27548 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 96 / Thursday, May 17, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 121

Flight Crewmember Flight Time

Limitations and Rest Requirements

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of enforcement policy.

SUMMARY: This notice of enforcement

policy announces to the public the

Federal Aviation Administration’s

(FAA’s) intent to rigorously enforce its

existing regulations governing flight

crewmember rest requirements that are

presently codified at 14 CFR 121.471.

These regulations have been in

existence since 1985, and it is the FAA’s

intention to ensure that the current

rules, as interpreted, are followed by

those whose conduct they govern.

Accordingly, this notice publishes the

FAA’s long-standing construction of 14

CFR 121.471 and affords notice to

affected certificate holders and flight

crewmembers of the FAA’s intent to

enforce its rules in accordance with

these interpretations. This policy

statement is being given so those

affected will have an opportunity to

review their practices and, if necessary,

come into full regulatory compliance.

DATES: This notice of enforcement

policy is effective on May 17, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Alberta Brown, Air Transportation

Division, AFS–200, 800 Independence

Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591;

telephone (202) 267–8166.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Regulation

The Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938 (52

Stat. 1007; as amended by 62 Stat. 1216,

49 U.S.C. 551) and subsequently the

Federal Aviation Act of 1958 (now

codified at 49 U.S.C. 40101 et seq.)

addressed the issue of regulating flight

crewmember hours of service. The

FAA’s governing statute empowers and

directs the Secretary of Transportation

to establish ‘‘regulations in the interest

of safety for the maximum hours or

periods of service of airmen and other

employees of air carriers.’’ 49 U.S.C.

44701(a)(4). The statue further provides

the FAA with the authority to prescribe

‘‘regulations and minimum standards

for other practices, methods, and

procedures the Administrator finds

necessary for safety in air commerce and

national security.’’ 49 U.S.C.

44701(a)(5).

The FAA’s rules at 14 CFR 121.471(b)

and (c) set forth flight time limitations

and rest requirements for domestic

operations. These provisions state:

Section 121.471—Flight time limitations and

rest requirements: All flight crewmembers

(b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of

this section, no certificate holder conducting

domestic operations may schedule a flight

crewmember and no flight crewmember may

accept an assignment for flight time during

the 24 consecutive hours preceding the

scheduled completion of any flight segment

without a scheduled rest period during that

24 hours of at least the following:

(1) 9 consecutive hours of rest for less than

8 hours of scheduled flight time.

(2) 10 consecutive hours of rest for 8 or

more but less than 9 hours of scheduled

flight time.

(3) 11 consecutive hours of rest for 9 or

more hours of scheduled flight time.

(c) A certificate holder may schedule a

flight crewmember for less than the rest

required in paragraph (b) of this section or

may reduce a scheduled rest under the

following conditions:

(1) A rest required under paragraph (b)(1)

of this section may be scheduled for or

reduced to a minimum of 8 hours if the flight

crewmember is given a rest period of at least

10 hours that must begin no later than 24

hours after the commencement of the

reduced rest period.

(2) A rest required under paragraph (b)(2)

of this section may be scheduled for or

reduced to a minimum of 8 hours if the flight

crewmember is given a rest period of at least

11 hours that must begin no later than 24

hours after the commencement of the

reduced rest period.

(3) A rest required under paragraph (b)(3)

of this section may be scheduled for or

reduced to a minimum of 9 hours if the flight

crewmember is given a rest period of at least

12 hours that must begin no later than 24

hours after the commencement of the

reduced rest period.

(4) No air carrier may assign, nor may any

flight crewmember perform any flight time

with the air carrier unless the flight

crewmember has had at least the minimum

rest required under this paragraph.

In June 1999, FAA issued a notice of

enforcement policy related to this rule.

In that notice, the FAA clarified that the

rules were applicable to all pilots

operating in domestic scheduled

operations. In December, 1999, FAA

conducted a comprehensive review of

air carrier scheduling practices and

found that with one exception all

operators were in compliance with the

rule.

Interpretations of Rest Requirements

In part in response to the FAA’s

earlier focus on air carrier compliance

with the flight and rest rules, the

chairman of a national pilots union sent

the FAA a letter posing a set of

circumstances and inquiring about the

applicability of 14 CFR 121.471 (b) and

(c) to various scenarios. The FAA issued

a response that reflects the agency’s

long-standing construction of these

regulatory provisions. That response is

attached to this notice. In substance, the

FAA reiterated that each flight

crewmember must have had a minimum

of 8 hours of rest in any 24 hour period

that includes flight time. In addition,

the interpretation reiterated that if a

pilot’s actual rest was less than 9 hours

in the 24 hour period that included

flight time, the next rest period must be

lengthened to provide for the

appropriate compensatory rest. The

substance of the FAA response is

contained in the Appendix.

