Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 24, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 31391 

(i) AlliedSignal, Inc. SB T5311A/B–0100, 

dated January 20, 2000. 

(ii) AlliedSignal, Inc. SB T5313B/17–0100, 

dated November 19, 1999. 

(iii) AlliedSignal, Inc. SB T53–L–11–0100, 

Revision 2, dated January 20, 2000. 

(iv) AlliedSignal, Inc. SB T53–L–13B– 

0100, Revision 2, dated May 11, 1999. 

(v) AlliedSignal, Inc. SB T53–L–703–0100, 

Revision 2, dated May 11, 1999. 

(5) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Honeywell International, 

Inc., 111 South 34th Street, Phoenix, AZ 

85034; phone: (800) 601–3099; fax: (602) 365 

5577; website: https:// 

myaerospace.honeywell.com/wps/portal. 

(6) You may view this service information 

at FAA, Airworthiness Products Section, 

Operational Safety Branch, 1200 District 

Avenue, Burlington, MA 01803. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at the FAA, call (817) 222–5110. 

(7) You may view this service information 

that is incorporated by reference at the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For information on 

the availability of this material at NARA, 

email: fr.inspection@nara.gov, or go to: 

https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ 

ibr-locations.html. 

Issued on May 5, 2022. 

Gaetano A. Sciortino, 

Deputy Director for Strategic Initiatives, 

Compliance & Airworthiness Division, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2022–11059 Filed 5–23–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Parts 43, 65, and 147 

[Docket No.: FAA–2021–0237; Amdt. Nos. 

43–52, 65–63, 147–9] 

RIN 2120–AL67 

Aviation Maintenance Technician 

Schools 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Interim final rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: This final rule establishes 

regulations that conform with the 

Aircraft Certification, Safety, and 

Accountability Act, which sets forth 

statutory requirements to implement 

regulations for maintenance technician 

training. Consistent with the statute, 

this final rule adopts new requirements 

for issuing aviation maintenance 

technician school (AMTS) certificates 

and associated ratings and the general 

operating rules for the holders of those 

certificates and ratings. 

DATES: This rule is effective September 

21, 2022, except for amendatory 

instructions 6 and 9, which are effective 

August 1, 2023. Comments must be 

received on or before June 23, 2022. The 

incorporation by reference of certain 

publications listed in this rule is 

approved by the Director of the Federal 

Register as of September 21, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments 

identified by docket number FAA– 

2021–0237 using any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

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 (DOT), 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: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 

553(c), DOT solicits comments from the 

public to better inform its rulemaking 

process. DOT posts these comments, 

without edit, including any personal 

information the commenter provides, to 

www.regulations.gov, as described in 

the system of records notice (DOT/ALL– 

14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 

www.dot.gov/privacy. 

Docket: Background documents or 

comments received may be read at 

www.regulations.gov at any time. 

Follow the online instructions for 

accessing the docket or visit 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: For 

technical questions concerning this 

action, contact Tanya Glines, Aircraft 

Maintenance Division, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 800 Independence 

Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; 

telephone (202) 380–5896; email 

Tanya.Glines@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 Title 

49, Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart I, 

Chapter 401, Section 40113 (prescribing 

general authority of the Administrator of 

the FAA, with respect to aviation safety 

duties and powers, to prescribe 

regulations); and Subpart III, Chapter 

447, Sections 44701 (general authority 

of the Administrator to prescribe 

regulations and minimum standards in 

the interest of safety for inspecting, 

servicing, and overhauling aircraft, 

engines, propellers, and appliances, 

including for other practices, methods, 

and procedures necessary for safety in 

air commerce); 44702 (authority of the 

Administrator to issue air agency 

certificates); 44703 (authority of the 

Administrator to issue airman 

certificates); 44707 (authority of the 

Administrator to examine and rate air 

agencies, including civilian schools 

giving instruction in repairing, altering, 

and maintaining aircraft, aircraft 

engines, propellers, and appliances, on 

the adequacy of instruction, the 

suitability and airworthiness of 

equipment, and the competency of 

instructors); and 44709 (authority of the 

Administrator to amend, modify, 

suspend, and revoke air agency and 

other FAA-issued certificates). 

This rule is further promulgated 

under Section 135 of the Aircraft 

Certification, Safety, and Accountability 

Act in Public Law 116–260, the 

Consolidated Appropriations Act of 

2021. Section 135, titled ‘‘Promoting 

Aviation Regulations for Technical 

Training,’’ provides the requirements 

and terms of this rule. 

Good Cause for Immediate Adoption 

Section 553(b)(3)(B) of the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 

U.S.C.) authorizes agencies to dispense 

with notice and comment procedures 

for rules when the agency, for ‘‘good 

cause,’’ finds that those procedures are 

‘‘impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 

to the public interest.’’ Under this 

section, an agency, upon finding good 

cause, may issue a final rule without 

seeking comment prior to the 

rulemaking. 

The FAA finds good cause under 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B) to waive prior notice 

and the opportunity for public comment 

because such procedures would be 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. On December 27, 2020, 

Congress passed the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 116–260), 

which includes the Aircraft 

Certification, Safety, and Accountability 

Act (the ‘‘Act’’). In Section 135 of the 

Act, titled ‘‘Promoting Aviation 

Regulations for Technical Training,’’ 


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31392 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 24, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 

1As explained herein, in order to achieve the 

statutory objectives promulgated by the Act and 

ensure consistency between the regulations and the 

statutory terminology, the FAA has made certain 

revisions that are not expressly stated in the 

legislation. 

2Providing for the Rating and Certification of 

Civilian Schools giving Instruction in Aircraft and 

Aircraft Engine Mechanics; 5 FR 673 (Feb. 15, 1940) 

(amending the Civil Air Regulations by adding new 

Part 53, effective May 1, 1940). 

3Schools and Other Certificated Agencies; 27 FR 

6655 (Jul. 13, 1962). 

Congress directed the FAA to issue 

interim final regulations to establish 

requirements for issuing aviation 

maintenance technician school (AMTS) 

certificates and associated ratings and 

the general operating rules for the 

holders of those certificates and ratings. 

Section 135(a)(1) of the Act expressly 

requires the FAA to issue the interim 

final regulations in accordance with the 

requirements set forth in Section 135. In 

this interim final rule, the FAA is 

simply adopting the statutory language 

and implementing that language directly 

into the regulations.1 Accordingly, the 

FAA finds it unnecessary to provide 

notice and an opportunity to comment 

prior to issuing this final rule. 

The FAA further finds that delaying 

implementation of this rule to allow for 

notice and comment would be contrary 

to the public interest. Because the 

interim final rule must implement the 

statutory requirements of Section 135 of 

the Act, the FAA does not have 

discretion to propose requirements that 

are contrary to, or that exceed the 

bounds of, the statute. Similarly, the 

FAA does not have the discretion to 

change the statutory requirements based 

on public comments received. 

Therefore, delaying issuance of this 

final rule would merely delay the new 

requirements that Congress sought to 

provide the AMTS industry. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

Affected parties are not required to 

comply with the information collection 

requirements in §§ 147.5, 147.15, 

147.17, 147.21, 147.23, and 147.31, until 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) approves the revised collection 

2120–0040 under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995. The FAA will 

publish in the Federal Register a notice 

of approval by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

these information collection 

requirements. 

Comments Invited 

Consistent with the Regulatory 

Policies and Procedures of the 

Department of Transportation (DOT) (44 

FR 11034; February 26, 1979), which 

provide that, to the maximum extent 

possible, operating administrations for 

the DOT should provide an opportunity 

for public comment on regulations 

issued without prior notice, the FAA 

requests comment on this interim final 

rule. The FAA encourages persons to 

participate in this rulemaking by 

submitting written comments 

containing relevant information, data, or 

views. The FAA also invites comments 

relating to the economic, environmental, 

energy, or federalism impacts that might 

result from adopting this final rule. The 

FAA will consider comments received 

on or before the closing date for 

comments. The FAA will also consider 

late filed comments to the extent 

practicable. This interim final rule may 

be amended based on comments 

received. 

See section VI., titled ‘‘How to Obtain 

Additional Information,’’ for 

information on how to comment on this 

interim final rule and how the FAA will 

handle comments received. This section 

also contains related information about 

the docket, privacy, and the handling of 

proprietary or confidential business 

information. In addition, there is 

information on obtaining copies of 

related rulemaking documents. 

List of Abbreviations and Acronyms 

Frequently Used in This Document 

AMTS—Aviation maintenance technician 

school(s) 

OpSpecs—Operations Specifications 

The Act—the Aircraft Certification, Safety, 

and Accountability Act 

Table of Contents 

I. Overview of Interim Final Rule 

II. Background 

a. History of Part 147 

b. Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) 

and Supplemental Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (SNPRM) 

c. Section 135, Promoting Aviation 

Regulations for Technical Training 

III. Discussion of the Interim Final Rule 

a. Applicability of New Part 147 (§ 147.1) 

b. AMTS Certification Required (§ 147.3) 

c. Certificate and Operations Specifications 

Requirements 

1. Application Requirements (§ 147.5) 

2. Duration (§ 147.7) 

3. Certificate Ratings (§ 147.11) 

4. Operations Specifications (OpSpecs) 

d. Certification and Operating 

Requirements (Subpart B) 

1. Facilities, Equipment, and Material 

Requirements (§ 147.13) 

2. Training Provided at Another Location 

(§ 147.15) 

3. Training Requirements (§ 147.17 and 1 

CFR Part 51) 

A. Incorporation by Reference (1 CFR Part 

51) 

B. Curriculum Requirements (§ 147.17(a)(1) 

and (b)) 

C. Conforming Amendments To 

Incorporate the Mechanic ACS by 

Reference (§§ 65.23, 65.75, and 65.79) 

D. Remaining Training Requirements 

(§ 147.17(a)(2) and (3)) 

4. Instructor Requirements (§ 147.19) 

5. Certificate of Completion (§ 147.21) 

e. Quality Control System Requirements 

(§ 147.23) 

1. Quality Control System: Accreditation 

(§ 147.23(a)) 

2. Quality Control System: FAA-Approved 

System (§ 147.23(b)) 

f. Additional Requirements (Subpart B) 

1. Minimum Passage Rate (§ 147.25) 

2. FAA Inspection (§ 147.27) 

3. Display of Certificate (§ 147.29) 

4. Early Testing (§ 147.31) 

g. Conforming Amendments 

1. Appendix A to Part 43 

2. Section 65.80 

h. Part 147 Rule Organization and 

Numbering 

IV. Regulatory Notices and Analyses 

V. Executive Order Determinations 

VI. How To Obtain Additional Information 

I. Overview of Interim Final Rule 

The Consolidated Appropriations Act 

(Pub. L. 116–260), which includes the 

Act, was enacted on December 27, 2020. 

Section 135 of the Act, titled 

‘‘Promoting Aviation Regulations for 

Technician Training,’’ directed the FAA 

to ‘‘issue interim final regulations to 

establish requirements for issuing 

[AMTS] certificates and associated 

ratings and the general operating rules 

for the holders of those certificates and 

ratings in accordance with the 

requirements of [Section 135].’’ 

Additionally, Section 135 of the Act 

states that current part 147 shall have no 

force or effect on or after the effective 

date of the interim final regulations. 

This interim final rule replaces the 

current regulations in part 147 with new 

regulations that conform to the 

legislation. In the preamble to this 

interim final rule, the FAA reiterates the 

provisions of Section 135 of the Act and 

explains how it is implementing those 

provisions in the regulations. 

Additionally, the FAA is making 

conforming amendments to parts 43 and 

65 to effectuate the legislation. 

II. Background 

a. History of Part 147 

Part 147 prescribes the requirements 

for the certification and operation of 

FAA-certificated AMTS, including the 

curriculum requirements. Part 147 

originated as Civil Air Regulations 

(CAR) part 53 in 1940.2 As a result of 

the recodification of the CARs in 1962, 

CAR part 53 became 14 CFR part 147.3

In 1970, the FAA issued a final rule that 

changed the name of ‘‘mechanic 

schools’’ to ‘‘aviation maintenance 

technician schools,’’ provided more 

specific guidelines for the certification 


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4Name, Operations, and Curriculum; 35 FR 5531 

(Apr. 3, 1970). 

5Revision of Aviation Maintenance Technician 

Schools Regulations; 57 FR 28952 (Jun. 29, 1992). 

6Primary Category; 57 FR 41360 (Sept. 9, 1992). 

7 57 FR at 41366, 41370. 

8 80 FR 59674. 

9Aviation Maintenance Technician Schools; 80 

FR 72404 (Nov. 19, 2015). 10 83 FR 15533. 

11Current § 147.1 states that ‘‘[part 147] 

prescribes the requirements for issuing aviation 

maintenance technician school certificates and 

associated ratings and the general operating rules 

for the holders of those certificates and ratings.’’ 

12While the applicability of part 147 remains the 

same under this interim final rule, the requirements 

Continued 

and operation of schools, increased the 

required core curriculum hours from 

1,500 to 1,900, and further defined 

teaching guidelines and subject content 

to reflect technological advancements in 

the aviation industry.4 In 1992, the FAA 

revised part 147 by adding a definition 

in Appendix A for ‘‘teaching materials 

and equipment’’ to include the use of 

computers in the training environment. 

The FAA also revised the headings of 

several subjects in Appendices B, C, and 

D to better reflect course content, added 

course content items within several 

subject areas, and added two new 

subject headings with related course 

content items for ‘‘Unducted Fans’’ and 

‘‘Auxiliary Power Units’’.5

Subsequently, in 1992, the FAA made a 

minor amendment to § 147.21 as part of 

another rulemaking.6 Specifically, the 

FAA added a provision to § 147.21 that 

allowed AMTSs to apply for and receive 

approval of special courses in the 

performance of inspection and 

maintenance on primary category 

aircraft, and authorized the school to 

issue certificates of competency to 

persons successfully completing such 

courses.7 There have been no further 

revisions to part 147. 

b. Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

(NPRM) and Supplemental Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) 

On October 2, 2015, the FAA 

published an NPRM titled ‘‘Aviation 

Maintenance Technician Schools.’’ 8 In 

the NPRM, the FAA proposed to amend 

the regulations governing the 

curriculum and operation of FAAcertificated AMTSs. The FAA proposed 

to modernize and reorganize the 

required curriculum subjects found in 

the appendices of the current regulation, 

remove the course content items from 

the appendices and relocate them to 

each school’s OpSpecs, and revise the 

curriculum requirements to include an 

option for schools to use a credit hour 

curriculum. The comment period for the 

NPRM closed on December 31, 2015, 

which was subsequently extended to 

February 1, 2016, based on a joint 

request for extension from several 

industry groups.9

After considering the comments to the 

NPRM, and the potential benefits to 

industry, the FAA decided to expand 

the scope of the rulemaking by issuing 

an SNPRM, published on April 16, 

2019.10 The SNPRM proposed (1) to 

allow curriculum based training (CBT) 

programs as a curriculum delivery, (2) 

to allow the establishment of satellite 

training locations, and (3) to remove the 

national passing norm requirements in 

§ 147.37 and replace them with a 

standard pass rate. The comment period 

closed on June 17, 2019. 

c. Section 135, Promoting Aviation 

Regulations for Technical Training 

While the FAA was in the process of 

completing the final rule, which would 

have responded to all significant 

comments received on the NPRM and 

SNPRM, Congress passed the Act which 

required the FAA to replace part 147, as 

in effect on the date of enactment of 

Section 135, with new regulations that 

conform to the statutory requirements. 

Congress directed the FAA to issue 

interim final regulations, not later than 

90 days after the date of enactment of 

the Act, to establish requirements for 

issuing aviation maintenance technician 

school certificates and associated ratings 

and the general operating rules for the 

holders of those certificates and ratings. 

Pursuant to Section 135(a)(1) of the 

Act, the FAA must issue the interim 

final regulations in accordance with the 

requirements set forth in Section 135, 

including requirements addressing: 

• When an AMTS certificate is 

required; 

• Applications for AMTS certificates 

and associated ratings, additional 

ratings, and changes to certificates; 

• Operations specifications and the 

contents thereof; 

• The duration of a certificate or 

rating issued under part 147; 

• The ratings that an AMTS may 

obtain under part 147; 

• AMTS facilities, equipment, and 

material; 

• Training provided at another 

location; 

• AMTS training and curricula; 

• Instructors; 

• Certificates of completion; 

• Quality control systems; 

• The minimum passage rate each 

school must maintain; 

• FAA inspections; 

• The display of part 147 certificates; 

and 

• A student’s ability to take the FAA’s 

general written test prior to satisfying 

the experience requirements of § 65.77, 

provided certain conditions are met. 

Additionally, the statute states that 

the current part 147 regulations and any 

regulations issued under § 624 of the 

FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, shall 

have no force or effect on or after the 

effective date of the interim final rule. 

As a result, this interim final rule 

repeals and replaces current part 147. 

Upon review of Section 135, the FAA 

determined that the proposed 

requirements in the NPRM and SNPRM 

were inconsistent with the statutory 

mandate. Therefore, to comply with 

Section 135, the FAA is publishing a 

Federal Register Notice withdrawing 

the NPRM (Notice No. 15–10) and 

SNPRM (Notice No. 19–02) concurrent 

with this interim final rule. Instead of 

finalizing those proposals, the FAA is 

issuing this interim final rule to 

establish requirements for certificated 

AMTSs in accordance with Section 135 

of the Act. 

III. Discussion of the Interim Final Rule 

Section 135(b) through (f) of the Act 

contain several requirements that 

govern the certification and operation of 

AMTSs. The following sections reiterate 

the provisions of Section 135 and 

describe how the FAA is implementing 

each provision into new part 147. 

Additionally, section III.g. of this 

preamble, titled ‘‘Part 147 Rule 

Organization and Numbering,’’ provides 

tables to show which sections of current 

part 147 will be repealed and not 

replaced, which sections will be 

replaced and renumbered, and the 

organization and numbering of new part 

147. 

a. Applicability of New Part 147 

(§ 147.1) 

Section 135(a)(1) requires the FAA to 

establish requirements for issuing 

AMTS certificates and associated ratings 

and the general operating rules for the 

holders of those certificates and ratings 

in accordance with the legislation. 

Based on this statutory provision, the 

applicability outlined in Section 135 is 

consistent with the current applicability 

provision in § 147.1.11 Current part 147, 

including the applicability provision, 

will be repealed in its entirety on the 

effective date of this interim final rule, 

pursuant to Section 135(a)(2). However, 

consistent with Section 135(a)(1), new 

part 147 will continue to prescribe the 

requirements for issuing AMTS 

certificates and associated ratings and 

the general operating rules for the 

holders of those certificates and 

ratings.12 The FAA is implementing the 


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in new part 147 differ because the statute requires 

the FAA to establish requirements in accordance 

with the statutory requirements set forth in Section 

135. 

