served by transportation modes 

other than aviation, and to establish 

appropriate regulatory distinctions. In 

the NPRM, we requested comments on 

whether the proposed rule should apply 

differently to intrastate operations in 

Alaska. We did not receive any 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 64 / Monday, April 5, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 17045 

comments, and we have determined, 

based on the administrative record of 

this rulemaking, that there is no need to 

make any regulatory distinctions 

applicable to intrastate aviation in 

Alaska. 

Environmental Analysis 

FAA Order 1050.1E identifies FAA 

actions that are categorically excluded 

from preparation of an environmental 

assessment or environmental impact 

statement under the National 

Environmental Policy Act in the 

absence of extraordinary circumstances. 

The FAA has determined this 

rulemaking action qualifies for the 

categorical exclusion identified in 

Chapter 3, paragraph 312f and involves 

no extraordinary circumstances. 

Regulations That Significantly Affect 

Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use 

The FAA analyzed this final rule 

under Executive Order 13211, Actions 

Concerning Regulations that 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use (May 18, 2001). We 

have determined that it is not a 

‘‘significant energy action’’ under the 

executive order because it is not likely 

to have a significant adverse effect on 

the supply, distribution, or use of 

energy. 

Availability of Rulemaking Documents 

You can get an electronic copy of 

rulemaking documents using the 

Internet by— 

1. Searching the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal (http://www.regulations.gov); 

2. Visiting the FAA’s Regulations and 

Policies Web page at http:// 

www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/ or 

3. Accessing the Government Printing 

Office’s Web page at http:// 

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 

You can also get a copy by sending a 

request to the Federal Aviation 

Administration, Office of Rulemaking, 

ARM–1, 800 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20591, or by 

calling (202) 267–9680. Make sure to 

identify the amendment number or 

docket number of this rulemaking. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–78) or you 

may visit http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act 

The Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) of 

1996 requires FAA to comply with 

small entity requests for information or 

advice about compliance with statutes 

and regulations within its jurisdiction. If 

you are a small entity and you have a 

question regarding this document, you 

may contact your local FAA official, or 

the person listed under the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT heading at the 

beginning of the preamble. You can find 

out more about SBREFA on the Internet 

at http://www.faa.gov/ 

regulations_policies/rulemaking/ 

sbre_act/. 

Good Cause 

This final rule amends certain 

compliance dates in various operating 

regulations and provides relief to 

operators of certain aircraft 

manufactured on or after April 7, 2010. 

Since that date is less than 30 days from 

the publication of these amendments, 

the FAA has determined that good cause 

exists under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to make 

this rule effective less than 30 days from 

publication. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Parts 27, 29, 

91, 121, 125, and 135 

Air carriers, Air taxis, Aircraft, 

Aviation safety, Charter flights, Safety, 

Transportation. 

The Amendment 

■ In consideration of the foregoing, the 

Federal Aviation Administration 

amends parts 27, 29, 91, 121, 125, and 

135 of Title 14, Code of Federal 

Regulations, as follows: 

PART 27—AIRWORTHINESS 

STANDARDS: NORMAL CATEGORY 

ROTORCRAFT 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 27 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701– 

44702, 44704. 

■ 2. Amend § 27.1457 by revising 

paragraph (d)(1)(ii) to read as follows: 

§ 27.1457 Cockpit voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(ii) It remains powered for as long as 

possible without jeopardizing 

emergency operation of the rotorcraft. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. Amend § 27.1459 by revising 

paragraph (a)(3)(ii) to read as follows: 

§ 27.1459 Flight data recorders. 

(a) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(ii) It remains powered for as long as 

possible without jeopardizing 

emergency operation of the rotorcraft. 

* * * * * 

PART 29—AIRWORTHINESS 

STANDARDS: TRANSPORT 

CATEGORY ROTORCRAFT 

■ 4. The authority citation for part 29 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701– 

44702, 44704. 

■ 5. Amend § 29.1457 by revising 

paragraph (d)(1)(ii) to read as follows: 

§ 29.1457 Cockpit voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(ii) It remains powered for as long as 

possible without jeopardizing 

emergency operation of the rotorcraft. 

* * * * * 

■ 6. Amend § 29.1459 by revising 

paragraph (a)(3)(ii) to read as follows: 

§ 29.1459 Flight data recorders. 