After the interpretation was issued,

many operators questioned whether this

was consistent with earlier FAA

interpretations. FAA met with

representatives of the airlines as well as

with organizations that represent them.

At the meeting, the representatives

stated that their approved scheduling

systems had not been tracking the actual

rest that a pilot had received in a 24-

hour period that included flight time.

The operators expressed concern that

applying the rule as interpreted could

reduce safety. They suggested that a

pilot should not be diverted from

important preflight and taxi-out duties

by the need to constantly monitor

whether he or she has had sufficient rest

to finish the flight. They were

particularly concerned about what

might happen when there has been a

lengthy ground delay and the flightcrew

or the aircraft dispatcher determines

that the flight cannot be completed

within the rest requirements.

FAA met with representatives of the

pilots unions. The pilots stated that in

the vast majority of cases pilots are

receiving the amount of rest required by

the rule. However, they suggested that

in a small number of operations it was

possible that when a pilot completed his

or her assigned flight schedule, he or

she may have had less than 8 hours of

rest in the preceding 24-hour period.

To ensure that the application of the

rule would have no consequences that

would reduce safety, the FAA

considered all these concerns and all

the information provided by the

operators and the pilot unions.

Although there may be some impacts to

schedules and some delayed operations,

FAA believes that safe operations

require that a flight crewmember has a

minimum of 8 hours rest in a 24 hour

period that includes flight time. In

addition, that flight crewmember must

receive additional rest in the next rest

period to compensate for any potential

fatigue.

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 96 / Thursday, May 17, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 27549

1 I note that the certificate holder could reduce

the scheduled rest to a minimum of 8 hours.

Compliance and Enforcement Plan

The FAA intends to rigorously

enforce these regulations governing

flight time restrictions and rest

requirements. Accordingly, any

noncompliance with the regulation

should be corrected without delay.

For any air carriers that are not

currently in compliance with these

regulations, the FAA intends to take

into consideration the certificate

holder’s good faith efforts to come into

compliance in determining what, if any,

enforcement action is appropriate if

noncompliance is discovered. With

regard to violations by individual flight

crewmembers, the FAA will consider

the circumstances of each case,

including such factors as the employing

certificate holder’s effort to come into

compliance and the culpability of the

individual.

While the FAA reserves the right to

take appropriate action to address

regulatory noncompliance, particularly

in egregious circumstances, the FAA

does not intend to target its inspection

resources on this compliance issue at

this time. However, this notice serves to

advise air carriers, flight crewmembers,

and the public that on [insert date (6

months from publication date)] the FAA

intends to begin a comprehensive

review of certificate holders’ flight

scheduling practices and expects to deal

stringently with any violations

discovered.

Issued in Washington, DC, on May 14,

2001.

Margaret Gilligan,

Acting Associate Administrator for

Regulation and Enforcement.

Appendix

Facts: A crew is assigned reserve standby

duty commencing at 0600. They are then

called at 0900 to check in for a flight

assignment at 1100.

End of rest Report at Release at Sched. rest Look-back

rest

Day 1 0600 .................................................................................................................... 1100 2100 10:00 9:00

Day 2 0700 .................................................................................................................... 0700 1700 12:00 10:00

In the above example, assume that the crew

was assigned to three segments with a total

of less than 8 hours of flying in each duty

period and that the scheduled block-in of the

last flight of each day is 15 minutes prior to

release. This original schedule does not

require compensatory rest. I note,

preliminarily, that your letter states that I

should assume that the flight crew ‘‘was

assigned to three segments with a total of less

than 8 hours of flying in each duty period.’’

I assume that by that statement you mean

‘‘less than a total of 8 hours of scheduled

flight time for the three flight segments, on

both Day 1 and Day 2.’’ Based on that

assumption, the regulations that I will apply

are those that require a minimum of 9

consecutive hours of scheduled rest (section

121.471(b)(1)) that may be reduced to a

minimum of 8 hours with a minimum of 10

hours compensatory rest that must begin no

later than 24 hours after the commencement

of the reduced rest (section 121.471(c)(1) (the

‘‘reduced/compensatory rest’’ exception)). I

have also made other assumptions or

clarifications that are described in my

responses below.

Situation 1: On Day 1, all goes according

to plan on the first two segments. However,

after leaving the gate on the third segment,

the crew encounters an unanticipated ground

delay that results in only an 8 hour, 45

minutes look-back rest period upon

termination at destination.