13As discussed in greater detail herein, these 

steps include curriculum revision to align with the 

Mechanic Airman Certification Standards (ACS) 

and necessary updates to OpSpecs. 

14The Administrator’s authority to grant 

exemptions is pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 40109(b). 

15Section 135(c)(1)(A)(i). 

16Section 135(c)(1)(A)(ii). 

17Section 135(c)(1)(A)(iii). As discussed in 

section III.d.4. of this preamble, titled ‘‘Instructor 

Requirements,’’ the instructor requirements of 

Section 135(d)(4) are being implemented in new 

§ 147.19. Accordingly, new § 147.5(b)(3) includes a 

cross-reference to § 147.19. 

applicability language of Section 

135(a)(1) in new § 147.1 to specify the 

applicability of new part 147. 

Upon the effective date of this interim 

final rule, a currently certificated AMTS 

may not continue to operate unless it 

meets all of the applicable requirements 

of new part 147. A certificated AMTS 

will not be able to use previous part 147 

regulations because current part 147 

shall have no force or effect on or after 

the effective date of the interim final 

regulations. As such, it is essential for 

certificated AMTSs to take the necessary 

steps to comply with new part 147 by 

the effective date of the regulation.13

Further, many certificated AMTSs 

hold exemptions to existing part 147 

and related part 65 regulations. Because 

current part 147 is wholly repealed and 

replaced upon the effective date of the 

interim final rule, these exemptions, 

which are specified and discussed 

herein, as relevant, will terminate upon 

the effective date of this interim final 

rule. However, the FAA notes that the 

vast majority of the grounds for 

requested relief will be cured upon the 

effective date of this interim final rule 

by new part 147. 

b. AMTS Certification Required (§ 147.3) 

Section 135(b) states that no person 

may operate an AMTS without, or in 

violation of, an AMTS certificate and 

the OpSpecs issued under the interim 

final regulations required under Section 

135(a)(1), the requirements of Section 

135, or in a manner that is inconsistent 

with information in the school’s 

OpSpecs under Section 135(c)(5). This 

statutory requirement is similar to 

current § 147.3, but extends the 

requirement to OpSpecs in addition to 

AMTS certificates. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(b) in new 

§ 147.3, which will state that no person 

may operate an AMTS without, or in 

violation of, an AMTS certificate and 

the OpSpecs ‘‘issued under [part 147].’’ 

The FAA determined that it is 

unnecessary for § 147.3 to expressly 

state that a person may not operate in 

violation of the requirements of Section 

135, which will be implemented in part 

147, because a certificated AMTS must 

comply with applicable statutory and 

regulatory requirements irrespective of 

whether the FAA expressly prohibits 

non-compliance in § 147.3. 

Furthermore, the FAA is not codifying 

the portion of Section 135(b) that 

prohibits a school from acting in a 

manner inconsistent with its OpSpecs 

because this prohibition is redundant to 

the statement that prohibits schools 

from operating in violation of their 

OpSpecs. 

Section 135(b) states, in pertinent 

part, that no person may operate an 

AMTS in violation of the requirements 

of Section 135. This would appear to 

indicate that the Administrator does not 

have the authority to grant 

exemptions 14 from new part 147 

because the inherent nature of an 

exemption would act as a departure 

from the requirements of Section 135. 

However, within the legislation, Section 

135(c) states that a certificated AMTS 

shall operate in accordance with 

operations specifications that include, 

among other information, any regulatory 

exemption granted to the school by the 

Administrator. Additionally, the 

language in Section 135(b) echoes this 

sentiment of compliance with regulatory 

exemptions, stating that no person may 

operate an AMTS in a manner that is 

inconsistent with information in the 

school’s operations specifications under 

Section 135(c)(5), which, as stated, 

includes regulatory exemptions. 

Therefore, the contemplation of and 

requirements of compliance with 

regulatory exemptions in the legislation 

demonstrates that Congress intended 

that the FAA retain the authority to 

issue exemptions from part 147, as 

warranted under the Administrator’s 

authority and 14 CFR part 11. 

c. Certificate and Operations 

Specifications Requirements 

Section 135(c)(1) through (5) of the 

Act contain several requirements that 

govern applications for certificates and 

ratings under part 147, the duration of 

those certificates and ratings, the types 

of ratings that may be issued on a 

certificate, and the content of OpSpecs. 

The FAA is implementing the 

application, duration, and rating 

requirements in subpart A of part 147, 

which is titled ‘‘General.’’ For the 

reasons discussed herein, the FAA is 

not codifying the content requirements 

of OpSpecs in the regulations. The 

following sections discuss the statutory 

requirements and the FAA’s 

implementation of those requirements 

in more detail. 

1. Application Requirements (§ 147.5) 

Section 135(c)(1)(A) requires an 

application for a certificate or rating to 

operate an AMTS to include three 

descriptions. First, the application must 

describe the facilities, including the 

physical address of the certificate 

holder’s primary location for operation 

of the school, any additional fixed 

locations where training will be 

provided, and the equipment and 

materials to be used at each location.15

Second, the application must describe 

the manner in which the school’s 

curriculum will ensure the student has 

the knowledge and skills necessary for 

attaining a mechanic certificate and 

associated ratings under subpart D of 

part 65.16 Third, the application must 

describe the manner in which the 

school will ensure it provides the 

necessary qualified instructors to meet 

the requirements of Section 135(d)(4).17

Upon issuance of the school’s certificate 

or rating, Section 135(c)(1)(B) requires 

these descriptions to be documented in 

the school’s OpSpecs. 

Section 135 also contains 

requirements for a school seeking to add 

a rating or amend a certificate. 

Specifically, Section 135(c)(2)(A) 

requires an application for an additional 

rating or amended certificate to include 

only the information necessary to 

substantiate the reason for the requested 

additional rating or change. Section 

135(c)(2)(B) requires any approved 

changes to be documented in the 

school’s OpSpecs. 

The FAA is implementing the 

application requirements of Section 

135(c)(1) and (2) in new § 147.5. Section 

147.5(b) will contain the requirements 

for an application for an initial 

certificate and rating. Section 147.5(c) 

will contain the requirements for an 

application for an additional rating or 

amended certificate. The language in 

§ 147.5(b) and (c) mirrors the statute 

except for one editorial change and two 

minor terminology changes. First, in 

§ 147.5(b), the FAA is making clear that 

the application requirements for initial 

certification apply to an application for 

‘‘a certificate and rating’’ rather than ‘‘a 

certificate or rating.’’ When a person 

applies for an air agency certificate 

under part 147, that person must also 

apply for at least one rating. Section 

147.11 prescribes the ratings that a 

school may obtain under part 147. The 

FAA may not issue a certificate 

independent of a rating. Nor may the 

FAA issue a rating without an 


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18The FAA notes that a school may apply for an 

additional rating, which would be placed on the 

school’s part 147 certificate. Section 147.5(c) 

contains the application requirements for an 

additional rating. 

19The FAA’s inspection authority, which is 

prescribed by Section 135(f)(2) and codified in 

§ 147.27, requires a certificated AMTS to allow the 

FAA such access as the FAA determines necessary 

to inspect the school for purposes of determining 

the school’s compliance with part 147. Thus, the 

FAA may conduct an inspection at a certificated 

AMTS at any time after issuance of the part 147 

certificate and rating. 

20See § 141.5(c) (stating the FAA may issue a 

pilot school certificate with the appropriate ratings 

if, within the 24 calendar months before the date 

application is made, the applicant meets the 

applicable requirements under subparts A through 

C of part 141 for the school certificate and 

associated ratings sought); § 142.11(d) (stating that 

an applicant who meets the requirements of part 

142 and is approved by the Administrator is 

entitled to a training center certificate and training 

specifications); § 145.53 (stating that, except as 

provided in § 145.51(e) or § 145.53(b), (c), or (d), a 

person who meets the requirements of subparts A 

through E of part 145 is entitled to a repair station 

certificate with appropriate ratings). 

21See Federal Land Bank of St. Paul v. Bismarck 

Lumber Co., 314 U.S. 95, 100 (1941) (stating that 

‘‘the term ‘‘including’’ is not one of all-embracing 

definition, but connotes simply an illustrative 

application of the general principle.’’). 

underlying certificate. It is therefore 

accurate to state ‘‘certificate and rating’’ 

in § 147.5(b).18 Second, in § 147.5(b)(1), 

the FAA finds that the term ‘‘applicant’’ 

is appropriate rather than ‘‘certificate 

holder’’ because an applicant under 

§ 147.5(b)(1) is applying for its initial 

AMTS certificate and rating. As such, 

the applicant does not yet hold an air 

agency certificate under part 147. Lastly, 

in § 147.5(c), which applies to current 

certificate holders seeking to add a 

rating or amend their certificate, the 

FAA is adding a cross-reference to the 

information listed in § 147.5(b) for 

clarity and is using the word ‘‘sought’’ 

rather than ‘‘requested.’’ These minor 

modifications from the statutory 

language do not alter the meaning or 

affect the implementation of the 

statutory requirements. 

In codifying the statutory 

requirements of Section 135(c) in new 

§ 147.5, the FAA discovered that 

Section 135 lacks an eligibility standard 

for the issuance of an AMTS certificate. 

Under Section 44702 of Title 49 of the 

United States Code, the FAA has 

statutory authority to issue air agency 

certificates. A certificate issued under 

part 147 is one of the air agency 

certificates issued by the FAA under 49 

U.S.C. 44707. Section 135(c) prescribes 

only the content that must be included 

in an application for a certificate and 

rating, or for an additional rating or 

amended certificate. Section 135(c) is 

silent, however, with respect to the 

eligibility standard an applicant must 

meet to be issued a part 147 certificate. 

For example, merely providing 

descriptions of the applicant’s facilities, 

equipment, and materials on the 

application for a certificate is not 

sufficient basis for the FAA to issue a 

certificate. Those facilities, equipment, 

and materials must meet the substantive 

requirements in Section 135 that require 

a school’s facilities, equipment, and 

materials to be ‘‘appropriate’’ to the 

ratings held and the number of students 

taught. The FAA’s decision to issue a 

certificate should not be based solely on 

the fact that descriptions were provided 

but rather on whether the descriptions 

in the application demonstrate that the 

applicant is eligible to operate as a 

certificated AMTS. 

The FAA reviewed Section 135 in its 

entirety to determine whether another 

statutory provision contains the 

eligibility standard for issuing a part 147 

certificate. While the statute does not 

expressly state what makes an applicant 

eligible for a certificate and rating, 

Section 135(b) provides context for 

making the determination. Section 

135(b) prohibits a person from operating 

as an AMTS in violation of the 

requirements of Section 135. As 

discussed throughout this preamble, the 

FAA is implementing the requirements 

of Section 135 in part 147. Therefore, 

consistent with Section 135(b), a person 

may not operate as an AMTS in 

violation of the requirements of part 

147. 

Because an applicant seeking an 

AMTS certificate may not operate as a 

certificated AMTS in violation of the 

requirements of part 147, the FAA finds 

it reasonable to require the applicant to 

demonstrate compliance with the 

requirements of part 147 to be issued a 

certificate or rating under part 147. If 

the FAA does not assess whether an 

applicant complies with the appropriate 

requirements of part 147 at the 

application stage, the FAA could 

exercise its inspection authority to 

determine compliance with the 

requirements of part 147 immediately 

upon issuing the certificate or rating to 

the school.19 The FAA has determined, 

however, that it is reasonable to require 

the applicant to demonstrate 

compliance with the applicable 

requirements as a means of determining 

eligibility for the issuance of a part 147 

air agency certificate.20 The FAA is 

codifying this standard in new 

§ 147.5(a) by expressly stating that, to be 

issued a certificate, an applicant must 

demonstrate compliance with the 

requirements of part 147. 

To demonstrate compliance with 

certain requirements of part 147 

pursuant to new § 147.5(a), the 

applicant may be required to present 

certain information to the FAA. To 

effectuate this, the FAA is adding new 

§ 147.5(b)(4) to the application 

requirements. New § 147.5(b)(4) requires 

the application to include any 

additional information necessary to 

demonstrate compliance with the 

requirements of part 147. This 

additional requirement is supported by 

the plain language of the statute, which 

states that an application for a certificate 

or rating to operate an AMTS shall 

‘‘include’’ the information listed in 

Section 135(c)(1)(A)(i) through (iii). In 

the statutory context, the term 

‘‘include’’ has been construed to 

provide an illustration of the general 

concept, not an all-inclusive and 

exhaustive list.21 As such, the 

application for a certificate or rating 

must include the items prescribed by 

the statute; however, the FAA is not 

limited to prescribing only those items. 

As previously stated, the FAA is 

codifying the requirements of Section 

135(c)(2), which apply to applications 

for an additional rating or amended 

certificate, in new § 147.5(c). Consistent 

with the statute, new § 147.5(c) will 

require an application for an additional 

rating or amended certificate to include 

only the information required by 

§ 147.5(b) that is necessary to 

substantiate the reason for the 

additional rating or change sought. An 

amended certificate would be required 

if any of the information on the air 

agency certificate had changed, such as 

the name of the certificate holder, the 

principal address of the certificate 

holder, or the removal of a rating. The 

FAA notes that adding a rating would 

also require an amendment to the air 

agency certificate, however, the statute 

expressly states ‘‘additional rating or 

amended certificate.’’ The implementing 

regulation reflects the statutory 

terminology. 

Section 135(c)(1)(B) and (2)(B) require 

certain content to be included in 

OpSpecs: The descriptions required for 

an application and any approved 

changes for an additional rating or 

amended certificate, respectively. 

However, the FAA finds that these 

requirements do not belong in the 

regulations because they govern the 

conduct of the FAA rather than the 

regulated community. As a result, the 

FAA will not codify these requirements 

in part 147. Instead, the FAA will 

include guidance to its inspectors in 

FAA Order 8900.1 to ensure FAA’s 

compliance with these statutory 

requirements that govern the content of 

OpSpecs. 


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22Section 135(c)(5)(D) states ‘‘[t]he physical 

address of the certificate holder’s primary location, 

as provided under paragraph (1)(A).’’ The reference 

to paragraph (1)(A) refers to the application 

requirements contained in Section 135(c)(1)(A)(i), 

which require the application to include a 

description of the facilities, including the physical 

address of the certificate holder’s primary location 

for operation of the school. The FAA is 

implementing the requirements of Section 

135(c)(1)(A)(i) in new § 147.5(b)(1). 

23Section 135(c)(5)(E) states ‘‘[t]he physical 

address of any additional location of the certificate 

holder, as provided under subsection (d)(2).’’ The 

reference to subsection (d)(2) refers to Section 

135(d)(2), which allows a certificated AMTS to 

provide training at any additional location that 

meets the requirements of the interim final rule and 

is listed in the school’s OpSpecs. The FAA is 

implementing the requirements of Section 135(d)(2) 

in new § 147.15. 

24Section 135(c)(5)(F) states ‘‘[t]he ratings held, 

as provided under paragraph (4).’’ The reference to 

paragraph (4) refers to Section 135(c)(4), which 

prescribes the ratings that may be held by an 

AMTS. The FAA is implementing the requirements 

of Section 135(c)(4) in new § 147.11. 

25These requirements govern the conduct of the 

FAA by requiring the FAA to include certain 

content in the OpSpecs issued under part 147. 

26The FAA notes that its decision not to codify 

the OpSpecs content requirements of Section 

135(c)(5) is consistent with its decision not to 

codify the OpSpecs content requirements of Section 

135(c)(1)(B) and (2)(B). See Section III.c.1. of this 

preamble, titled ‘‘Application Requirements.’’ 

2. Duration (§ 147.7) 

Section 135(c)(3) states that an AMTS 

certificate or rating issued under the 

interim final regulations shall be 

effective from the date of issue until the 

certificate or rating is surrendered, 

suspended, or revoked. This statutory 

requirement is largely consistent with 

the FAA’s current duration requirement 

in § 147.7(a). However, unlike current 

§ 147.7(b), the statute does not require 

the holder of a certificate that is 

surrendered, suspended, or revoked to 

return it to the Administrator. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(c)(3) in 

new § 147.7. Thus, § 147.7 states that an 

AMTS certificate or rating issued under 

part 147 is effective from the date of 

issue until the certificate or rating is 

surrendered, suspended, or revoked. 

Because the statute requires the FAA to 

establish interim final regulations in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Section 135, § 147.7 will no longer 

include a requirement for the return of 

an AMTS certificate that has been 

surrendered, suspended or revoked. 

However, the FAA notes that a school 

that does not return its certificate may 

not continue to operate simply because 

it has the physical paper certificate. A 

school whose certificate has been 

surrendered, suspended, or revoked 

may not advertise, hold out, or 

otherwise act as an AMTS. 

3. Certificate Ratings (§ 147.11) 

Section 135(c)(4) states that an AMTS 

certificate shall specify which of 

following ratings are held by the AMTS: 

(A) Airframe, (B) Powerplant, and/or (C) 

Airframe and Powerplant. 

An AMTS certificate has always 

identified which rating or ratings the 

AMTS holds. Because the FAA is 

responsible for issuing the certificate, it 

follows that the FAA is responsible for 

specifying on the certificate which 

rating or ratings the AMTS is issued 

under part 147. By mandating what the 

AMTS certificate must specify, Section 

135(c)(4) governs the conduct of the 

FAA rather than the regulated 

community. The FAA finds it necessary 

to codify the ratings that may be placed 

on a certificate in accordance with 

Section 135(c)(4); however, the FAA’s 

regulations in part 147 apply to persons 

seeking AMTS certificates and to AMTS 

certificate holders. Therefore, in 

implementing Section 135(c)(4) in new 

§ 147.11, the FAA is slightly revising the 

statutory language to allocate 

applicability to the regulated 

community instead of the FAA itself. 

Accordingly, new § 147.11 states which 

ratings may be issued under part 147, 

and that the FAA issues AMTS 

certificates that specify the rating or 

ratings held in compliance with the 

statute. 

4. Operations Specifications (OpSpecs) 

Section 135(c)(5) requires a 

certificated AMTS to operate in 

accordance with OpSpecs that include: 

(A) The certificate holder’s name; (B) 

the certificate holder’s air agency 

certificate number; (C) the name and 

contact information of the certificate 

holder’s primary point of contact; (D) 

the physical address of the certificate 

holder’s primary location; 22 (E) the 

physical address of any additional 

location of the certificate holder; 23 (F) 

the ratings held; 24 and (G) any 

regulatory exemption granted to the 

school by the Administrator. 