(a) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(ii) It remains powered for as long as 

possible without jeopardizing 

emergency operation of the rotorcraft. 

* * * * * 

PART 91—GENERAL OPERATING AND 

FLIGHT RULES 

■ 7. The authority citation for part 91 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 1155, 40103, 

40113, 40120, 44101, 44111, 44701, 44709, 

44711, 44712, 44715, 44716, 44717, 44722, 

46306, 46315, 46316, 46504, 46506–46507, 

47122, 47508, 47528–47531, articles 12 and 

29 of the Convention on International Civil 

Aviation (61 stat. 1180). 

■ 8. Amend § 91.609 by revising 

paragraph (i)(1) adding new paragraph 

(i)(3) and revising paragraph (j) to read 

as follows: 

§ 91.609 Flight data recorders and cockpit 

voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(i) * * * 

(1) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except for 

paragraphs (a)(6) and (d)(5)); § 25.1457 

(except for paragraphs (a)(6) and (d)(5)); 

§ 27.1457 (except for paragraphs (a)(6) 

and (d)(5)); or § 29.1457 (except for 

paragraphs (a)(6) and (d)(5)) of this 

chapter, as applicable; and 

* * * * * 

(3) For all airplanes or rotorcraft 

manufactured on or after April 6, 2012, 


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also meets the requirements of 

§ 23.1457(a)(6) and (d)(5); 

§ 25.1457(a)(6) and (d)(5); 

§ 27.1457(a)(6) and (d)(5); or 

§ 29.1457(a)(6) and (d)(5) of this chapter, 

as applicable. 

(j) All airplanes or rotorcraft required 

by this section to have a cockpit voice 

recorder and a flight data recorder, that 

install datalink communication 

equipment on or after April 6, 2012, 

must record all datalink messages as 

required by the certification rule 

applicable to the aircraft. 

* * * * * 

■ 9. Amend appendix E to part 91 by 

revising footnote 5 to read as follows: 

Appendix E to Part 91—Airplane Flight 

Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

5For Pitch Control Position only, for all 

aircraft manufactured on or after April 6, 

2012, the sampling interval (per second) is 8. 

Each input must be recorded at this rate. 

Alternately sampling inputs (interleaving) to 

meet this sampling interval is prohibited. 

■ 10. Amend appendix F to part 91 by 

revising footnote 4 to read as follows: 

Appendix F to Part 91—Helicopter 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

4For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

April 6, 2012, the sampling interval per 

second is 4. 

PART 121—OPERATING 

REQUIREMENTS: DOMESTIC, FLAG, 

AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS 

■ 11. The authority citation for part 121 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 40119, 

41706, 44101, 44701–44702, 44705, 44709– 

44711, 44713, 44716–44717, 44722, 46105. 

■ 12. Amend § 121.359 by revising 

paragraphs (e)(1) and (j)(1), adding new 

paragraph (j)(4), and revising paragraph 

(k) to read as follows: 

§ 121.359 Cockpit voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

(1) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except 

paragraphs (a)(6), (d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)) 

or § 25.1457 (except paragraphs (a)(6), 

(d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)) of this chapter, as 

applicable; and 

* * * * * 

(j) * * * 

(1) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6) or § 25.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)) of this chapter, as 

applicable; 

* * * * * 

(4) For all airplanes manufactured on 

or after December 6, 2010, also meets 

the requirements of § 23.1457(a)(6) or 

§ 25.1457(a)(6) of this chapter, as 

applicable. 

(k) All airplanes required by this part 

to have a cockpit voice recorder and a 

flight data recorder, that install datalink 

communication equipment on or after 

December 6, 2010, must record all 

datalink messages as required by the 

certification rule applicable to the 

airplane. 

■ 13. Amend appendix M to part 121 by 

revising footnote 18, to read as follows: 

Appendix M to Part 121—Airplane 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

18 For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

December 6, 2010, the seconds per sampling 

interval is 0.125. Each input must be 

recorded at this rate. Alternately sampling 

inputs (interleaving) to meet this sampling 

interval is prohibited. 