1. Is compensatory rest now required upon

landing?

Response: You do not provide specific

details on what is the termination time of the

last flight segment. (I assume that by

‘‘termination at destination’’ you mean the

‘‘termination of the last flight segment.’’)

However, you state, above, that the flight

crew would only receive an 8 hours and 45

minutes look-back rest period. I therefore

assume that the termination of that last flight

segment, based on the other factual details

you provide above, was at 2115. Looking

back 24 hours from 2115 on Day 1 to 2115

on the day prior to Day 1, one finds only 8

and three quarters consecutive hours of rest

in the period 2115 (of the day prior to Day

1) to 0600 hours (on Day 1).

The only situation in which a certificate

holder may reduce the minimum 9 hour

required rest period is to utilize the

‘‘reduced/compensatory rest’’ exception that

allows certificate holders the flexibility to

adjust scheduled rests in the event of late

arrivals. Thus, a certificate holder may

reduce the required scheduled rest so that

one finds a minimum look-back rest of 8

consecutive hours on termination of the last

flight segment, as well as provide the

required compensatory rest. In your scenario,

the certificate holder could reduce the

required minimum 9 consecutive hours of

scheduled rest to 8 and three-quarters hours.1

However, the certificate holder must also

provide the flight crewmember with a

compensatory rest period of at least 10 hours

that must begin no later than 24 hours after

commencement of the reduced rest period. In

your scenario, that compensatory rest must

begin at 2115 on Day 1, since the reduced

rest begins at 2115 on the day before Day 1.

2. In the case of a ground delay prior to

take-off, would the crew and certificate

holder be correct in using planned flight time

and taxi-in time in determining the

scheduled arrival time?

Response: The FAA requires the crew and

the certificate holder to use the actual

expected flight time and taxi-in time, based

on the specific conditions that exist on the

day, to determine the scheduled arrival time

for purposes of determining whether a flight

should be commenced. For example, if an

airline has published a flight time of three

hours, but knows that the actual time the

flight will take is four hours because of

weather, ground delays, etc., then the FAA

requires the carrier to use four hours for

purposes of calculating the arrival time. On

the other hand, if the air carrier has

scheduled a flight for three hours, but on the

day in question, it is reasonable to conclude

that flight time would only be two and a half

hours, the carrier may use two and a half

hours to calculate the arrival time.

3. If the ground delay continues to the

point that the look-back rest is reduced below

8 hours, can the crew continue? If so, what

are the rest requirements upon arrival?

Response: The flight may not take off if the

look-back rest period is reduced to less than

8 hours. There must be at least an eight-hour

look-back rest period. The eight-hour

minimum reduced rest may not be further

reduced under any circumstance.

4. If a ground delay, that would result in

a late arrival that would not provide at least

8 hours of look-back rest is known by the

certificate holder and/or crew prior to gate

departure, can the crew depart legally based

upon the published scheduled flight time?

Response: No. As stated above, the FAA

requires the crew and the certificate holder

to use the actual expected flight time and

taxi-in time, based on the specific conditions

that exist on the day, to determine the

scheduled arrival time for purposes of

determining whether a flight should be

commenced. If the actual expected flight time

is longer than the carrier originally calculated

in determining the scheduled arrival time,

then the actual expected flight time must be

used in determining the look-back rest

period.

Situation 2. On Day 1, the crew is late

inbound on the second segment which

results in not being able to leave the gate on

the third and last segment on time. As a

result, the look-back would now provide 8

hours and 45 minutes rest in the previous 24,

based on the scheduled duration of the final

segment.

1. Is compensatory rest now required upon

arrival?

Response: Yes. Compensatory rest would

be required upon arrival at the third

destination. See the discussion in my

response to question 1 of Situation 1 above.

2. If the crew were further delayed so that

they could not depart to provide at least 8

hours of look-back rest upon arrival, could

they depart legally?

27550 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 96 / Thursday, May 17, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

Response: No. If, when using the actual

expected flight time, the carrier cannot find

at least 8 hours of look-back rest upon arrival,

then the flight may not depart, under the

FAA regulations. See my response to

question 3 of Situation 1 above.

3. If there is a known ground stop for the

destination of the final segment, which

would result in look-back rest of only 7 hours

and 45 minutes, can the crew legally leave

the gate? If they are off the gate when the

ground stop occurs, can they continue?