To the extent Section 135(c)(5) 

requires a certificated AMTS to operate 

in accordance with OpSpecs, the FAA 

finds that this requirement is already 

covered by Section 135(b), which 

prohibits a person from operating an 

AMTS in violation of their OpSpecs. 

The requirements of Section 135(b) are 

implemented in new § 147.3. 

To the extent Section 135(c)(5) 

contains a list of content that must be 

included in OpSpecs, the FAA finds 

that these requirements do not belong in 

the regulations because they govern the 

conduct of the FAA rather than the 

regulated community.25 As a result, the 

FAA is not codifying these requirements 

in part 147.26 To ensure FAA’s 

compliance with these statutory 

requirements, the FAA will include 

guidance to its inspectors in FAA Order 

8900.1. 

As a result of this interim final rule, 

the FAA has drafted new operations 

specification paragraph templates for 

AMTS, which reflect the new and/or 

changed requirements of part 147. 

Accordingly, all OpSpecs paragraphs 

issued to AMTS prior to this interim 

final rule, with the exception of A003, 

Ratings, will cease to be effective upon 

the effective date of the interim final 

rule. Because an AMTS may not operate 

without, or in violation of, AMTS 

OpSpecs, as stated in new § 147.3, each 

AMTS must ensure it has demonstrated 

compliance with the provisions 

required by this interim final rule by 

providing the applicable information to 

the AMTS’s responsible Flight 

Standards office. For additional 

information on submitting this 

information, refer to Advisory Circular 

(AC) 147–3, Certification and Operation 

of Aviation Maintenance Technician 

Schools. After the FAA receives and 

reviews the requisite information, the 

FAA will issue the corresponding 

OpSpecs in order to allow the AMTS to 

operate under part 147. 

d. Certification and Operating 

Requirements (Subpart B) 

Section 135(d)(1) through (5) of the 

Act contain requirements that govern 

the operations of certificated AMTSs, 

including requirements for the facilities, 

equipment, and material provided by 

schools; training locations; curricula; 

instructors; and certificates of 

completion. The FAA is implementing 

those requirements in subpart B of part 

147, which is titled ‘‘Certification and 

Operating Requirements.’’ The 

following sections reiterate the statutory 

requirements and explain how the FAA 

is implementing the requirements in 

new part 147. 

1. Facilities, Equipment, and Material 

Requirements (§ 147.13) 

Section 135(d)(1) states that each 

certificated AMTS shall provide and 

maintain the facilities, equipment, and 

materials that are appropriate to the one 

or more ratings held by the school and 

the number of students taught. This 

statutory requirement is similar to 

current § 147.13, which requires that 

schools provide facilities, equipment, 

and materials appropriate to their 

ratings. The statute, however, does not 

include the same specificity regarding 

facilities, equipment, and materials 

specified in current §§ 147.15 through 


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27Current § 147.15 (Space requirements) specifies 

that facilities must be ‘‘appropriate for the 

maximum number of students expected to be taught 

at any time.’’ Current § 147.17 (Instructional 

equipment requirements) specifies schools must 

provide instructional equipment needed for 

students to complete practical projects, and 

maintain enough units to allow no more than eight 

students to work on a unit at once. Current § 147.19 

(Materials, special tools, and shop equipment 

requirements) specifies that schools must maintain 

an adequate supply of materials, special tools, and 

shop equipment as appropriate to the school’s 

curriculum, and ‘‘to assure that each student will 

be properly instructed.’’ 

28To illustrate, if the curriculum includes a skill 

requirement that an applicant must perform on a 

specific piece of equipment, the school must have 

that piece of equipment (e.g., where a school’s 

curriculum requires a student to be able to perform 

a skill requirement to service a battery, the school 

must have an aircraft battery in a condition that will 

allow a student to demonstrate the appropriate 

servicing requirements in order to be considered to 

have equipment appropriate to the rating). 

29A distance learning system is considered an 

instructional delivery method intended to allow for 

flexible scheduling and varied location settings and, 

therefore, is not considered a fixed location other 

than the primary location of the school. 

30The FAA notes that it also allows foreign 

satellites in parts 141 and part 142. Additionally, 

the FAA allows foreign training centers under part 

142. 

31There are fees for certification services 

performed outside the United States. 14 CFR part 

187. Appendix A to part 187 contains the 

Continued 

147.19.27 Section 135(d)(1) retains the 

requirement from these sections that 

such facilities, equipment, and materials 

be appropriate to the number of 

students taught. The FAA is 

implementing the requirements of 

Section 135(d)(1) in new § 147.13(a). 

Thus, § 147.13(a) will state that each 

certificated AMTS must provide and 

maintain the facilities, equipment, and 

materials that are appropriate to the 

rating or ratings held by the school and 

the number of students taught. 

In developing the interim final rule, 

the FAA identified a potential 

unintended burden on an AMTS in the 

implementation of Section 135(d)(1) in 

new § 147.13(a) as it applies to 

additional training locations. As 

discussed in the next section, Section 

135(d)(2) requires additional training 

locations to independently meet the 

requirements of part 147. The FAA 

recognizes that an AMTS may utilize 

additional training locations to teach all 

or part of its part 147 curriculum. If an 

AMTS utilizes additional fixed 

locations other than its primary location 

to provide part 147 training, the 

facilities, equipment, and materials used 

at that additional location need only be 

appropriate to the curriculum and 

number of students to be taught at that 

location. 

To alleviate an unintended burden 

that would have resulted from 

additional locations independently 

meeting part 147, the FAA is adding 

§ 147.13(b) to require that additional 

locations be appropriate only to the 

curriculum or portion of the curriculum, 

and the number of students being 

taught, at that location. By adopting this 

language in new § 147.13(b), the FAA 

alleviates an overly prescriptive burden 

on a school to outfit all additional 

training locations with facilities, 

equipment, and materials appropriate to 

the number of students to be taught and 

the ratings held, which would include 

the entirety of the school’s curriculum. 

As a result, a school using additional 

training locations must identify the 

portion of its curriculum and number of 

students to be taught at each such 

location. Because the provision in new 

§ 147.13(b) is merely a subset of the 

overarching requirement of § 147.13(a), 

the FAA finds that the requirement is 

consistent with the statute. 

Pursuant to § 147.5, an AMTS must 

submit information demonstrating 

compliance with § 147.13 in its 

application. Section 147.5(b)(1) requires 

applicants to describe the facilities, 

including the physical address of the 

school’s primary location for operation 

and any additional fixed training 

locations, and the equipment and 

materials to be used at each location. 

Section 147.5(b)(4) further requires that 

applicants submit information needed 

to determine compliance with each of 

the requirements of part 147, which 

includes § 147.13. As such, in addition 

to describing the facilities, equipment, 

and materials to be used at each 

location, an AMTS must demonstrate to 

the FAA that those facilities, equipment, 

and materials are appropriate to both 

the school’s rating or ratings, and the 

number of students to be taught. If the 

AMTS uses additional training 

locations, the school must demonstrate 

that the facilities, equipment, and 

materials used at that location are 

appropriate to the curriculum, or 

portion of the curriculum, and number 

of students to be taught there. The 

FAA’s process for determining the 

appropriateness of facilities, equipment, 

and materials to the ratings held and 

number of students to be taught will not 

change from the current regulation, in 

that the FAA will continue to assess 

appropriateness to ratings through the 

lens of the school’s training program. 

That is, in determining the 

appropriateness of facilities, equipment, 

and materials for a given rating, the 

FAA will look to the curriculum that the 

school intends to use.28

2. Training Provided at Another 

Location (§ 147.15) 

Section 135(d)(2) allows a certificated 

AMTS to provide training at any 

additional location that meets the 

requirements of the interim final 

regulations and is listed in the 

certificate holder’s OpSpecs. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(d)(2) in 

new § 147.15. This new regulation states 

that a certificated AMTS may provide 

training at any fixed location other than 

its primary location, provided the 

additional training location meets the 

requirements of part 147 and is listed in 

the certificate holder’s OpSpecs. For 

clarity, the FAA is adopting rule 

language that slightly differs from the 

statutory language. Specifically, rather 

than stating that training may be 

provided at ‘‘any additional location,’’ 

new § 147.15 states that training may be 

provided at ‘‘any fixed location other 

than its primary location.’’ This change 

in terminology is intended to clarify 

what is meant by the term ‘‘additional 

location’’ in Section 135(d)(2). To 

ascertain the meaning of ‘‘additional 

location,’’ the FAA read Section 

135(d)(2) in the context of Section 

135(c)(1)(A)(i), which refers to the 

certificate holder’s primary location for 

operation of the school and any 

additional fixed locations where 

training will be provided. Based on 

Section 135(c)(1)(A)(i), the FAA 

determined that ‘‘additional location’’ in 

Section 135(d)(2) refers to any fixed 

locations other than the primary 

location of the school.29

Additionally, the legislation states 

that an AMTS may provide training at 

any additional location that meets the 

requirements of the interim final 

regulations, required under Section 

135(a)(1). The interim final regulations 

required under Section 135(a)(1) are 

implemented as part 147. Therefore, the 

FAA is implementing the legislation to 

require that the additional training 

location must meet the requirements in 

part 147. Consequently, schools should 

expect the FAA to verify that each 

location meets the requirements of part 

147 prior to the FAA listing the location 

on the AMTS OpSpecs. 

There is nothing in the statute that 

prohibits foreign training locations nor 

is the FAA aware of any other 

prohibition concerning the foreign 

location of part 147 schools.30

Therefore, based on the broad statutory 

provision in Section 135(d)(2), the FAA 

finds additional training locations may 

be located outside the United States, 

provided the additional location meets 

the requirements of part 147 and is 

listed in the certificate holder’s 

OpSpecs.31 For the same reasons, the 


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methodology for computation of such fees. 

Advisory Circular 187–1 contains an updated 

schedule of charges for services of FAA Flight 

Standards Service aviation safety inspectors outside 

the United States. 

32 It is noted that, under § 65.3, a person who is 

neither a U.S. citizen nor a resident alien may be 

issued a certificate under part 65, outside the U.S., 

only when the Administrator finds that the 

certificate is needed for the continued operation or 

continued airworthiness of a U.S.-registered 

aircraft. As such, graduation from a certificated 

AMTS alone will not guarantee eligibility for a part 

65 mechanic certificate for a non-U.S. citizen or 

non-resident alien; the applicant must still meet 

§ 65.3. 

33Section 135(f)(1) establishes the minimum 

passage rate for a certificated AMTS, and is 

implemented in § 147.25. 

34The APA includes requirements for publishing 

notices and providing opportunities for public 

comment of proposed and final rules in the Federal 

Register. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b). 

35 5 U.S.C. 552(A), which states, ‘‘except to the 

extent that a person has actual or timely notice of 

the terms thereof, a person may not in any manner 

be required to resort to, or be adversely affected by, 

a matter required to be published in the Federal 

Register and not so published. For the purpose of 

this paragraph, matter reasonably available to the 

class of persons affected thereby is deemed 

published in the Federal Register when 

incorporated by reference therein with the approval 

of the Director of the Federal Register.’’ 

36 14 CFR 65.71(a)(3), 65.75 and 65.79. 37As of the effective date of this interim final 

rule, the version of the PTS utilized is: Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and Powerplant 

Practical Test Standards; FAA–S–8081–26B; Nov. 1, 

2021. 

38See ‘‘Foreword,’’ Aviation Mechanic General, 

Airframe, and Powerplant Practical Test Standards; 

FAA–S–8081–26B; Nov. 1, 2021. 

39The FAA began to establish the ACS in 2011, 

in cooperation with an industry working group 

established under the Aviation Rulemaking 

Advisory Committee (ARAC). The goal in creating 

the ACS was to drive a systematic approach to the 

airmen certification process, including knowledge 

test question development and conduct of the 

practical test. 

40As discussed herein, the FAA will continue to 

use the PTS as the testing standard under part 65 

for a period of time after the effective date of this 

rule. 

41Section 552(a) of title 5, United States Code, 

requires that matter incorporated by reference be 

‘‘reasonably available’’ as a condition of its 

eligibility. Further, 1 CFR 51.5(b)(2) requires that 

agencies seeking to incorporate material by 

reference discuss in the preamble of the final rule, 

the ways that the material it incorporates by 

reference are reasonably available to interested 

parties, and how interested parties can obtain the 

material. 

FAA finds that certificated AMTSs may 

be located outside of the United States. 

The FAA is updating its guidance to 

reflect the allowance of foreign locations 

under part 147.32

3. Training Requirements (§ 147.17 and 

1 CFR Part 51) 

Section 135(d)(3) requires each 

certificated AMTS to establish, 

maintain, and utilize a curriculum 

designed to continually align with 

mechanic airman certification standards 

as appropriate for the ratings held, 

provide training of a quality that meets 

the requirements of subsection (f)(1),33

and ensure students have the knowledge 

and skills necessary to be eligible to test 

for a mechanic certificate and associated 

ratings under subpart D of part 65. 

The FAA is implementing Section 

135(d)(3) in new § 147.17. Additionally, 

to effectuate the legislation, the FAA is 

making conforming amendments to part 

65. The following sections discuss the 

training requirements set forth in the 

statute and the FAA’s implementation 

of those requirements in more detail. 

A. Incorporation by Reference (1 CFR 

Part 51) 

Incorporation by reference is a 

mechanism that allows Federal agencies 

to comply with the requirements of the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA) 34

to publish rules in the Federal Register 

and the Code of Federal Regulations by 

referring to material published 

elsewhere.35 Material that is 

incorporated by reference has the same 

legal status as if it were published in full 

in the Federal Register. Because 5 

U.S.C. 552(a) requires the Director of the 

Federal Register to approve material to 

be incorporated by reference, 

incorporation by reference is governed 

by the Office of the Federal Register and 

as promulgated in its regulations: 1 CFR 

part 51. Specifically, 1 CFR part 51 

provides certain requirements that a 

regulatory incorporation by reference 

must contain. 

To receive a mechanic certificate or 

rating under subpart D of part 65, an 

applicant must pass a written, oral, and 

practical test.36 Currently, the standards 

for the oral and practical tests are 

contained in the Mechanic Practical 

Test Standards (PTS).37 The Mechanic 

PTS contains knowledge and skill 

subject areas that an applicant must 

demonstrate to pass the oral and 

practical test for a certificate or rating. 

Additionally, the questions on the 

written test align with the subject areas 

presented in the Mechanic PTS. 

Specifically, the Mechanic PTS contains 

subject areas, under which objectives 

define the general performance 

expectations of the elements within the 

subject areas. Currently, FAA inspectors 

and designated mechanic examiners 

(DMEs) conduct tests in accordance 

with the Mechanic PTS; however, the 

Mechanic PTS is not a regulatory 

standard for the written, oral, or 

practical tests.38

The FAA has initiated a process to 

transition from using the Mechanic PTS 

as the testing standard to obtain a 

mechanic certificate.39 As a part of this 

process, the FAA developed the 

Mechanic Airman Certification 

Standards (ACS), which adds taskspecific knowledge and risk 

management elements to the standards, 

resulting in a comprehensive 

presentation that integrates the 

standards for what an applicant must 

demonstrate to pass the written, oral, 

and practical tests for a certificate or 

rating, respectively. Specifically, the 

Mechanic ACS contains several highlevel subjects that will be assessed on 

the FAA tests as appropriate to the 

rating sought.40 For each subject, the 

ACS specifies the aeronautical 

knowledge, risk management, and skill 

standards that an FAA inspector or a 

DME may evaluate for mechanic 

certification. 

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) 

and 1 CFR part 51,41 the FAA makes the 

Mechanic PTS and ACS reasonably 

available to interested parties by 

providing free online public access to 

view on the FAA Airman Certification 

Standards website at: www.faa.gov/ 

training_testing/testing/acs. 

Additionally, the Mechanic PTS and 

Mechanic ACS are available for 

download, free of charge, at the 

provided web address. In addition to the 

free online material available on the 

FAA’s website, hard copies and 

printable versions are available from the 

FAA. 

B. Curriculum Requirements 

(§ 147.17(a)(1) and (b)) 

Consistent with Section 135(d)(3)(A), 

§ 147.17(a)(1) will require each 

certificated AMTS to establish, 

maintain, and utilize a curriculum 

designed to continually align with the 

mechanic airmen certification standards 

as appropriate to the ratings held. The 

phrase ‘‘mechanic airman certification 

standards’’ in Section 135(d)(3)(A) refers 

to the standards that an applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating must 

demonstrate for certification. 

Prior to this interim final rule, as 

previously stated, the FAA had not 

taken the necessary steps to make the 

testing standards regulatory. Because 

the legislation requires an AMTS 

curriculum to align with the testing 

standards, an AMTS is incapable of 

complying with the implementing 

regulation in § 147.17(a)(1) without 

referring to the testing standards 

contained in the Mechanic ACS. 

Because the implementing regulation 

requires an AMTS to use the Mechanic 

ACS, which is not already published in 

the Code of Federal Regulations or 

another location that carries the full 

force and effect of the law, the FAA is 

incorporating the Mechanic ACS by 


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42The FAA notes that Section 135(d)(3)(a), and 

the implementing regulation, states each 

certificated AMTS must establish, maintain, and 

utilize a curriculum; both ‘‘AMTS’’ and 

‘‘curriculum’’ are stated in the singular. While an 

AMTS may have only one curriculum, it may have 

separate curriculum components (i.e., General, 

Airframe, Powerplant) for the ratings that the AMTS 

holds. 

43See 1 CFR 51.9. 

44 If an AMTS only adopted the high-level 

subjects as their curriculum, the AMTS could have 

underlying course content items or projects that do 

not align with the Mechanic ACS, thereby resulting 

in violation of the statute. 

45Section 147.17(a)(1) implements the statutory 

requirement in Section 135(d)(3)(A). 46E.g., Exemption No. 18892 (Docket No. FAA– 

2002–11395); Exemption No. 18766 (Docket No. 

FAA–2019–0165). 

47See §§ 65.71(a)(3), 65.75, and 65.79. 

48See § 65.77. 

49For example, the Mechanic ACS adds the 

subject areas ‘‘Water and Waste’’ and ‘‘Rotorcraft 

Fundamentals,’’ which were not previously 

included in the PTS. Additionally, the subject area 

elements of the Mechanic ACS provide more 

specific aeronautical knowledge elements that 

include detailed knowledge, risk management, and 

skill elements within existing subject areas. 

reference. Therefore, consistent with the 

statute, § 147.17(a)(1) requires each 

certificated AMTS to establish, 

maintain, and utilize a curriculum 42

designed to continually align with the 

mechanic airmen certification standards 

as appropriate to the ratings held. The 

mechanic airman certification standards 

are contained in the Mechanic ACS, 

which is a document that exists outside 

the regulations; therefore, to effectuate 

the requirement, the FAA is 

incorporating it by reference as 

previously discussed. Section 147.17(b) 

contains the proper language of 

incorporation set forth by the Office of 

the Federal Register 43 and includes 

document identification and location 

information, thereby enabling AMTS to 

comply with § 147.17(a)(1). 