* * * * * 

PART 125—CERTIFICATION AND 

OPERATIONS: AIRPLANES HAVING A 

SEATING CAPACITY OF 20 OR MORE 

PASSENGERS OR A MAXIMUM 

PAYLOAD CAPACITY OF 6,000 

POUNDS OR MORE; AND RULES 

GOVERNING PERSONS ON BOARD 

SUCH AIRCRAFT 

■ 14. The authority citation for part 125 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701– 

44702, 44705, 44710–44711, 44713, 44716– 

44717, 44722. 

■ 15. Amend § 125.227 by revising 

paragraph (h)(1), adding new paragraph 

(h)(4), and revising paragraph (i) to read 

as follows: 

§ 125.227 Cockpit voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(h) * * * 

(1) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 25.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)) of this chapter; 

* * * * * 

(4) For all airplanes manufactured on 

or after December 6, 2010, also meets 

the requirements of § 25.1457(a)(6) of 

this chapter. 

(i) All airplanes required by this part 

to have a cockpit voice recorder and a 

flight data recorder, that install datalink 

communication equipment on or after 

December 6, 2010, must record all 

datalink messages as required by the 

certification rule applicable to the 

airplane. 

■ 16. Amend appendix E to part 125 by 

revising footnote 18, to read as follows: 

Appendix E to Part 125—Airplane 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

18 For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

December 6, 2010, the seconds per sampling 

interval is 0.125. Each input must be 

recorded at this rate. Alternately sampling 

inputs (interleaving) to meet this sampling 

interval is prohibited. 

* * * * * 

PART 135—OPERATING 

REQUIREMENTS: COMMUTER AND 

ON DEMAND OPERATIONS AND 

RULES GOVERNING PERSONS ON 

BOARD SUCH AIRCRAFT 

■ 17. The authority citation for part 135 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 41706, 44113, 

44701–44702, 44705, 44709, 44711–44713, 

44715–44717, 44722. 

■ 18. Amend § 135.151 by revising 

paragraphs (b)(1), (g)(1)(i), (g)(2)(i), and 

(h) and by adding paragraphs (g)(1)(iv) 

and (g)(2)(iv) to read as follows: 

§ 135.151 Cockpit voice recorders. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except 

paragraphs (a)(6), (d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)); 

§ 25.1457 (except paragraphs (a)(6), 

(d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)); § 27.1457 (except 

paragraphs (a)(6), (d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)); 

or § 29.1457 (except paragraphs (a)(6), 

(d)(1)(ii), (4), and (5)) of this chapter, as 

applicable; and 

* * * * * 

(g)(1) * * * 

(i) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); § 25.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); § 27.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); or § 29.1457 (except 

for paragraph (a)(6)) of this chapter, as 

applicable; and 

* * * * * 

(iv) For all airplanes or rotorcraft 

manufactured on or after December 6, 

2010, also meets the requirements of 

§ 23.1457(a)(6); § 25.1457(a)(6); 

§ 27.1457(a)(6); or § 29.457(a)(6) of this 

chapter, as applicable. 

(2) * * * 

(i) Is installed in accordance with the 

requirements of § 23.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); § 25.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); § 27.1457 (except for 

paragraph (a)(6)); or § 29.1457 (except 

for paragraph (a)(6)) of this chapter, as 

applicable; and 

* * * * * 

(iv) For all airplanes or rotorcraft 

manufactured on or after December 6, 

2010, also meets the requirements of 

§ 23.1457(a)(6); § 25.1457(a)(6); 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 64 / Monday, April 5, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 17047 

§ 27.1457(a)(6); or § 29.457(a)(6) of this 

chapter, as applicable. 

(h) All airplanes or rotorcraft required 

by this part to have a cockpit voice 

recorder and a flight data recorder, that 

install datalink communication 

equipment on or after December 6, 2010, 

must record all datalink messages as 

required by the certification rule 

applicable to the aircraft. 

■ 19. Amend appendix C to part 135 by 

revising footnote 4 to read as set forth 

below. 

Appendix C to Part 135—Helicopter 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

4 For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

December 6, 2010, the sampling interval per 

second is 4. 

■ 20. Amend appendix E to part 135 by 

revising footnote 3 to read as set forth 

below. 

Appendix E to Part 135—Helicopter 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

3 For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

December 6, 2010, the sampling interval per 

second is 4. 

■ 21. Amend appendix F to part 135 by 

revising footnote 18 to read as set forth 

below. 