Response: If it is known, or reasonably

should be known, that the flight time will be

extended because of ground stops at the

destination airport, then this information

must be included in determining the actual

expected flight time. If, when this

information is factored in, it is known or

should be known that arrival based upon the

actual expected flight time will not result in

at least 8 hours of look-back rest, then the

flight may not leave the gate. If the flight is

away from the gate, but is not yet in the air,

then the flight may not take off. If the ground

stops at the destination airport do not

become known until after the flight is in the

air, the FAA will not, as a matter of

enforcement policy, take enforcement action

against the flight crewmember or the

certificate holder for a violation of the

regulations, provided the ground stops at the

destination airport are an unforeseen delay

beyond the control of the certificate holder

and the full, required minimum reduced rest

and the compensatory rest are given at the

completion of the flight segment.

4. Should the scheduled arrival time in 3

above be based upon published scheduled

flight time or flight planned duration (flight

time plus taxi time)?

Response: Arrival time in 3 above should

be based on flight planned duration, i.e., the

actual expected flight time based on the

conditions existing on the day in question.

Also, I am not sure what you mean by

‘‘published scheduled flight time.’’ If you

mean scheduled flight time as published in

the Official Airline Guide (OAG), such flight

time may be unrealistically high. Sometimes

a certificate holder might overestimate the

duration of a flight in order to have some

cushion in the schedule and be able to report

an on-time arrival. The actual realistic flight

time (block to block time) may be less than

such ‘‘published scheduled flight time’’ in

the OAG.

5. Would the reason for the crew being late

on the second flight (beyond the control of

the air carrier or not) have any bearing on the

rest requirement?

Response: I assume that your question is

whether section 121.471(g) (the

‘‘circumstances beyond the control of the

certificate holder’’ exception) excuses a rest

violation. No. That exception applies only to

the scheduling of flight time. It is

inapplicable to, and does not excuse, a

violation of a rest requirement. Also see my

response to question 1 of Situation 1 in

which I discuss the use of the ‘‘reduced/

compensatory rest’’ exception, its purpose,

and compliance with its terms.

Situation 3: On Day 1, one of the carrier’s

hubs is impacted by a weather system in the

morning. As a result, the carrier decides to

delay all remaining departure times that day

out of the hub.

1. If a departure so delayed would result

in a crew having look-back rest of less than

9 hours, would compensatory rest be

required?

Response: Yes. (I assume that the look-back

rest, which is less than 9 hours, would still

be at least 8 hours.)

2. If the delay resulted in a crew having

look-back rest of less than 8 hours, could a

crew legally depart?

Response: No. The FAA would consider

this flight to be in violation of the

regulations.

Situation 4. The crew and air carrier know,

prior to departure, that forecast winds or

enroute weather are resulting in a flight plan

for that segment that exceeds the normal

duration published in the carrier’s schedules.

1. Can the crew legally depart if the

scheduled arrival time based on the flight

plan would encroach upon or delay the

required start of a compensatory rest period?

Response: I assume that the questions for

Situation 4 relate to Day 1 and to the last

flight segment. I am not sure what you mean

by ‘‘published in the carrier’s schedules.’’

See my response to question 4 in Situation

3 above. If you mean that the crew and

certificate holder know, prior to take-off, that

en route weather conditions will result in the

flight taking longer than expected, then my

answer is as follows. Even if the expected

termination of the last flight segment would

allow a minimum 8 consecutive hours lookback rest period, if the crew and certificate

holder expect, prior to take-off, that the flight

will infringe on the required start of the

compensator rest period, the crew may not

legally depart. Thus, although the actual

flight time might exceed flight time limits

and although exceeding flight time limits in

these circumstances would be allowed under

the ‘‘circumstances beyond the control of the

certificate holder’’ exception, that exception

does not permit an encroachment on reduced

rest or compensatory rest below the

minimums specified in the regulations.

2. If the original crewmember’s schedule

did not require compensatory rest, would

compensatory rest be required if the

scheduled arrival based upon the flight plan

information resulted in the crewmember

having less than 9 hours of look-back rest

upon arrival?

Response: If, upon termination of the last

segment, the look-back rest was actually less

than 9 hours, then compensatory rest is

required regardless of the scheduled arrival.

3. If the original crewmember’s schedule

did not require compensatory rest, would the

crewmember be legal to depart if the

scheduled arrival based upon the flight plan

information resulted in the crewmember

having less than 8 hours of look-back rest

upon arrival?

Response: No. If, at the time of departure,

it is calculated that a pilot will have less than

8 hours of look-back rest upon termination of

the last flight segment, then the flight may

not take off. The intention to give

compensatory rest may not be used to permit

a pilot to take a flight when it is known at

the beginning of the flight that the pilot will

have less than 8 hours of look-back rest upon

termination of the last flight segment.

[FR Doc. 01–12419 Filed 5–14–01; 2:00 pm]

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