As previously discussed, the 

Mechanic ACS includes high-level 

subjects (e.g., Fundamentals of 

Electricity and Electronics, Aircraft 

Drawings), which are broken down into 

components that include knowledge, 

risk management, and skill elements 

relevant to that subject. The knowledge, 

risk management, and skill elements set 

forth the standards for certification. 

Because the statute requires a 

curriculum to align with the Mechanic 

ACS, the curriculum must align with 

the standards set forth under the highlevel subjects. For example, a 

curriculum would not meet the 

statutory requirement in Section 

135(d)(3)(A) if it aligned only with the 

subjects in the Mechanic ACS because 

the high-level subjects are not the 

certification standards.44 Nor would a 

curriculum suffice if it did not align 

with the knowledge and skill elements 

contained in the Mechanic ACS, 

because those are the knowledge and 

skill standards that the FAA will 

evaluate in testing applicants for a 

mechanic certificate under part 65. 

While a curriculum must align with 

the high-level subjects and the 

standards set forth under those subjects, 

an AMTS need not duplicate the entire 

Mechanic ACS verbatim into its 

curriculum. Rather, the intent is to 

provide a more flexible, performancebased standard that enables an AMTS to 

develop a curriculum suited to the 

particular AMTS and that aligns with 

the Mechanic ACS. The FAA finds that 

an AMTS will be in compliance with 

§ 147.17(a)(1) 45 if the school designs its 

curriculum to include: (1) The highlevel subjects that are listed in the 

Mechanic ACS; and (2) broader course 

content items, concepts, and practical 

projects under each high-level subject, 

which may encompass several of the 

more detailed knowledge, risk 

management, and skill elements listed 

in the Mechanic ACS. For example, one 

broad course content item in the 

curriculum may encompass several 

knowledge elements listed in the 

Mechanic ACS, while still aligning with 

the Mechanic ACS. The FAA notes that 

the requirement to align the curriculum 

with the Mechanic ACS will not 

preclude an AMTS from including 

additional course content beyond that 

provided in the Mechanic ACS. 

New § 147.17 replaces the curriculum 

requirements set forth in current 

§ 147.21 (General curriculum 

requirements). New § 147.17 omits 

certain requirements in current § 147.21, 

including prescriptive requirements for 

curriculum hours and inclusion of 

subjects currently found in the 

appendices of part 147. Additionally, 

while the FAA will review curriculum 

as part of its oversight responsibilities, 

the FAA will no longer approve AMTS 

curriculum. For this reason, exemptions 

previously issued to provide relief from 

current § 147.21 will no longer be 

needed and will terminate upon the 

effective date of this interim final rule.46

C. Conforming Amendments To 

Incorporate the Mechanic ACS by 

Reference (§§ 65.23, 65.75, and 65.79) 

The FAA’s implementation of new 

§ 147.17 and incorporation by reference 

of the Mechanic ACS into part 147 

necessitates conforming revisions to 

part 65. While part 147 addresses the 

training of mechanics through a 

certificated AMTS, subpart D of part 65 

contains the eligibility requirements for 

all applicants seeking a mechanic 

certificate or rating, including the 

requirements to pass a written, oral, and 

practical test, respectively, within a 

period of 24 months.47 That is, 

mechanic applicants who do not 

graduate from a certificated AMTS may 

test for a mechanic certificate by 

obtaining certain thresholds of practical 

experience rather than by graduating 

from a certificated AMTS.48 The 

eligibility requirements and testing 

standards in subpart D of part 65 are 

applicable to students trained by an 

AMTS, as well as those who meet the 

practical experience requirements found 

in § 65.77(b). 

The training of mechanics at an 

AMTS must therefore correspond to the 

testing standards required for 

certification under part 65, as evidenced 

by Section 135(d)(3)(C) of the Act, 

which requires an AMTS to ensure 

students have the knowledge and skills 

necessary to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

part 65 and to align its curriculum with 

the Mechanic ACS. If the FAA did not 

require compliance with the Mechanic 

ACS in part 65, it would result in a 

disconnect between the training 

provided to AMTS students and the 

testing standards that an applicant must 

demonstrate on an FAA test for 

mechanic certification. This disconnect 

would adversely affect AMTS students 

if tested on knowledge and skill that the 

students were not trained on and would 

be inconsistent with Section 

135(d)(3)(C). As evidenced from this 

statutory requirement, as well as the 

requirement for a curriculum to align 

with the mechanic airman certification 

standards (i.e., the testing standards), 

the FAA has concluded that Congress 

did not intend to create a discrepancy 

between the training a student receives 

from an AMTS and the testing standard 

that a student is evaluated on for 

mechanic certification. Accordingly, to 

effectuate the legislation, the FAA finds 

it necessary to incorporate the Mechanic 

ACS by reference into part 65. 

However, as previously discussed, the 

FAA has not yet transitioned to the 

Mechanic ACS as the testing standard 

and currently uses the Mechanic PTS to 

test applicants for a mechanic certificate 

or rating in accordance with subpart D 

of part 65. Because the Mechanic ACS 

added knowledge and skill standards, 

the FAA recognizes that applicants who 

have been trained by an AMTS prior to 

this interim final rule may not have 

received training on certain aspects of 

aircraft maintenance included in the 

Mechanic ACS.49 Should the FAA 

implement the Mechanic ACS as the 

testing standard upon the effective date 


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50Although there are variances in AMTS 

curriculum delivery timeframes, most AMTS 

structure their curriculum to provide students with 

the knowledge and skills needed to apply for a 

mechanic certificate, with at least a single rating, 

within one year. 

51Pursuant to § 65.75, an applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating must pass a written 

test appropriate to the rating sought after meeting 

the experience requirements of § 65.77. However, as 

explained in section III.e.4 of this preamble, titled 

‘‘Early Testing,’’ the FAA is adding a new provision 

to § 65.75 to allow for early testing in accordance 

with the statutory requirement in Section 135(f)(4). 

52Section 65.80 provides an exception that 

permits a student to take the oral and practical tests 

prescribed by § 65.79 during the final subjects of the 

applicant’s training in the curriculum before the 

student meets the applicable experience 

requirements of § 65.77 and before the student 

passes each section of the written test prescribed by 

§ 65.75 when a certificated AMTS shows to an FAA 

inspector that the student has made satisfactory 

progress at the school and is prepared to take the 

oral and practical tests. 

53The Mechanic PTS prescribes performance 

levels for which an applicant must demonstrate 

proficiency in the assigned elements in each subject 

area for the oral and practical tests. 54The FAA notes that the oral and practical tests 

are administered using a representative sample of 

subject areas and their requisite elements; a single 

test may not include all of the subject areas and 

elements listed in the Mechanic PTS or Mechanic 

ACS. 

of this interim final rule, students who 

have been trained by an AMTS under 

the contents of the current part 147, 

appendices B, C, and D, would be 

placed at an immediate disadvantage 

when testing. Therefore, in order to 

allow for each AMTS to train its 

students under the curriculum aligned 

with the Mechanic ACS, as required by 

new § 147.17(a)(1), the FAA is delaying 

the implementation of the Mechanic 

ACS as the testing standard in part 65. 

Further, the FAA finds that one year is 

a sufficient time frame for current 

AMTS students to gain the knowledge 

required to take a knowledge, practical, 

and oral test based on the Mechanic 

ACS standards.50 Therefore, the FAA 

will use the Mechanic PTS as the testing 

standard until July 31, 2023. After July 

31, 2023, the FAA will use the 

Mechanic ACS to conduct mechanic 

tests. 

To enforce both the Mechanic PTS 

and Mechanic ACS in part 65, the FAA 

must incorporate these standards by 

reference, as done for part 147, to ensure 

the testing standards are legally 

enforceable and consistent with the 

standards required by part 147. To 

require compliance with the testing 

standards set forth in the Mechanic PTS 

and Mechanic ACS, the FAA adds a 

new regulation to subpart A of part 65, 

designated as § 65.23, and amends the 

requirements in §§ 65.75 and 65.79, 

which require an applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating to pass a 

knowledge, oral and practical test, 

respectively. Rather than restate the 

language required by 5 U.S.C. 552(a) 

and 1 CFR 51.9(b) to incorporate a 

document by reference in multiple part 

65 sections, the FAA has created a new 

centralized incorporation by reference 

section as § 65.23 that incorporates the 

Mechanic PTS and Mechanic ACS. 

Centralizing the incorporation of the 

Mechanic ACS and Mechanic PTS 

under one section will streamline the 

regulatory text and avoid repetitive 

information in the regulations. 

Subsequent part 65 sections that require 

compliance with these respective 

standards (i.e., §§ 65.75 and 65.79) refer 

to § 65.23 for identification information 

and the incorporation by reference 

language required by 1 CFR part 51. 

Prior to this interim final rule, § 65.75 

required the applicant to pass a written 

test that covered certain knowledge 

areas.51 However, the FAA and an 

industry working group developed the 

Mechanic ACS to contain knowledge 

elements that an applicant must know 

to pass the written test. Thus, the 

Mechanic ACS contains the intended 

testing standards for the written test. To 

make these knowledge testing standards 

mandatory, the FAA is revising § 65.75 

by incorporating by reference the 

Mechanic ACS in the section. However, 

as previously discussed, an immediate 

effectivity of the Mechanic ACS as the 

testing standard would put students 

who have trained at an AMTS whose 

curriculum has not incorporated some 

Mechanic ACS subject areas at a 

disadvantage. Therefore, the FAA will 

test mechanic applicants using the 

Mechanic PTS. The FAA will not test 

part 65 applicants on the subject areas 

contained in the Mechanic ACS until 

AMTSs have had an opportunity to 

deliver their revised curriculum in 

accordance with new § 147.17 (i.e., 

aligned with the Mechanic ACS as 

appropriate for the ratings held). 

As such, the FAA is revising 

§ 65.75(a) to require that each applicant 

for a mechanic certificate or rating must, 

after meeting the applicable experience 

requirements of § 65.77, pass a written 

test, appropriate to the rating sought, 

which includes the subject areas 

contained in the applicable Mechanic 

PTS, appropriate to the rating sought, 

until July 31, 2023. After July 31, 2023, 

new § 65.75(a) requires part 65 

applicants, after meeting the applicable 

experience requirements of § 65.77, to 

pass a written test, appropriate to the 

rating sought, which includes the 

aeronautical knowledge subject areas 

contained in the Mechanic ACS, 

appropriate to the rating sought. 

The FAA is retaining the requirement 

in § 65.75(b) that the applicant must 

pass each section of the test before 

applying for the oral and practical tests 

prescribed by § 65.79,52 and that a 

report of the written test is sent to the 

applicant. The FAA notes that 

consistent with Section 135(f)(4) of the 

statute, the FAA is adding a provision 

to § 65.75 to allow AMTS students to 

take the general written test prior to 

meeting the experience requirements of 

§ 65.77 if they can provide an 

authenticated document from a 

certificated AMTS demonstrating 

satisfactory completion of the general 

portion of the school’s curriculum. 

Section III.e.4. of this preamble, titled 

‘‘Early Testing,’’ discusses § 65.75(c) in 

detail. 

Similarly, the FAA is revising § 65.79, 

which contains the oral and practical 

test requirements for applicants seeking 

a mechanic certificate or rating, by 

incorporating by reference both the 

Mechanic PTS and the Mechanic ACS, 

respectively, in the section with the 

same effectivity dates as promulgated by 

§ 65.75. Prior to this final rule, § 65.79 

required each applicant to pass an oral 

test and a practical test appropriate to 

the rating sought. Section 65.79 required 

the tests to cover the applicant’s basic 

skill in performing practical projects on 

the subjects covered by the written test 

for the rating sought. Additionally, 

§ 65.79 required an applicant for a 

powerplant rating to show their ability 

to make satisfactory minor repairs to, 

and minor alternations of, propellers. To 

make the testing standards mandatory, 

the FAA is requiring in new § 65.79(a) 

that each applicant for a mechanic 

certificate or rating must pass an oral 

test and a practical test, as appropriate 

to the rating sought, by demonstrating 

the prescribed proficiency 53 in the 

assigned objectives for the subject areas 

contained in the applicable Mechanic 

PTS until July 31, 2023. After July 31, 

2023, new § 65.79(b) requires each 

applicant for a mechanic certificate or 

rating to pass an oral test and practical 

test, as appropriate to the rating sought, 

by demonstrating satisfactory 

understanding of the knowledge, risk 

management, and skill element for each 

subject contained in the Mechanic 

ACS.54

D. Remaining Training Requirements 

(§ 147.17(a)(2) and (3)) 

The FAA is implementing the 

remaining training requirements of 

Section 135(d)(3)(B) and (C) in new 

§ 147.17(a)(2) and (3). Section 

147.17(a)(2) requires each AMTS to 


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55Section 135(f)(3)(B) requires the training to 

meet the requirements of subsection (f)(1), which 

the FAA has implemented as § 147.25. 

56The FAA notes that new § 147.5(b) requires an 

AMTS to provide a description of the manner in 

which the school’s curriculum will ensure the 

student has the knowledge and skills required by 

new § 147.17(a)(3). In providing such description, 

the AMTS should include information such as the 

basis of the curriculum (e.g., credit hours, hoursbased, competency based training), as well as the 

curriculum delivery methods (e.g., distance 

learning, in-person learning, virtual labs). 

57See § 147.17(a)(2). 

58See § 147.17(a)(3). 

provide training of a quality that meets 

the requirements of § 147.25,55 which 

contains the minimum passage rate 

requirements that a school must 

maintain. Section 147.17(a)(2) 

implements the statutory requirement of 

Section 135(d)(3)(B) without change. 

Section 147.17(a)(3) requires each 

AMTS to ensure that its students have 

the knowledge and skills necessary to be 

prepared to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

subpart D of part 65.56 Section 

147.17(a)(3) implements the statutory 

requirement of Section 135(d)(3)(C) with 

one minor change in terminology for 

accuracy. As previously discussed, 

subpart D of part 65 contains the 

eligibility and certification requirements 

for persons seeking a mechanic 

certificate or rating. Part 65 does not 

require a student to have knowledge and 

skill ‘‘to be eligible’’ to test for a 

mechanic certificate or rating. Rather, 

§§ 65.75 and 65.79 require an applicant 

to pass a written, oral, and practical test 

by demonstrating certain knowledge 

and skills. It is, therefore, accurate to 

state that a student must have the 

knowledge and skills necessary ‘‘to be 

prepared’’ to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

subpart D of part 65. Section 

147.17(a)(3) contains this change in 

terminology for purposes of alignment 

with the requirements of part 65. 

4. Instructor Requirements (§ 147.19) 

Section 135(d)(4) states that each 

certificated AMTS shall (A) provide 

qualified instructors to teach in a 

manner that ensures positive 

educational outcomes are achieved; (B) 

ensure instructors hold a mechanic 

certificate with one or more appropriate 

ratings (or, with respect to instructors 

who are not certificated mechanics, 

ensure instructors are otherwise 

specifically qualified to teach their 

assigned content); and (C) ensure the 

student-to-instructor ratio does not 

exceed 25:1 for any shop class. 

The statutory requirement preserves 

the requirement in current § 147.23 that 

instructors either hold a mechanic 

certificate or be otherwise specially 

qualified to teach certain curriculum 

content. The requirement also retains 

the student-to-instructor ratio 

prescribed for shop classes in current 

§ 147.23 but removes the requirement 

that the one instructor in that ratio be 

FAA certificated. ‘‘Mechanic certificate’’ 

will continue to refer to an FAA 

mechanic certificate issued under part 

65. The FAA interprets ‘‘specifically 

qualified’’ to mean an instructor is 

demonstrably qualified by reason other 

than an FAA mechanic certificate (e.g., 

education or relevant experience) to 

teach a certain portion of the school’s 

curriculum. 

The statute adds the requirement that 

qualified instructors teach in a manner 

that ensures achievement of positive 

educational outcomes. The FAA 

interprets positive educational 

outcomes to refer to the training 

standards set forth in Section 135(d)(3) 

(implemented in new § 147.17), which 

are geared toward ensuring the AMTS 

provides training of a quality that 

satisfies the pass rate requirement 

specified in § 147.25 and equips 

students with the knowledge and skills 

needed to be prepared to test for a 

mechanic certificate and associated 

ratings under part 65. This means that 

instructors qualified in accordance with 

Section 135(d)(4)(B) must teach in a 

manner that ensures achievement of the 

training requirements in new 

§ 147.17(a)(2) and (3). That is, 

instructors must teach in a manner that 

ensures the AMTS provides training of 

a quality that meets the minimum pass 

rate requirement specified in § 147.25.57

Additionally, instructors must teach in 

a manner that ensures students have the 

knowledge and skills necessary to be 

prepared to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

subpart D of part 65.58

The FAA is implementing the 

requirement of Section 135(d)(4) in new 

§ 147.19 with one minor change. The 

FAA is dividing Section 135(d)(4)(B), 

which is implemented in new 

§ 147.19(b), into two subsections that 

distinguish the requirements for 

instructors who hold a mechanic 

certificate versus instructors who are 

otherwise specifically qualified. 

An AMTS must submit information 

demonstrating compliance with § 147.19 

in its application. Section 147.5(b)(3) 

requires applicants to describe the 

manner in which the school will ensure 

it provides the necessary qualified 

instructors to meet the requirements of 

§ 147.19. Section 147.5(b)(4) further 

requires that applicants submit 

information needed to determine 

compliance with each of the 

requirements of part 147, which 

includes § 147.19. As such, in addition 

to describing the manner in which the 

school will ensure it provides the 

instructors required by § 147.19, the 

school must submit information 

demonstrating compliance with the 

requirements to (a) provide qualified 

instructors to teach in a manner that 

ensures positive educational outcomes; 

(b) ensure instructors are either 

certificated mechanics or otherwise 

specifically qualified; and (c) ensure the 

student-to-instructor ratio does not 

exceed 25:1 for any shop class. 

To demonstrate compliance with 

§ 147.19(a), an AMTS must submit 

evidence that it is able to provide 

qualified instructors (as defined in 

§ 147.19(b)) to ensure the achievement 

of the training requirements in 

§ 147.17(a)(2) and (a)(3). An AMTS 

should be prepared to describe the 

manner by which the school will ensure 

that its instructors can provide training 

of a quality that meets the requirements 

of § 147.25 and equip students with the 

knowledge and skills necessary to be 

prepared to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

subpart D of part 65. 