Appendix F to Part 135—Airplane 

Flight Recorder Specifications 

* * * * * 

18 For all aircraft manufactured on or after 

December 6, 2010, the seconds per sampling 

interval is 0.125. Each input must be 

recorded at this rate. Alternately sampling 

inputs (interleaving) to meet this sampling 

interval is prohibited. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on March 30, 

2010. 

J. Randolph Babbitt, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2010–7660 Filed 4–2–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 67 

[Docket No. FAA–2009–0773 

Special Issuance of Airman Medical 

Certificates to Applicants Being 

Treated With Certain Antidepressant 

Medications 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Policy statement; request for 

comment. 

SUMMARY: This policy statement is 

intended to serve as notice that the 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 

will consider for a special-issuance 

medical certificate applicants for first-, 

second-, and third-class airman medical 

certification who are being treated for 

depression with one of four 

antidepressant medications. The FAA 

will evaluate affected applicants on a 

case-by-case basis and will issue 

certificates based on a medical finding 

that an individual’s use of such 

medication will not endanger public 

safety. 

DATES: This policy goes into effect April 

5, 2010. Comments must be submitted 

on or before May 5, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments 

identified by Docket Number FAA– 

2009–0773 using any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

• Mail: Send comments to Docket 

Operations, M–30; U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Room W12–140, West 

Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 

20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: Take 

comments to Docket Operations in 

Room W12–140 of the West Building 

Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 

9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

• Fax: Fax comments to Docket 

Operations at 202–493–2251. 

Privacy: We will post all comments 

we receive, without change, to http:// 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information you provide. 

Using the search function of our docket 

Web site, anyone can find and read the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets, 

including the name of the individual 

sending the comment (or signing the 

comment for an association, business, 

labor union, etc.). You may review 

DOT’s complete Privacy Act Statement 

in the Federal Register published on 

April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477–78) or you 

may visit http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. 

Docket: To read background 

documents or comments received, go to 

http://www.regulations.gov at any time 

and follow the online instructions for 

accessing the docket, or, the Docket 

Operations in Room W12–140 of the 

West Building Ground Floor at 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Judi 

Citrenbaum, Federal Air Surgeon’s 

Office, Office of Aerospace Medicine, 

Federal Aviation Administration, 800 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 

267–9689; facsimile (202) 267–5200, email Judi.M.Citrenbaum@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of the Policy Statement: 

You can get an electronic copy of this 

document using the Internet by— 

1. Searching the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal (http://www.regulations.gov); 

2. Visiting the FAA’s Regulations and 

Policies Web page at http:// 

www.faa.gov/regulations_policies or 

3. Accessing the Government Printing 

Office’s Web page at http:// 

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 

You can also get a copy by sending a 

request to the Federal Aviation 

Administration, Office of Rulemaking, 

ARM–1, 800 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20591, or by 

calling (202) 267–9680. Make sure to 

identify the docket number. 

Background 

Under Title 14 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations (14 CFR) 67.107(c), 

67.207(c), and 67.307(c) and 67.113(c), 

67.213(c) and 67.313 (c), the FAA 

generally considers a diagnosis of 

depression and use of psychotropic 

medication medically disqualifying for 

applicants for FAA medical 

certification. Disqualifying medication 

generally includes all sedatives, 

tranquilizers, antipsychotics, 

antidepressants (including selective 

serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)), 

analeptics, anxiolytics, and 

hallucinogens. Aviation Medical 

Examiners (AMEs) defer medical 

certificate issuance for any applicant 

with a disqualifying medical condition, 

including any applicant who reveals on 

a medical certificate application usage 

of psychotropic medication for 

treatment of depression. 

Under 14 CFR 67.401 the Federal Air 

Surgeon may, at his discretion, 

authorize special issuance of airman 

medical certificates to applicants who 

are disqualified under the certification 

standards set forth in subparts B, C, or 

D of part 67. The FAA, however, has 

long considered the use of a 

psychotropic medication for treatment 

of depression as a basis to deny a 

special-issuance medical certificate. 

Current FAA special-issuance practice 

has been to consider applicants who 

had taken psychotropic medication only 

if they had discontinued it for at least 

3 months prior to application. Upon 

careful review and reconsideration, the 

FAA is modifying its long-standing, 

special-issuance practice. The FAA has 

determined that aviators diagnosed with 

depression taking one of four specific 


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