To demonstrate compliance with 

§ 147.19(b), an AMTS must submit 

information demonstrating that any 

certificated instructors hold FAA 

mechanic certificates and appropriate 

ratings. For any non-certificated 

instructors, the school must identify the 

portion of its curriculum to which the 

instructor will be assigned and submit 

information demonstrating that the 

instructor is specifically qualified to 

teach their assigned content. 

5. Certificate of Completion (§ 147.21) 

Section 135(d)(5), titled ‘‘Certificate of 

completion,’’ states that each 

certificated AMTS shall provide 

authenticated documentation to each 

graduating student, indicating the 

student’s date of graduation and 

curriculum completed, as described in 

Section 135(d)(3)(A), which contains the 

training requirements for AMTSs. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(d)(5) in 

new § 147.21 by stating that each 

certificated AMTS must provide an 

authenticated document to each 

graduating student, indicating the 

student’s date of graduation and 

curriculum completed. Because the 

statute requires the FAA to establish 

interim final regulations in accordance 

with Section 135, new § 147.21 will not 

require an AMTS to provide an 

authenticated transcript of a student’s 

grades to each student who is graduated 


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59The FAA notes that an applicant must 

demonstrate that the applicant meets the experience 

requirements of § 65.77 in order to be eligible to 

take the written test. The experience requirements 

provide two avenues to demonstrate such have been 

met: (1) Graduation from a certificated AMTS, or (2) 

practical experience. It follows that if an applicant 

graduated from a non-certificated AMTS, the 

applicant must demonstrate the requisite practical 

experience in order to be eligible to take the written 

test. Therefore, the designation of whether an 

AMTS is certificated is vital for testing centers to 

determine how the applicant meets the experience 

requirements of § 65.77 prior to testing. 

from the school or who leaves it before 

graduating as current § 147.35 

(Transcripts and graduation certificates) 

requires. The language in new § 147.21 

mirrors the statute except for two minor 

changes. 

First, the FAA finds it unnecessary to 

codify the statutory provision that states 

‘‘the curriculum as described in Section 

135(d)(3)(A).’’ As previously discussed, 

Section 135(d)(3)(A), which contains the 

curriculum requirements, is 

implemented in new § 147.17(a). It is 

apparent that the curriculum referenced 

in new § 147.21 refers to the curriculum 

required by § 147.17(a), as that is the 

only curriculum referenced in, and 

required by, new part 147. As such, the 

FAA is not adopting language that states 

‘‘the curriculum as described in 

§ 147.17(a).’’ 

Second, the FAA is using the term 

‘‘authenticated document’’ instead of 

‘‘authenticated documentation.’’ Under 

the FAA’s regulations, the purpose of 

issuing an authenticated document to a 

student who graduates from a 

certificated AMTS is to enable that 

student to demonstrate compliance with 

the experience requirements of § 65.77. 

The FAA finds that the term 

‘‘authenticated document’’, rather than 

‘‘authenticated documentation,’’ 

accurately captures the documents 

intended to be presented under § 65.77. 

The FAA is concerned that the term 

‘‘authenticated documentation’’ is vague 

and may be broadly interpreted to 

include numerous pages of extensive 

documentation. When a student 

presents a document to demonstrate 

compliance with § 65.77, that student 

presents the document to a knowledge 

testing center to show that the student 

is eligible to take the written test or 

tests. A knowledge testing center is a 

private company designated by the FAA 

to administer written airman knowledge 

tests, with FAA oversight to ensure 

compliance with FAA requirements. As 

a private company, a knowledge testing 

center is not the appropriate entity to 

review extensive documentation and 

make a determination about the 

student’s eligibility under the 

regulations. Instead, the student must 

present a single document to the 

knowledge testing center that 

unambiguously demonstrates the 

student’s eligibility to take the written 

tests. The term ‘‘authenticated 

document’’ is, therefore, more 

appropriate for an AMTS to provide to 

its graduates. 

Furthermore, if the authenticated 

document is issued under § 147.21 for 

the purpose of demonstrating 

compliance with § 65.77, the FAA finds 

it necessary for the authenticated 

document to include the school’s name 

and air agency certificate number to 

enable the knowledge testing center to 

identify the school as a certificated 

AMTS. Because schools may share the 

same name, an air agency certificate 

number is the only means for the FAA 

and knowledge testing centers to 

distinguish between AMTSs and to 

ensure the student graduated from a 

certificated AMTS.59

In order to ensure consistency in the 

regulations, the FAA finds the need to 

make two conforming amendments to 

§ 65.77. For purposes of effectuating the 

legislation in harmony with part 65, the 

FAA is replacing the reference in 

§ 65.77 of ‘‘a graduation certificate or 

certificate of completion’’ with 

‘‘authenticated document.’’ 

Additionally, § 65.77 presents two 

alternatives in lieu of graduating from a 

certificated AMTS in order to meet the 

experience required in § 65.75 to take 

the written test, provided the applicant 

provides documentary evidence 

satisfactory to the Administrator of 

such. The FAA finds that it is necessary 

to reformat § 65.77 in order to 

communicate that an applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating may 

present either an authenticated 

document from an AMTS or 

documentary evidence of one of the two 

practical experience alternatives. 

e. Quality Control System Requirements 

(§ 147.23) 

Section 135(e) establishes new 

requirements for certificated AMTSs 

based on whether the AMTS is 

accredited by the Department of 

Education. The following sections 

reiterate the statutory requirements and 

explain how the FAA is implementing 

them in new part 147. 

1. Quality Control System: 

Accreditation (§ 147.23(a)) 

Section 135(e)(1) states that an AMTS 

must be accredited as meeting the 

definition of an institution of higher 

education provided for in section 101 of 

the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

U.S.C. 1001) or establish and maintain 

a quality control system that meets the 

requirements specified in Section 

135(e)(2), FAA-approved quality control 

system, and is approved by the 

Administrator. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(e)(1) in 

new § 147.23(a), with two minor 

revisions. First, the FAA adds the word 

‘‘certificated’’ before ‘‘aviation 

maintenance technician school’’ to 

clarify the applicability of the 

requirements of § 147.23(a). 

Second, the FAA revises the 

requirement to state that a school must 

‘‘be accredited within the meaning of 20 

U.S.C. 1001(a)(5).’’ Although the statute 

specified a school would need to be 

‘‘accredited as meeting the definition of 

an institution of higher education,’’ this 

language incorrectly suggests that a 

school is accredited if it meets the 

Department of Education’s definition of 

‘‘institution of higher education.’’ To the 

contrary, accreditation is one of five 

criteria that a school must meet in order 

to be deemed an ‘‘institution of higher 

education’’ under 20 U.S.C. 1001(a). 

Schools become accredited by seeking 

recognition from one of the accrediting 

agencies governed by the Department of 

Education. Section 1001(a) requires that 

schools be ‘‘accredited by a nationally 

recognized accrediting agency or 

association.’’ Pursuant to Section 

1001(c), the Secretary of Education 

publishes a list of all nationally 

recognized accrediting agencies or 

associations determined to be reliable 

authority as to the quality of the 

education or training offered. Given that 

the subsequent section, Section 

135(e)(2), refers only to accreditation, 

and not the definition of ‘‘institution of 

higher education,’’ the FAA believes the 

statute intends to require that schools be 

‘‘accredited,’’ as that term is used in 20 

U.S.C. 1001(a)(5), rather than requiring 

schools to meet all five criteria of the 

Department of Education’s definition, 

which would appear to well exceed the 

scope of part 147 certification. 

For this reason, the FAA requires in 

§ 147.23(a) that each certificated AMTS 

either (1) be accredited within the 

meaning of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5)— 

meaning they are accredited by an 

accrediting agency or association 

recognized by the Department of 

Education pursuant to 20 U.S.C. 

1001(c); or (2) establish and maintain a 

quality control system that meets the 

requirements in § 147.23(b). 

The requirement to ‘‘maintain’’ the 

quality control system under 

§ 147.23(a)(2) means that a school must 

continue to implement the procedures 

described in its quality control system 

after it is approved by the FAA. If the 

school makes changes to its FAAapproved quality control system, then 


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60See 20 U.S.C. 1099b. 

the school must notify the FAA since 

the basis for the FAA’s approval would 

have changed. The FAA will provide a 

means of compliance for a quality 

control system and outline procedures 

that have proven successful for AMTSs 

in the past in AC 147–3 (as revised). The 

means of compliance set forth in the AC 

are not the only means of satisfying 

§ 147.23; schools may use alternative 

means of compliance. 

The FAA notes that the Department of 

Education’s recognition of accrediting 

agencies is limited by statute to 

accreditation activities within the 

United States.60 To be accredited within 

the meaning of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5), an 

AMTS must have its primary location 

within the United States. The FAA 

would consider an AMTS’s 

accreditation to extend to any additional 

training locations, whether located 

within or outside the United States. An 

AMTS whose primary location is 

outside of the United States cannot 

satisfy § 147.23(a)(1) and must instead 

establish and maintain a quality control 

system pursuant to § 147.23(b). 

An AMTS must submit information 

demonstrating compliance with 

§ 147.23(a) in its application. Section 

147.5(b)(4) requires that applicants 

submit information needed to determine 

compliance with each of the 

requirements of part 147, which 

includes § 147.23. As such, an AMTS 

must either demonstrate that it is 

accredited within the meaning of 20 

U.S.C. 1001(a)(5) or submit for FAA 

approval a quality control system that 

satisfies § 147.23(b). To demonstrate 

accreditation under § 147.23(a), a school 

should provide documentation that 

shows the school’s current accreditation 

status and its accrediting agency. 

2. Quality Control System: FAAApproved System (§ 147.23(b)) 

As previously discussed, Section 

135(e)(1)(B) requires a non-accredited 

AMTS to establish and maintain a 

quality control system that meets the 

requirements of Section 135(e)(2) and is 

approved by the Administrator. In the 

case of a non-accredited AMTS, Section 

135(e)(2) requires the Administrator to 

approve a quality control system that 

provides procedures for record-keeping, 

assessment, issuing credit, issuing of 

final course grades, attendance, 

ensuring sufficient number of 

instructors, granting of graduation 

documentation, and corrective action 

for addressing deficiencies. 

The FAA is implementing the 

requirements of Section 135(e)(2) in 

new § 147.23(b) with two minor 

changes. First, the statutory language in 

Section 135(e)(2) states that the FAAapproved system requirements apply in 

the case of an AMTS that is not 

accredited as set forth in paragraph (1), 

which is implemented as § 147.23(a). 

Because § 147.23(a) states that an AMTS 

must either be accredited within the 

meaning of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5) or 

establish and maintain a quality control 

system, the FAA finds it repetitive to 

state that § 147.23(b) specifically applies 

to those AMTSs that are not accredited 

as set forth in § 147.23(a). Rather, the 

regulatory language has been simplified 

to state that the required procedures 

apply to the quality control system in 

§ 147.23(a)(2). 

Pertaining to the second minor 

change, the statutory provision requires 

the FAA to approve a quality control 

system that meets the requirements of 

the provision. Because the FAA’s 

regulations apply to the regulated 

community rather than the FAA itself, 

the FAA is slightly revising the wording 

of Section 135(e)(2) to make it 

applicable to certificated AMTSs. 

Accordingly, new § 147.23(b) requires 

the quality control system specified in 

§ 147.23(a)(2) to provide procedures for 

recordkeeping, assessment, issuing 

credit, issuing of final course grades, 

attendance, ensuring sufficient number 

of instructors, granting of graduation 

documentation, and corrective action 

for addressing deficiencies. As such, 

unless an AMTS is accredited within 

the meaning of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5), the 

school will need to establish and 

maintain a quality control system that 

includes procedures for each of the 

items in § 147.23(b). Pursuant to 

§ 147.23(a)(2), this quality control 

system must be approved by the 

Administrator. 

In order to satisfy § 147.23(b), the 

quality control system submitted to the 

FAA for approval must clearly describe 

the school’s procedures for each of the 

items listed in § 147.23(b). The FAA 

interprets ‘‘recordkeeping’’ to refer to 

procedures for producing and retaining 

records related to the AMTS’s operation 

and students’ completion of the school’s 

curriculum. Similarly, the FAA 

interprets ‘‘assessment’’ to refer to 

procedures for evaluation of students’ 

completion of the school’s curriculum 

requirements. The FAA interprets 

procedures for ‘‘issuing credit’’ to refer 

to procedures describing how and when 

the school will credit a student with 

completion of the school’s curriculum 

(or portions thereof), including if, when, 

and how the school will credit prior 

instruction or experience. Similarly, 

‘‘attendance’’ procedures should 

describe how the AMTS will keep track 

of student attendance related to any 

school requirements for curriculum 

completion. Procedures for granting 

graduation documentation should 

describe the basis upon which the 

school will issue graduation 

documentation and the format of the 

documentation to be issued. These 

procedures should include 

documentation issued under § 147.31, 

early testing. Lastly, the FAA interprets 

‘‘deficiencies’’ within the context of the 

statute to refer to deficiencies or defects 

within the school’s quality control 

system, which may arise following FAA 

approval. 

As previously stated, an AMTS must 

submit information demonstrating 

compliance with § 147.23 in its 

application pursuant to § 147.5(b)(4). As 

such, unless an AMTS submits 

information demonstrating that it is 

accredited in accordance with 

§ 147.23(a)(1), the school must submit 

for FAA approval a quality control 

system that meets the requirements of 

§ 147.23(b). Additionally, for those 

currently certificated AMTSs, Section 

135 of the Act repeals and replaces 

current part 147 upon the effective date 

of the interim final rule; therefore, 

schools must ensure they are either 

accredited or have an FAA-approved 

quality control system in place and 

demonstrated to the FAA in order to 

comply with new part 147 and continue 

operations as a certificated AMTS. For 

additional information on submission of 

this information, refer to AC 147–3. 

f. Additional Requirements (Subpart B) 

Section 135(f)(1) through (4) contain 

additional requirements for certificated 

AMTSs, including a pass rate 

requirement to ensure schools provide 

quality training, an FAA inspection 

requirement, a requirement for schools 

to display their AMTS certificates, and 

a requirement allowing students to take 

the general written test required under 

part 65 early, provided certain 

conditions are met. Because those 

requirements pertain to the operations 

of certificated ATMSs, the FAA is 

implementing them in subpart B of part 

147, ‘‘Certification and Operating 

Requirements.’’ The following sections 

specify the statutory requirements and 

discuss the FAA’s implementation of 

those requirements in more detail. 

1. Minimum Passage Rate (§ 147.25) 

Section 135(f)(1) states that a 

certificated AMTS ‘‘shall maintain a 

pass rate of at least 70 percent of 

students who took a written, oral, or 

practical (or any combination thereof) 

FAA mechanic tests within 60 days of 

graduation for the most recent 3-year 


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61 ‘‘With regard to judicial review of an agency’s 

construction of the statute which it administers, if 

Congress has not directly spoken to the precise 

question at issue, the question for the court is 

whether the agency’s answer is based on a 

permissible construction of the statute.’’ Chevron 

U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, 

Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (1984). The primary holding of 

the Chevron doctrine is that a government agency 

must conform to any clear legislative statements 

when interpreting and applying a law, but courts 

will give the agency deference in ambiguous 

situations as long as its interpretation is reasonable. 

62SNPRM, Aviation Maintenance Technician 

Schools, 84 FR 15533, 15549 (Apr. 16, 2019). 

63See proposed § 147.37 in the SNPRM, 84 FR at 

15549. 

64The proposed rule would have required 

schools to assess compliance on a quarterly basis. 

65See FAA Rulemaking Docket No. FAA–2015– 

3901. 

66As evidenced by the term ‘‘graduates’’ in the 

FAA’s proposed rule, ‘‘within 60 days of 

graduation’’ meant ‘‘60 days after graduation.’’ 

67See 14 CFR part 65, subpart D. 

68 14 CFR 65.71(a)(3). 

69Section 65.75 contains the knowledge 

requirements for a person seeking a mechanic 

certificate, including the requirement to pass the 

written test. The FAA notes that there are multiple 

FAA mechanic written tests. The FAA has a general 

written test, an airframe written test, and a power 

plant written test. The tests that an applicant must 

pass depend on the mechanic rating or ratings 

sought. 

70Section 65.79 contains the skill requirements 

for a person seeking a mechanic certificate, 

including the requirement to pass an oral and 

practical test on the rating the person seeks. 

71See proposed § 147.37 in the SNPRM, 84 FR 

15533 (proposing to require the student to pass on 

the first attempt in order to be counted towards the 

school’s pass rate); see also § 141.5(d) (requiring a 

pass rate of 80 percent or higher ‘‘on the first 

attempt’’); § 141.55(e)(2)(ii) (requiring at least 80 

percent of students to pass the practical or 

knowledge test, as appropriate, ‘‘on the first 

attempt’’); § 141.63(a)(5)(ii) (requiring at least 90 

percent of students to pass the required practical or 

knowledge test, or any combination thereof, for the 

pilot, flight instructor, or ground instructor 

certificate or rating ‘‘on the first attempt’’). 

72 ‘‘It is a fundamental canon of statutory 

construction that the words of a statute must be 

read in their context and with a view to their place 

in the overall statutory scheme.’’ Davis v. Michigan 

Dept. of Treasury, 489 U.S. 803, 809 (1989). ‘‘A 

statute should be construed so that effect is given 

to all its provisions, so that no part will be 

inoperative or superfluous, void or 

insignificant. . . .’’’ Hibbs v. Winn, 542 U.S. 88, 

101 (2004) (quoting 2A N. Singer, Statutes and 

Statutory Construction section 46.06, pp. 181–186 

(rev. 6th ed. 2000)). Likewise, all parts, provisions, 

and sections of title 14 of the CFR must be read 

together in order to best ascertain and give effect to 

their meaning. 

period.’’ Section 135(d)(3)(B), which 

contains the training requirements for 

AMTSs, requires each school to provide 

training of a quality that satisfies the 

minimum passage rate required by 

Section 135(f)(1). The training 

requirements are implemented in 

§ 147.17 and discussed in section III.d.3. 

of this preamble, titled ‘‘Training 

Requirements.’’ This section discusses 

the implementation of the pass rate 

requirement in § 147.25. 

In implementing Section 135(f)(1), the 

FAA encountered two ambiguous 

phrases in the statute that would have 

caused confusion in industry.61 The first 

ambiguous phrase is ‘‘within 60 days of 

graduation.’’ The FAA finds that a 

person could interpret this phrase 

several ways. It could mean that a 

school must determine its pass rate by 

using students who take a test (or 

combination of tests) within 60 days 

before graduation. Alternatively, it 

could mean that a school must 

determine its pass rate by using students 

who take a test (or combination of tests) 

within 60 days after graduation. 

Furthermore, a person could interpret 

‘‘within 60 days of graduation’’ to mean 

that a school must determine its pass 

rate by using students who take a test 

(or combination of tests) within the 60 

days before or the 60 days after 

graduation, thereby creating a 120-day 

window as opposed to a 60-day 

window. 

Currently, the FAA does not have a 

minimum passage rate requirement. 

However, in the FAA’s supplemental 

notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) 

for part 147, which was published on 

April 16, 2019,62 the FAA proposed to 

revise the quality of instruction 

requirements by replacing the national 

passing norms with a minimum passage 

rate requirement.63 The FAA’s proposed 

rule would have required each 

certificated AMTS to provide 

instruction of sufficient quality such 

that, in the prior 24 calendar months,64

at least 70 percent of its graduates 

passed on the first attempt within 60 

days of graduation each written test 

leading to a certificate or rating. 

Commenters asked the FAA to add oral 

and practical tests to the provision as 

well as a lookback period of 3 years 

rather than 24-calendar months.65

Section 135(f)(1) includes the 

commenters’ desired changes. Because 

Section 135(f)(1) appears to have 

stemmed from the FAA’s proposed rule 

change in the SNPRM, the FAA is 

interpreting ‘‘within 60 days of 

graduation’’ consistent with the FAA’s 

proposal. Accordingly, ‘‘within 60 days 

of graduation’’ means ‘‘60 days after 

graduation.’’ 66 The FAA notes that the 

60-day window excludes students who 

test beyond 60 days after graduation 

from the pass rate calculation. The FAA 

proposed the 60-day window in the 

SNPRM because knowledge acquired 

through an AMTS’s curriculum may be 

perishable if not applied within a 

reasonable time after graduation. 

The second ambiguous phrase 

includes the list of tests that are used to 

determine the pass rate specified in the 

statute. Specifically, Section 135(f)(1) 

requires a pass rate of at least 70 percent 

of students who take ‘‘a written, oral, or 

practical (or any combination thereof) 

FAA mechanic tests’’ within 60 days of 

graduation. Part 65 contains the 

eligibility requirements for persons 

seeking an FAA mechanic certificate.67

To be eligible for an FAA mechanic 

certificate issued under part 65, a 

person must pass all of the prescribed 

tests within a period of 24 months.68

The prescribed tests for an FAA 

mechanic certificate include written 

tests,69 oral tests, and practical tests.70

Under the statute, for students who take 

one of these tests or any combination 

thereof within 60 days after graduation, 

the school must maintain a pass rate of 

at least 70 percent of students. The 

statute is unambiguous with respect to 

when a student takes only one test 

within 60 days after graduation and 

passes that test; the school may count 

that student towards the 70 percent pass 

rate. Furthermore, because the statute 

does not require the student to pass the 

test on the first attempt,71 the FAA finds 

that the statute is also unambiguous 

with respect to a student who passes a 

test on a subsequent attempt within the 

60 days following graduation; the school 

may also count that student towards the 

70 percent pass rate. It is unclear from 

the statute, however, how Congress 

intended the ‘‘any combination thereof’’ 

language to apply. 

The phrase ‘‘any combination 

thereof’’ refers to a combination of the 

tests prescribed by part 65 (e.g., any 

combination of the written, oral, and 

practical tests). When a student takes a 

combination of tests, however, the FAA 

finds that the number of tests the 

student must pass to be counted 

towards the school’s pass rate is subject 

to interpretation under Section 135(f)(1). 

A person could interpret Section 

135(f)(1) to mean that a person who 

takes a combination of tests must pass 

all tests taken to be considered a passing 

student for purposes of determining the 

school’s pass rate. Alternatively, a 

person could interpret Section 135(f)(1) 

to mean that a person who takes a 

combination of tests must pass only one 

test to be counted towards the school’s 

pass rate. 

To ascertain the meaning of the 

phrase ‘‘any combination thereof’’ in 

Section 135(f)(1), the FAA finds it 

necessary to read the phrase in the 

context of Section 135(f)(1) in its 

entirety. In addition, the FAA should 

construe statutory text so that no word 

or clause is rendered superfluous, void, 

or insignificant.72 Section 135(f)(1) 

expressly requires schools to maintain a 


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73The FAA notes that the legislation specifically 

ties the ‘‘pass rate of at least 70 percent’’ to ‘‘of 

students’’ in Section 135(f)(1). The FAA construes 

this to be an intentional link to students; if the 

intent was to base the 70 percent pass rate on 

individual tests, the legislation would have 

expressly stated ‘‘of tests,’’ instead of ‘‘of students,’’. 74See § 65.75(b). 75The FAA recognizes that a student may take the 

general written test prior to graduation. In this case, 

the student would typically take the oral and 

practical tests within the 60 days following 

graduation. A student may not proceed to oral or 

practical testing until the student passes the 

required written test(s) (except when testing under 

§ 65.80). If a student passes the oral test but 

subsequently fails the practical test, that student 

would be considered a passing student under the 

alternative interpretation. Additionally, if a student 

passes the oral test and subsequently passes the 

practical test, the student would be considered a 

passing student. These examples further illustrate 

how the phrase ‘‘any combination thereof’’ would 

be rendered meaningless under the alternate 

interpretation. 

76The organization and wording of § 147.25 is 

intended to minimize confusion and preclude the 

need for legal interpretations following the 

publication of this interim final rule. The FAA 

notes that part 141 contains similar requirements 

pertaining to pass rates. These requirements have 

resulted in numerous requests for legal 

interpretation. 

77As previously explained, however, a student is 

not required to pass the test on the first attempt. 

Therefore, if the student passed the practical test on 

a subsequent attempt within the 60-day window 

specified in § 147.25(b), that student would be 

considered a passing student for purposes of 

determining the pass rate. 

78Pursuant to Section 135(f)(1) of the Act, 

students who take tests after the 60-day window 

specified in § 147.25(b) may not be counted towards 

the school’s pass rate. 

pass rate of at least 70 percent of 

students 73 who take one of the tests 

specified in paragraph (f)(1) or any 

combination of those tests. In other 

words, 70 percent of students who take 

one of the tests or any combination 

thereof must pass. Therefore, if a 

student takes a combination of tests 

within the 60 days following 

graduation, the FAA interprets the 

statute to mean the student must pass 

all tests taken to be counted as a passing 

student towards the school’s pass rate. 

The FAA finds that this is the most 

reasonable interpretation when read in 

the context of the 70 percent pass rate 

because a student who passes one test 

but fails another would not be a 

‘‘passing’’ student based on the totality 

of the student’s test results. 

Additionally, the FAA’s interpretation 

of Section 135(f)(1) gives meaning to the 

phrase ‘‘any combination thereof.’’ 

If the FAA were to interpret Section 

135(f)(1) to the contrary—to mean that 

a student who takes a combination of 

tests is required to pass only one test to 

be considered a passing student—the 

phrase ‘‘any combination thereof’’ 

would be rendered superfluous. For 

example, before a student may take an 

oral or practical test, the student must 

pass the written test (except if testing 

under § 65.80, as previously 

discussed).74 If a student passes the 

written test but subsequently fails the 

oral and practical tests within the 60 

days following graduation, the school 

would count the student as a passing 

student under this interpretation. 

Additionally, if a student passes the 

written test and subsequently passes the 

oral and practical tests within the 60- 

day window, the school would count 

the student as a passing student. As 

these examples illustrate, the only test 

that would matter under this 

interpretation would be the first test 

taken (e.g., the written test under the 

examples).75 Therefore, interpreting 

Section 135(f)(1) to mean that a student 

who takes any combination of tests is 

required to pass only one of the tests 

(e.g., the written test) to be counted 

towards the school’s pass rate would 

render the phrase ‘‘any combination 

thereof’’ meaningless. 

Accordingly, the FAA is adopting rule 

language in § 147.25 that implements 

Section 135(f)(1) consistent with the 

FAA’s aforementioned interpretation of 

the statutory provision. To facilitate 

readability and minimize confusion, the 

FAA is implementing Section 135(f)(1) 

by adopting three paragraphs in 

§ 147.25.76 Section 147.25(a) requires 

each certificated AMTS to maintain the 

pass rate specified in § 147.25(b) for the 

most recent 3-year period. 

Section 147.25(b) contains the pass 

rate required by the statute. For students 

who take an FAA mechanic test under 

part 65 within 60 days after graduation, 

at least 70 percent of students must pass 

the test (or any combination thereof). 

These tests are listed in § 147.25(b)(1) 

through (3). 

Lastly, to minimize confusion, the 

FAA is adopting § 147.25(c) to make 

clear that a student who takes a 

combination of tests within the 60 days 

following graduation must pass each 

test taken within the 60-day window to 

be considered a passing student for 

purposes of determining the school’s 

pass rate. For example, if the student 

passes the written test(s) and oral test 

but subsequently fails the practical test 

within the 60 days following 

graduation, the school must count the 

failure on the practical test as a student 

failure for purposes of determining the 

pass rate.77 Table 1 contains a 

hypothetical in an effort to provide 

clarity with respect to applying new 

§ 147.25. 

TABLE 1—HYPOTHETICAL TO DETERMINE SCHOOL’S PASS RATE IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 147.25 

Written test * Oral test Practical test 

Student 1 ............... Failed first attempt. Passed second attempt.Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt. 

Student 2 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Failed first and only attempt ................. Failed first and only attempt. 

Student 3 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt. 

Student 4 ............... Failed first attempt. Passed second attempt.Failed first and only attempt ................. Failed first and only attempt. 

Student 5 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt. 

Student 6 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt. 

Student 7 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt. 

Student 8 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. Passed first attempt .............................. N/A.** 

Student 9 ............... Passed first attempt .............................. N/A ** ..................................................... N/A.** 

Student 10 ............. Failed first attempt. Failed second attempt.N/A ** ..................................................... N/A.** 

* For simplicity the table refers to a single written test. However the number of written tests that a mechanic applicant must take depend on the 

rating sought and whether it is an initial mechanic applicant or an application for an additional rating. 

** For purposes of Table 1, N/A means the student did not take the test within the 60 days following graduation.78

In Table 1, the AMTS has 10 students 

who took one or more FAA mechanic 

tests within the 60 days following 

graduation. For the school to meet the 

pass rate, 70 percent of these students 

must have passed. The AMTS would 


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79The FAA notes that while an AMTS is required 

to meet the pass rate in § 147.25, an AMTS is also 

generally required to ensure students have the 

knowledge and skills necessary to be prepared to 

test for a mechanic certificate and associated 

ratings, pursuant to § 147.17(a)(3). As part of the 

FAA’s general inspection authority in § 147.27, the 

FAA may review an AMTS’s pass rate data as a 

whole, not only as it pertains to those students who 

test 60 days after graduation, to ensure that students 

are prepared with the knowledge and skill to test 

for the applicable certificate and/or rating. 

count the following students as passing 

students for purposes of determining the 

pass rate: Students 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 

9. The school must count Students 2 

and 4 as student failures because the 

students took a combination of tests and 

failed two of the three tests (e.g., the oral 

and practical tests). The school must 

also count Student 10 as a student 

failure because the student failed both 

attempts at the written test. Despite the 

student failures, the school had 7 out of 

10 students pass the tests taken within 

the 60-day window. As such, the school 

met the 70 percent pass rate.79

The FAA will collect pass/fail data on 

written, oral, and practical tests taken 

by graduates of an AMTS. The FAA’s 

data will control for purposes of 

determining whether a certificated 

AMTS meets the minimum pass rate 

requirement in new § 147.25. The FAA 

notes that it currently does not collect 

pass/fail data on the oral and practical 

tests taken by AMTS graduates. The 

FAA will begin collecting this data 

when new part 147 goes into effect. 

However, because of the 3-year lookback 

period in the statute and the absence of 

current data, the FAA will not be able 

to determine compliance with § 147.25 

for at least 3 years. Similarly, the 3-year 

lookback period will affect any newly 

certificated AMTSs on and after the 

effective date of the final rule because 

a new school will not have pass rate 

data for the most recent 3-year period. 

The FAA’s inability to determine 

compliance with § 147.25 for a period of 

time does not mean that quality of 

instruction will be ignored. Rather, the 

FAA will issue reports containing the 

pass/fail data, which will allow the FAA 

and certificated AMTSs to monitor their 

pass rates and assess their quality of 

instruction. However, current schools 

(for the first three years following the 

effective date of the interim final rule) 

and newly certificated schools will not 

be in violation of § 147.25, even with a 

pass rate lower than 70 percent, because 

the pass rate would not be based on the 

3-year period of data. 

Table 2 shows which FAA written 

tests an AMTS student may take based 

on the curriculum the student 

completed. Table 3 illustrates the 

different components of the oral and 

practical tests that are administered to 

an applicant seeking a mechanic 

certificate and/or rating under part 65. 

The FAA notes that, for students 

graduating from a certificated AMTS, 

the results of these tests, within the 60- 

day timeframe, will be used to 

determine whether the school meets the 

minimum pass rate. 

TABLE 2—WRITTEN TESTS

If the written test applicant is an AMTS student with an appropriate document, 

Evidencing completion of the following curriculum: Then the applicant is eligible to attempt the following FAA written 

test(s): 

Airframe .................................................................................................... general, airframe. 

Powerplant ................................................................................................ general, powerplant. 

Airframe, Powerplant ................................................................................ general, airframe, powerplant. 

General curriculum content ...................................................................... general. 

TABLE 3—ORAL AND PRACTICAL TESTS

The mechanic oral and practical test will consist of the following elements: 

If the rating(s) being requested is(are): An original mechanic certificate and rating is being requested: An added rating to an existing mechanic certificate is 

requested: 

Airframe ................................ Oral—general, airframe ...................................................

Practical—general, airframe ............................................

Oral—airframe. 

Practical—airframe. 

Powerplant ........................... Oral—general, powerplant ..............................................

Practical—general, powerplant .......................................

Oral—powerplant. 

Practical—powerplant. 

Airframe, Powerplant ........... Oral—general, airframe, powerplant ...............................

Practical—general, airframe, powerplant ........................

N/A. 

2. FAA Inspection (§ 147.27) 

Section 135(f)(2) states that a 

certificated AMTS shall allow the 

Administrator such access as the 

Administrator determines necessary to 

inspect the 1 or more locations of the 

school for purposes of determining: (1) 

The school’s compliance with the 

interim final regulations required under 

Section 135(a)(1); (2) the procedures and 

information outlined in the school’s 

OpSpecs according to Section 135(c)(5); 

and (3) the AMTS certificate issued for 

the school. The FAA believes that the 

latter two areas of compliance are 

inherently incorporated into the first 

enumerated area of compliance, which 

assesses compliance with the 

requirements of part 147. An AMTS’s 

OpSpecs and the school’s certificate are 

issued under the requirements of part 

147. Therefore, the ability to inspect an 

AMTS to determine its compliance with 

part 147 includes inspecting its 

compliance with its OpSpecs and its 

certificate. 

The statutory requirement is largely 

consistent with current § 147.43, which 

allows the Administrator to inspect an 

AMTS at any time to determine its 

compliance with part 147. The FAA is 

implementing this requirement in new 

§ 147.27. As a result of Section 

135(a)(2), which repeals the current 

regulations in part 147, the FAA notes 

that current § 147.43 is repealed upon 

the effective date of this interim final 

rule. Therefore, the language found in 

current § 147.43 that a school will be 

notified, in writing, of any deficiencies 

found during the inspection is repealed. 

However, AMTSs will continue to 

receive written notifications of negative 

findings after inspections pursuant to 


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80See Section 135(d)(2). 

81K Mart Corp. v. Cartier, Inc., 486 U.S. 281, 291 

(1988) (‘‘In determining whether a challenged 

regulation is consistent with the statute it 

implements, courts must ascertain the statute’s 

plain meaning by looking to the particular language 

at issue and the language and design of the statute 

as a whole.’’). 

82See Section 135(c)(1)(A)(i) and Section 

135(c)(5)(D). 

83Russello v. United States, 464 U.S. 16, 23 

(1983) (‘‘[Where] Congress includes particular 

language in one section of a statute but omits it in 

another section of the same Act, it is generally 

presumed that Congress acts intentionally and 

purposely in the disparate inclusion or exclusion.’’) 

(quoting United States v. Wong Kim Bo, 472 F. 2d 

720, 722 (5th Cir. 1972)). 

84For example, it would be confusing to require 

the certificated AMTS to display its part 147 

certificate at a ‘‘location in each location’’ of the 

school (e.g. the primary location and additional 

fixed location). 

85The FAA’s regulations in title 14 CFR use 

‘‘written test’’ and ‘‘knowledge test’’ but do not 

combine the terms to state ‘‘written knowledge 

test.’’ See 14 CFR parts 61, 63, and 65. 

the FAA’s guidance to inspectors found 

in FAA Order 8900.1. 

3. Display of Certificate (§ 147.29) 

Section 135(f)(3) requires a 

certificated AMTS to display its AMTS 

certificate at a location in the school 

that is visible by and normally 

accessible to the public. The FAA finds 

that the term ‘‘school’’ in Section 

135(f)(3) is ambiguous in light of the 

statutory provision that allows a 

certificated AMTS to provide training at 

additional fixed locations.80 For 

example, Section 135(f)(3) could be 

interpreted to mean that the part 147 

certificate must be displayed only at the 

primary location of the school. 

Alternatively, Section 135(f)(3) could be 

interpreted to mean that the part 147 

certificate must be displayed at the 

primary location and any additional 

fixed locations of the school. To 

ascertain the meaning of the term 

‘‘school’’ in Section 135(f)(3), the FAA 

finds it necessary to read Section 

135(f)(3) in the context of the statute in 

its entirety.81 Section 135(d)(2) states 

that a certificated AMTS may provide 

training at any additional location that 

meets the interim final regulations, 

which are required under Section 

135(a)(1), and is listed in the certificate 

holder’s OpSpecs. Additionally, Section 

135(c)(1)(A)(i) contains an application 

requirement that applies to any 

additional fixed locations where 

training will be provided. As a result, a 

‘‘school’’ may have a primary location 

and additional fixed locations. When 

read in the context of Section 135 in its 

entirety, the FAA finds it reasonable to 

interpret the broad term ‘‘school’’ in 

Section 135(f)(3) as including each 

location of the school (i.e., primary 

location and additional fixed locations). 

Furthermore, the statute uses the term 

‘‘primary location’’ throughout the 

legislation,82 but does not use the term 

in Section 135(f)(3). Instead, Section 

135(f)(3) states that the certificate must 

be displayed ‘‘at a location in the 

school.’’ This meaningful variation in 

terminology further supports the FAA’s 

interpretation that the term ‘‘school’’ in 

Section 135(f)(3) means primary 

location and any additional fixed 

locations of the school.83

For these reasons, the FAA interprets 

Section 135(f)(3) to mean that a 

certificated AMTS must display its 

certificate at a place in each location of 

the school, including the primary 

location and any additional fixed 

locations, that is visible by and 

normally accessible to the public. The 

FAA is implementing this requirement 

in new § 147.29. The AMTS may 

display a copy of the Air Agency 

certificate at any location. The FAA 

notes that it is using the term ‘‘place’’ 

in the regulation rather than ‘‘location’’ 

to avoid confusion because the statute 

(and thus, the implementing 

regulations) already use the term 

‘‘location’’ with respect to ‘‘primary 

location’’ and ‘‘additional fixed 

locations.’’ 84

4. Early Testing (§ 147.31) 

Section 135(f)(4) states that a 

certificated AMTS ‘‘may issue 

authenticated documentation 

demonstrating a student’s satisfactory 

progress, completion of corresponding 

portions of the curriculum, and 

preparedness to take the aviation 

mechanic written general knowledge 

test, even if the student has not met the 

experience requirements of [§ ] 65.77 of 

[14 CFR].’’ Section 135(f)(4) requires any 

such documentation to specify the 

curriculum the student completed and 

the completion date. 

The FAA is implementing Section 

135(f)(4) in part 147 by adding new 

§ 147.31, which allows a school to issue 

an authenticated document to a student 

when that student satisfactorily 

completes the general portion of a 

school’s curriculum. The authenticated 

document will demonstrate the 

student’s preparedness to take the 

aviation mechanic general written test 

prior to meeting the experience 

requirements specified in § 65.77. To 

facilitate readability and ensure 

effective implementation of Section 

135(f)(4), the FAA is codifying rule 

language in § 147.31 that slightly differs 

from the statutory language of Section 

135(f)(4). Despite the different phrasing 

and terminology, however, the FAA 

emphasizes that the provisions share the 

same meaning and achieve the same 

objective. The differences are discussed 

in detail herein. 

Section 135(f)(4) uses the term 

‘‘aviation mechanic written general 

knowledge test.’’ The FAA finds, 

however, that using the terms ‘‘written’’ 

and ‘‘knowledge’’ when referring to the 

aviation mechanic general written test 

would be unnecessary and inconsistent 

with FAA regulations.85 Subpart D of 

part 65, which contains the eligibility 

requirements for an applicant seeking a 

mechanic certificate, uses the term 

‘‘written test.’’ Because subpart D of part 

65 applies to AMTS students seeking to 

obtain a mechanic certificate, the FAA 

has decided to use the term ‘‘written 

test’’ in § 147.31 to ensure consistency 

between the parts. 

Section 135(f)(4) allows an AMTS to 

issue authenticated documentation 

demonstrating ‘‘a student’s satisfactory 

progress, completion of corresponding 

portions of the curriculum, and 

preparedness to take the aviation 

mechanic written general knowledge 

test.’’ The student’s satisfactory progress 

and preparedness to take the aviation 

mechanic general written test is based 

wholly on whether the student 

satisfactorily completed the 

corresponding portion of the 

curriculum. The portion of the 

curriculum that directly corresponds to 

the student’s preparedness to take the 

aviation mechanic general written test is 

the portion of the curriculum that 

contains the general curriculum 

subjects. After reviewing the statutory 

provision, the FAA determined that 

Section 135(f)(4) appears to contain 

unnecessary and redundant 

phraseology. To reduce confusion and 

facilitate comprehension, the FAA is 

codifying the statutory requirement in a 

more concise and simplistic manner. 

New § 147.31 will allow a certificated 

AMTS to issue an authenticated 

document to a student when that 

student satisfactorily completes the 

general portion of a school’s curriculum. 

The authenticated document will 

demonstrate the student’s preparedness 

to take the aviation mechanic general 

written test prior to meeting the 

experience requirements of § 65.77. 

Specifically, the authenticated 

document will demonstrate that the 

student is prepared to take the aviation 

mechanic general written test by 

showing that the student satisfactorily 

completed the general portion of the 

curriculum. 

For the reasons discussed herein, the 

FAA is making a conforming 

amendment to § 65.75 to effectuate the 


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86For example, a school with an Airframe and 

Powerplant rating may have a single curriculum 

that teaches general, airframe, and powerplant 

content. A student who only completes the general 

curriculum content of that curriculum could be 

issued an authenticated document by the AMTS 

indicating the student is eligible to test for the 

aviation mechanic general written test, prior to 

meeting the experience requirements of § 65.77 (i.e., 

graduating from a curriculum consistent with the 

AMTS ratings). 

87See § 147.1. 

88Approximately 35 percent of AMTSs currently 

hold an exemption from § 65.75(a) (e.g., Exemption 

No. 17174B, Docket No. FAA–2016–8933; 

Exemption No. 18647, Docket No. FAA–2020–0932; 

Exemption No. 18701, Docket No. FAA–2016–9045; 

Exemption No. 18055A, Docket No. FAA–2018– 

0937; Exemption No. 18664, Docket No. FAA– 

2016–0136). 

89 If a school issued numerous pages of extensive 

documentation in an effort to demonstrate a 

student’s eligibility to take a written test, the FAA 

would have to review that documentation and 

determine whether the student was in fact eligible 

in accordance with the FAA’s regulations. 

statutory requirement. Because of the 

conforming amendment, the FAA is 

adopting a cross-reference to § 65.75 to 

simplify the rule language in § 147.31 

and avoid redundancy in the 

regulations. Additionally, the FAA 

explains why the regulatory text uses 

‘‘authenticated document’’ rather than 

‘‘authenticated documentation’’ in this 

section. 

Section 135(f)(4) also requires the 

authenticated documentation to specify 

the curriculum the student completed 

and the completion date. As evident by 

the first sentence in Section 135(f)(4), a 

student is not required to complete an 

entire curriculum—i.e., either an 

airframe curriculum, a powerplant 

curriculum, or an airframe and 

powerplant curriculum—in order to 

demonstrate eligibility to take the 

aviation mechanic general written test 

early. Rather, the student must 

satisfactorily complete the general 

portion of that curriculum. Therefore, 

requiring the authenticated 

documentation to specify the 

curriculum completed is inconsistent 

with the first sentence in Section 

135(f)(4). Requiring the student to 

complete an entire curriculum would 

also frustrate the implementation of 

Section 135(f)(4) in the AMTS industry 

because not all schools administer a 

general curriculum independent from 

the airframe or powerplant 

curriculum.86 In some cases, a school 

may administer the general curriculum 

subjects as part of the airframe or 

powerplant curriculum. 

To achieve the intent of Section 

135(f)(4), the FAA finds it necessary to 

adopt rule language that is consistent 

with the first sentence of Section 

135(f)(4). Accordingly, the regulations 

will require an authenticated document 

to show that the student has 

satisfactorily completed the general 

portion of the curriculum and the 

completion date. The FAA is codifying 

this requirement in new § 65.75(c), 

which is subsequently discussed, rather 

than § 147.31, because subpart D of part 

65 contains the eligibility requirements 

for a person seeking a mechanic 

certificate and the FAA considers the 

authenticated document necessary to 

take the written test early to be an 

eligibility requirement for taking that 

written test. 

Furthermore, upon review of Section 

135(f)(4), the FAA determined that an 

amendment to § 65.75(a) is necessary to 

achieve the intent of the legislation. Part 

147 prescribes the requirements for 

issuing AMTS certificates and 

associated ratings, and the operating 

rules for those certificate holders.87 The 

students of an AMTS, however, must 

comply with subpart D of part 65, which 

prescribes the requirements for issuing 

mechanic certificates and associated 

ratings. Currently, § 65.75(a) requires 

each applicant for a mechanic certificate 

or rating to meet the applicable 

experience requirements of § 65.77 prior 

to passing a written test. Students of an 

AMTS are, therefore, required to satisfy 

the experience requirements of § 65.77 

before they may take the aviation 

mechanic general written test. 

Numerous schools have obtained 

exemptions from § 65.75(a) to enable 

their students to take the aviation 

mechanic general written test 

immediately following the students’ 

successful completion of the general 

curriculum subjects.88 Section 135(f)(4) 

is intended to allow students who have 

successfully completed the general 

portion of the curriculum to take the 

aviation mechanic general written test 

even if the student has not met the 

applicable experience requirements of 

§ 65.77. Thus, the legislation is intended 

to eliminate the need for schools to 

obtain exemptions from § 65.75(a) to 

enable early testing. 

Upon review of the exemptions from 

§ 65.75(a), however, the FAA recognizes 

that it cannot achieve the intent of the 

legislation by amending only part 147. 

If not amended, students would 

continue to be required by § 65.75(a) to 

meet the applicable experience 

requirements of § 65.77 prior to taking 

the aviation mechanic general written 

test. Thus, the new requirement in 

§ 147.31 would create an inconsistency 

with § 65.75(a) rather than eliminating 

the need for exemptions from § 65.75(a). 

Accordingly, to achieve the intent of 

the legislation, the FAA finds it 

necessary to make a conforming 

amendment to § 65.75. The FAA is 

adding an exception to the requirement 

in § 65.75(a) that will allow an applicant 

for a mechanic certificate or rating to 

take the general written test prior to 

meeting the experience requirements of 

§ 65.77, provided the applicant presents 

an authenticated document from a 

certificated AMTS that demonstrates 

satisfactory completion of the general 

portion of the curriculum. This 

exception is contained in new 

§ 65.75(c). As a result, the new 

§ 65.75(c) will eliminate the need for 

exemptions from § 65.75(a), and 

exemptions from this regulation will 

terminate upon the effective date of this 

interim final rule. 

The FAA creates the mechanic 

written tests that are required under part 

65. These written tests, however, are 

administered to applicants by 

knowledge testing centers. A knowledge 

testing center is a private company 

designated by the FAA to administer 

written airman knowledge tests, with 

FAA oversight to ensure compliance 

with FAA requirements. 

The FAA recognizes that Section 

135(f)(4) allows a school to issue 

‘‘authenticated documentation’’ that 

demonstrates a student’s eligibility to 

take a general written test prior to 

meeting the experience requirements of 

§ 65.77. For the same reasons discussed 

in section III.d.5., the FAA finds it 

necessary to use the term ‘‘authenticated 

document’’ rather than ‘‘authenticated 

documentation.’’ By using the term 

‘‘authenticated document,’’ the FAA 

emphasizes the need for schools to issue 

a single document that effectively 

demonstrates the student’s eligibility to 

take the written test early, without 

additional FAA involvement.89 The 

term ‘‘authenticated document’’ will 

achieve the intent of the legislation by 

allowing schools to determine what type 

of document they wish to issue rather 

than mandating a particular document, 

such as ‘‘certificate of completion.’’ 

The purpose of an authenticated 

document under new § 147.31 is to 

provide proof that the student has, in 

fact, satisfactorily completed the general 

portion of the certificated AMTS’s 

curriculum and is prepared to take the 

general written test early in accordance 

with new § 65.75(c). As a result, the 

FAA finds it necessary for the 

authenticated document to include the 

school’s name and air agency certificate 

number to enable the knowledge testing 

center to identify the school as a 

certificated AMTS. A school’s name is 

insufficient alone because schools may 

share the same name. Thus, the air 


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90Section 147.21(e) was added in the 1992 final 

rule that adopted regulations for primary category 

aircraft. See Primary Category; 57 FR 41360 (Sept. 

9, 1992). 

91On the effective date of this interim final rule, 

part 147 (as in effect on the date of enactment of 

Section 135) shall have no force or effect. See 

Section 135(a)(2). 

agency certificate number is the only 

means for the FAA and the knowledge 

testing center to clearly distinguish 

between AMTSs and to ensure the 

student completed the general portion 

of the curriculum at a certificated 

AMTS. 

g. Conforming Amendments 

Upon implementing the statutory 

requirements of Section 135 into new 

part 147, the FAA recognized that the 

new requirements would have created 

inconsistencies in two provisions that 

exist outside part 147, namely appendix 

A to part 43 and § 65.80. As a result, the 

FAA finds it necessary to make 

conforming amendments to those 

provisions. The following sections 

explain the conforming amendments in 

detail. 

1. Appendix A to Part 43 

Current § 147.21(e) contains the 

requirements governing the approval of 

special inspection and preventive 

maintenance courses for primary 

category aircraft type certificated under 

§ 21.24.90 Section 135(a)(1) requires the 

FAA to issue interim final regulations in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Section 135. Additionally, Section 

135(a)(2) repeals all current regulations 

upon the effective date of the interim 

final rule. Because Section 135 of the 

statute does not contain a provision 

governing the approval of special 

inspection and preventive maintenance 

courses for primary category aircraft 

type certificated under § 21.24, the FAA 

is not issuing an interim final regulation 

governing such courses. Additionally, 

current § 147.21(e) is repealed on the 

effective date of this interim final rule. 

Appendix A to part 43, which 

describes the circumstances under 

which an owner of a primary category 

aircraft may complete the preventive 

maintenance tasks specified in 

appendix A, contains a cross-reference 

to § 147.21(e). Because § 147.21(e) is 

repealed upon the effective date of this 

interim final rule, the FAA is making a 

conforming amendment to appendix A 

of part 43, paragraph (c)(30)(i), by 

removing the reference to certificates of 

competency for the affected aircraft 

‘‘issued by a school approved under 

§ 147.21(e) of this chapter.’’ Therefore, 

appendix A of part 43, paragraph 

(c)(30)(i) will refer only to certificates of 

competency that are issued by (1) the 

holder of the production certificate for 

that primary category aircraft that has a 

special training program approved 

under § 21.24 or (2) another entity that 

has a course approved by the 

Administrator. As a result, an AMTS 

that requests an approval, or an AMTS 

that currently holds an approval 

originally issued under § 147.21(e), of 

special courses in the performance of 

special inspection and preventive 

maintenance programs for a primary 

category aircraft, may issue a certificate 

of competency as ‘‘another entity that 

has a course approved by the 

Administrator’’ in accordance with new 

paragraph (c)(30)(i)(2). 

2. Section 65.80 

Section 65.80 allows AMTS students 

to take the oral and practical tests 

prescribed by § 65.79 before meeting the 

applicable experience requirements of 

§ 65.77, and before the student passes 

each section of the written test 

prescribed by § 65.75. The school must 

show an FAA inspector the student has 

made satisfactory progress at the school 

and is prepared to take the oral and 

practical tests. Additionally, § 65.75 

states the student may take the tests 

prescribed by § 65.79 during the final 

subjects of the student’s training in the 

approved curriculum. The reference to 

‘‘approved curriculum’’ in § 65.80 refers 

to a certificated AMTS’s approved 

curriculum, which was required under 

§ 147.21 as it existed prior to this 

interim final rule.91

In accordance with Section 135 of the 

statute, AMTS curriculums under part 

147 will no longer require FAA 

approval, as reflected in new § 147.17. 

As a result, the FAA is making a 

conforming amendment to § 65.80 by 

removing reference to an AMTS’s 

‘‘approved’’ curriculum. This 

amendment will allow AMTS students 

to continue testing under § 65.80. 

Further, § 65.80 permits students to 

take the oral and practical test 

prescribed by § 65.79 during the final 

subjects of the student’s training in the 

part 147 curriculum before the 

applicable experience requirements of 

§ 65.77 are met and before the student 

passes each section of the written test 

required by § 65.75 when the AMTS 

shows the student’s satisfactory progress 

to an FAA inspector. In the interest of 

regulatory standardization, the FAA is 

revising the language from ‘‘an FAA 

inspector’’ to ‘‘the Administrator.’’ 

Additionally, the FAA is removing 

gender references within the regulatory 

text. 

h. Part 147 Rule Organization and 

Numbering 

Section 135(a)(1) requires the FAA to 

issue interim final regulations in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Section 135. Additionally, Section 

135(a)(2) repeals all current regulations 

upon the effective date of the interim 

final rule. As a result, some sections of 

part 147 will retain their section number 

and heading but contain new 

requirements in accordance with the 

statute. Several sections will be repealed 

and not replaced. Other sections will be 

renumbered and replaced with new 

requirements in accordance with the 

statute. The following table shows the 

current regulatory sections of part 147 

and how they are affected under this 

interim final rule. 

Former section Former title New section New title 

§ 147.1 ........................ Applicability ..................................................... § 147.1 ........................ Applicability. 

§ 147.3 ........................ Certificate required .......................................... § 147.3 ........................ Certificate required. 

§ 147.5 ........................ Application and issue ...................................... § 147.5 ........................ Application requirements. 

§ 147.7 ........................ Duration of certificates .................................... § 147.7 ........................ Duration of certificates. 

§ 147.8 ........................ Employment of former FAA employees .......... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.11 ...................... Ratings ............................................................ § 147.11 ...................... Ratings. 

§ 147.13 ...................... Facilities, equipment, and material requirements.§ 147.13 ...................... Facilities, equipment, and material requirements. 


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92The repeal of current § 147.31 eliminates the 

need for schools to obtain exemptions from 

requirements in that section. As such, exemptions 

from current § 147.31 will terminate upon the 

effective date of this interim final rule. 

Former section Former title New section New title 

§ 147.15 ...................... Space requirements ........................................ Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.17 ...................... Instructional equipment requirements ............. Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.19 ...................... Materials, special tools, and shop equipment 

requirements.

Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.21 ...................... General curriculum requirements ................... § 147.17 ...................... Training requirements. 

§ 147.23 ...................... Instructor requirements ................................... § 147.19 ...................... Instructor requirements. 

§ 147.31 ...................... Attendance and enrollment, tests, and credit 

for prior instruction or experience.

Repealed and not replaced 92.N/A. 

§ 147.33 ...................... Records ........................................................... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.35 ...................... Transcripts and graduation certificates ........... § 147.21 ...................... Certificate of completion. 

§ 147.36 ...................... Maintenance of instructor requirements ......... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.37 ...................... Maintenance of facilities, equipment, and materials.Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.38 ...................... Maintenance of curriculum requirements ....... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.38a .................... Quality of instruction ....................................... § 147.25 ...................... Minimum passage pate. 

§ 147.39 ...................... Display of certificate ........................................ § 147.29 ...................... Display of certificate. 

§ 147.41 ...................... Change of location .......................................... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

§ 147.43 ...................... Inspection ........................................................ § 147.27 ...................... FAA inspection. 

§ 147.45 ...................... Advertising ...................................................... Repealed and not replaced.N/A. 

Section 135 also requires the FAA to 

issue new requirements, which have not 

previously existed in part 147. The 

following table shows which sections 

contain these new requirements. 

New section New title 

§ 147.15 ......... Training provided at another 

location. 

§ 147.23 ......... Quality control system. 

§ 147.31 ......... Early testing. 

IV. Regulatory Notices and Analyses 

Federal agencies consider impacts of 

regulatory actions under a variety of 

executive orders and other 

requirements. First, Executive Order 

12866 and Executive Order 13563 direct 

that each Federal agency shall propose 

or adopt a regulation only upon a 

reasoned determination that the benefits 

of the intended regulation justify the 

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. 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 that may result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100,000,000 or more 

(adjusted annually for inflation) in any 

one year. The current threshold after 

adjustment for inflation is $158,000,000, 

using the most current (2020) Implicit 

Price Deflator for the Gross Domestic 

Product. The FAA has provided a 

detailed Regulatory Impact Analysis 

(RIA) in the docket for this rulemaking. 

This portion of the preamble 

summarizes the FAA’s analysis of the 

economic impacts of this rule. 

In conducting these analyses, the FAA 

has determined that this rule: Will 

result in benefits that justify costs; is not 

an economically ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ as defined in section 3(f) of 

Executive Order 12866; will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities; 

will not create unnecessary obstacles to 

the foreign commerce of the United 

States; and will not impose an unfunded 

mandate on State, local, or tribal 

governments, or on the private sector. 

A. Regulatory Impact Analysis 

This interim final rule establishes 

regulations that conform to the Act, 

which sets forth statutory requirements 

to promote aviation regulations for 

technician training. Consistent with the 

statute, this interim final rule adopts 

new requirements for issuing AMTS 

certificates and associated ratings and 

the general operating rules for the 

holders of those certificates and ratings. 

Among other changes that reduce 

administrative burden and streamline 

the process to apply for and maintain an 

AMTS certification, under the interim 

final rule, an AMTS would need to align 

their curriculum to the Mechanic ACS 

rather than the appendices to part 147, 

which aligned with the Mechanic PTS. 

The FAA will no longer approve 

curriculums, but rather will ensure that 

AMTS curriculums align with the 

Mechanic ACS through routine 

surveillance. The interim final rule also 

requires that an AMTS either be 

accredited within the meaning of 20 

U.S.C. 1001(a)(5) or establish and 

maintain an FAA-approved quality 

control system. As the majority of 

AMTSs are accredited, this change will 

result in alleviating such AMTSs from 

the current requirement of FAA 

approval of grading and attendance 

policies. Further, the interim final rule 

(IFR) repeals the prohibition on an 

AMTS operating at a satellite facility, 

which potentially expands access to 

additional training locations. Lastly, 

another key change in this IFR includes 

the replacement of the national passing 

norms with a minimum passage rate 

requirement; this will create a standard 

that does not vary over time and does 

not depend on the performance of other 

AMTSs. 


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While the effects of this IFR on overall 

AMTS training quality and accessibility 

are unquantified, the FAA expects that 

this rule will be less burdensome to 

AMTSs as a whole and will allow for 

greater flexibility for an AMTS to keep 

current with industry standards and 

technological changes in aviation 

maintenance. Also, although the 

Mechanic ACS is less prescriptive, it is 

a more comprehensive set of standards 

than those previously provided in the 

part 147 appendices. Therefore, there 

would be incremental costs to FAA in 

implementing this interim final rule as 

the initial development to ensure 

alignment is expected to take additional 

time when compared to current 

curriculum development. Table 4 shows 

the summary of estimated present value 

and annualized costs, cost savings, and 

the net savings using both 3 percent and 

7 percent discount rates. 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 


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BILLING CODE 4910–13–C 

Please see the Regulatory Impact 

Analysis (RIA) available in the docket 

for more details. 

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 

in 5 U.S.C. 603, requires an agency to 

prepare an initial regulatory flexibility 

analysis describing impacts on small 

entities whenever an agency is required 

by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other law, to 

publish a general notice of proposed 

rulemaking for any proposed rule. 

Similarly, 5 U.S.C. 604 requires an 

agency to prepare a final regulatory 

flexibility analysis when an agency 

issues a final rule under 5 U.S.C. 553, 

after that section or any other law 

requires publication of a general notice 

of proposed rulemaking. The FAA 

found good cause to forgo notice and 

comment for this rule. As notice and 

comment under 5 U.S.C. 553 are not 

required in this situation, the regulatory 

flexibility analyses described in 5 U.S.C. 

603 and 604 are not required. 

C. International Trade Impact 

Assessment 

The Trade Agreements Act of 1979 

(Pub. L. 96–39), as amended by the 

Uruguay Round Agreements Act (Pub. 

L. 103–465), prohibits Federal agencies 

from establishing standards or engaging 

in related activities that create 

unnecessary obstacles to the foreign 

commerce of the United States. 

Pursuant to these Acts, the 

establishment of standards is not 

considered an unnecessary obstacle to 

the foreign commerce of the United 

States, so long as the standard has a 

legitimate domestic objective, such as 

the protection of safety, and does not 

operate in a manner that excludes 

imports that meet this objective. 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 interim final rule and 

determined that it has legitimate 

domestic safety objectives and does not 

operate in a manner that excludes 

imports to meet such objectives. 

Therefore, this interim final rule 

complies with the Trade Agreements 

Act. 

D. Unfunded Mandates Assessment 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) governs 

the issuance of Federal regulations that 

require unfunded mandates. An 

unfunded mandate is a regulation that 

requires a state, local, or tribal 

government or the private sector to 

incur direct costs without the Federal 

Government having first provided the 

funds to pay those costs. The FAA 

determined that the interim final rule 

will not result in the expenditure of 

$158,000,000 or more by State, local, or 

tribal governments, in the aggregate, or 

the private sector, in any one year. 

E. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

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

the FAA consider the impact of 

paperwork and other information 

collection burdens imposed on the 

public. According to the 1995 

amendments to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act (5 CFR 1320.8(b)(2)(vi)), 

an agency may not collect or sponsor 

the collection of information, nor may it 

impose an information collection 

requirement unless it displays a 

currently valid Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) control number. 

This action contains the following 

amendments to the existing information 

collection requirements previously 

approved under OMB Control Number 

2120–0040, Aviation Maintenance 

Technician Schools. As required by the 

PRA, the FAA has submitted these 

information collection amendments to 

OMB for review. 

Summary: The collection involves 

AMTS applicants and certificate holders 

under 14 CFR part 147. The part 147 

interim final rule results in new, 

changed, and removed burden, with an 

overall decrease in burden to the public 

when compared to the previous 

information collection approval. 

Additionally, FAA Form 8310–6, 

Aviation Maintenance Technician 

School Certificate and Ratings 

Application, is revised to reflect the new 

and changed requirements of this 

interim final rule. 

Public Comments: Because this is an 

interim final rule, there are no existing 

public comments on the information 

collection to discuss. Comments are 

requested, as discussed in the 

Comments Invited section of this 

preamble. 

Use: The collection of information 

includes both reporting and 

recordkeeping. The information 

collected is provided to the certificate 

holder/applicant’s appropriate FAA 

Flight Standards office in order to allow 

the FAA to determine compliance with 

the part 147 requirements for obtaining 

and/or retaining an FAA air agency 

certificate. For part 147 applicants, 

when all part 147 requirements have 

been met, an FAA air agency certificate, 

with the appropriate ratings, is issued. 

For certificated part 147 AMTS, the 

FAA uses the information collected to 

determine if the AMTS provides 

appropriate training, as required by part 

147, and to ensure that AMTS graduates 

receive an appropriate document 

showing the graduate is eligible to take 

the FAA tests required to obtain a 

mechanic certificate. Specifically, part 

147 imposes information collection 

burden on the public in the following 

sections. 

For applicants requesting an air 

agency certificate issued under part 147, 

§ 147.5, Application requirements, 

requires applicants to complete an 

application form and provide the FAA 

with evidence of meeting the 

requirements of part 147. Application is 

made using FAA Form 8310–6, Aviation 

Maintenance Technician School 

Certificate and Ratings Application. 

Application requirements include: 

• Section 147.5(b)(1) through (3) 

requires a description of the facilities, 

equipment and materials used at each 

location, a description of how the 

curriculum trains students to meet part 

65 requirements, and a description of 

how the school meets instructor 

requirements. The FAA includes these 

descriptions in an AMTS’s OpSpecs. 

• Section 147.5(b)(4) requires the 

applicant to submit any additional 

information necessary to demonstrate 

compliance with the requirements of 

part 147, which include: § 147.17, 

Training requirements—for the school 

to establish and maintain a curriculum; 

§ 147.19, Instructor requirements—for 

the school to have instructors who are 

either FAA-certificated mechanics, or 

are otherwise specially qualified; and 

§ 147.23, Quality control system—for 

the school to either be accredited within 

the meaning of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5) or 

have a quality control system approved 

by the FAA. 

Following FAA certification, an 

AMTS must comply with the following 

regulations, which impose a paperwork 

burden: 

• Section 147.15, Training provided 

at another location. The AMTS must 

notify the FAA of the additional 

locations at which the school will 

conduct training, in addition to the 

school’s primary location. The FAA 

includes these additional locations in 

the AMTS’s OpSpecs. 

• Section 147.17, Training 

requirements. The AMTS must 

establish, maintain, and utilize a 

curriculum designed to continually 

align with mechanic airman 

certification standards as appropriate for 

the ratings held. When the Mechanic 

ACS is revised, the AMTS must revise 

its curriculum to align accordingly. 

• Section 147.21, Certificate of 

completion. The AMTS must issue a 


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document that indicates when a student 

graduated and the part 147 curriculum 

that the student completed. 

• Section 147.23, Quality control 

system. An AMTS either be accredited 

within the meaning of 20 U.S.C. 

1001(a)(5) or have a quality control 

system approved by the FAA that 

provides for certain procedures listed in 

§ 147.23(b). Therefore, the AMTS must 

either submit proof of accreditation or 

submit a quality control system for 

FAA-approval. 

• Section 147.31, Early testing. An 

AMTS may issue an authenticated 

document when a student satisfactorily 

completes only the General course 

content of an AMTS curriculum. 

Respondents: The respondents to this 

collection are AMTSs issued an FAA air 

agency certificate under 14 CFR part 147 

and AMTS applicants for a part 147 air 

agency certificate. There are currently 

182 FAA-certificated AMTSs. 

Frequency: AMTSs must submit 

information initially prior to 

certification, and occasionally after 

certification to comply with ongoing 

recordkeeping requirements. Applicants 

must report certain information to the 

FAA during the application process for 

the purpose of allowing the FAA to 

determine compliance with part 147 

requirements and, ultimately, issue an 

air agency certificate, if appropriate. 

Schools issued a part 147 air agency 

certificate must report certain 

information occasionally after 

certification (e.g., when the certificate 

holder’s operations change). AMTSs 

that implement a quality control system 

because they are not accredited by an 

accrediting agency recognized by the 

Department of Education must maintain 

records, as described in the school’s 

FAA-approved quality control system. 

Annual Burden Estimate: The part 

147 interim final regulations result in a 

total annual burden to respondents of 

11,438 hours and $709,124. This 

includes recordkeeping burden and 

reporting burden. This results in an 

overall reduction in burden to the 

public from the previous part 147 

regulations. Details of burden related to 

each regulatory requirement are shown 

in the supporting statement for 

information collection 2120–0044, 

submitted to OMB. 

The FAA notes that the costs/cost 

savings calculated in the regulatory 

impact analysis differ from the AMTS 

paperwork burden calculated under the 

PRA. The regulatory impact analysis 

compares the state of AMTS under 

current regulations to the expected state 

of AMTS under the interim final rule. 

The calculations under PRA estimate 

the paperwork burden to AMTS under 

the new interim final rule. The primary 

areas where these calculations differ are 

where the regulatory impact analysis 

assumed a zero cost difference to AMTS 

in the following areas: 

• Recordkeeping costs—Under PRA, 

the FAA estimates only a single AMTS 

will have an FAA approved quality 

control (QC)-system, and thus have 

FAA-mandated recordkeeping costs. 

However, for the regulatory impact 

analysis the FAA assumes that all 

AMTS will continue to keep student 

records under the interim final rule, 

with no substantial change from current 

costs. 

• Graduation documentation—Under 

PRA, the FAA estimates reflect a cost 

savings since the interim final 

regulations remove the requirement for 

AMTS to provide a transcript to 

students upon request as mandated in 

the current regulation. However, for the 

regulatory impact analysis, the FAA 

assumes that transcripts are a routine 

function of schools and that transcripts 

will be provided to graduating students 

after implementation of the interim final 

rule with no substantial change from 

current costs. 

• Completion documentation for 

early testing—Under the PRA, the FAA 

estimates that there is a paperwork cost 

when an AMTS provides completion 

documentation for students who have 

completed the General course content of 

a school’s curriculum (for the purpose 

of early testing eligibility). However, for 

the regulatory impact analysis the FAA 

assumes that AMTS are currently 

tracking student course completion, and 

will continue to do the same under the 

interim final rule, therefore there is no 

change from current costs. Additionally, 

because it is an option for the AMTS to 

issue a completion document, schools 

can choose not to incur this cost. 

F. International Compatibility and 

Cooperation 

In keeping with U.S. obligations 

under the Convention on International 

Civil Aviation, it is FAA policy to 

conform to International Civil Aviation 

Organization (ICAO) Standards and 

Recommended Practices (SARP) to the 

maximum extent practicable. The FAA 

has reviewed the corresponding ICAO 

SARPs and has determined that there 

are no ICAO SARPs that correspond to 

this interim final rule. 

However, the FAA identified a filing 

is required for an ICAO Annex 1 SARP 

found in Chapter 4 pertaining to 

certification of maintenance technicians 

that is unrelated to this rulemaking. 

Therefore, the FAA has modified an 

existing difference to reflect that 

mechanic applicants are not required to 

have two years of experience in the 

inspection, servicing, and maintenance 

of aircraft following the completion of 

an approved training course to qualify 

to take the written examination for a 

mechanic airframe or powerplant 

license. 

G. Environmental Analysis 

FAA Order 1050.1F 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 

paragraph 5–6.6 and involves no 

extraordinary circumstances. 

V. Executive Order Determinations 

A. Executive Order 13132, Federalism 

The FAA has analyzed this final rule 

under the principles and criteria of 

Executive Order 13132, Federalism. The 

agency 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. 

B. Executive Order 13211, 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). The 

agency has determined that it is not a 

‘‘significant energy action’’ under the 

Executive order and it is not likely to 

have a significant adverse effect on the 

supply, distribution, or use of energy. 

C. Executive Order 13609, Promoting 

International Regulatory Cooperation 

Executive Order 13609, Promoting 

International Regulatory Cooperation, 

promotes international regulatory 

cooperation to meet shared challenges 

involving health, safety, labor, security, 

environmental, and other issues and to 

reduce, eliminate, or prevent 

unnecessary differences in regulatory 

requirements. The FAA has analyzed 

this action under the policies and 

agency responsibilities of Executive 

Order 13609, and has determined that 

this action would have no effect on 

international regulatory cooperation. 


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VI. How To Obtain Additional 

Information 

A. Rulemaking Documents 

An electronic copy of a rulemaking 

document may be obtained by using the 

internet— 

1. Search the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal at www.regulations.gov; 

2. Visit the FAA’s Regulations and 

Policies web page at www.faa.gov/ 

regulations_policies/; or 

3. Access the Government Printing 

Office’s web page at GovInfo.gov. 

Copies may also be obtained by 

sending a request (identified by notice, 

amendment, or docket number of this 

rulemaking) to the Federal Aviation 

Administration, Office of Rulemaking, 

ARM–1, 800 Independence Avenue SW, 

Washington, DC 20591, or by calling 

(202) 267–9677. 

B. Comments Submitted to the Docket 

Comments received may be viewed by 

going to www.regulations.gov and 

following the online instructions to 

search the docket number for this 

action. Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of the FAA’s 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.). 

C. 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. 

A small entity with questions regarding 

this document, may contact its local 

FAA official, or the person listed under 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

heading at the beginning of the 

preamble. To find out more about 

SBREFA on the internet, visit 

www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/ 

rulemaking/sbre_act/. 

List of Subjects 

14 CFR Part 43 

Aircraft, Aviation safety, Life-limited 

parts, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

14 CFR Part 65 

Air traffic controllers, Aircraft, 

Airmen, Airports, Alcohol abuse, 

Aviation safety, Drug abuse, 

Incorporation by reference, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, 

Security measures. 

14 CFR Part 147 

Aircraft, Airmen, Education facilities, 

Incorporation by reference, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, 

Schools. 

The Amendment 

In consideration of the foregoing, the 

Federal Aviation Administration 

amends chapter I of title 14, Code of 

Federal Regulations, as follows: 

PART 43—MAINTENANCE, 

PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE, 

REBUILDING, AND ALTERATION 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 43 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7572; 49 U.S.C. 

106(f), 106(g), 40105, 40113, 44701–44702, 

44704, 44707, 44709, 44711, 44713, 44715, 

45303. 

■ 2. Amend appendix A to part 43 by 

revising paragraph (c)(30)(i) to read as 

follows: 

Appendix A to Part 43—Major 

Alterations, Major Repairs, and 

Preventive Maintenance 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(30) * * * 

(i) They are performed by the holder of at 

least a private pilot certificate issued under 

part 61 of this chapter who is the registered 

owner (including co-owners) of the affected 

aircraft and who holds a certificate of 

competency for the affected aircraft (1) issued 

by the holder of the production certificate for 

that primary category aircraft that has a 

special training program approved under 

§ 21.24 of this subchapter; or (2) issued by 

another entity that has a course approved by 

the Administrator; and * * * * * 

PART 65—CERTIFICATION: AIRMEN 

OTHER THAN FLIGHT 

CREWMEMBERS 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 65 

continues to read as follows: 

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

44701–44703, 44707, 44709–44711, 45102– 

45103, 45301–45302. 

■ 4. Add § 65.23 to read as follows: 

§ 65.23 Incorporation by reference. 

Certain material is incorporated by 

reference into this part with the 

approval of the Director of the Federal 

Register under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 

CFR part 51. This material is available 

for inspection at the Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) and at the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). Contact FAA, 

Airman Testing Standards Branch/ 

Regulatory Support Division, 405–954– 

4151, AFS630Comments@faa.gov. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, email fr.inspection@

nara.gov, or go to www.archives.gov/ 

federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. 

The material may be obtained from the 

source in the following paragraph of this 

section. 

(a) Federal Aviation Administration, 

800 Independence Avenue SW, 

Washington, DC 20591, 866–835–5322, 

www.faa.gov/training_testing. 

(1) FAA–S–8081–26B, Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and 

Powerplant Practical Test Standards, 

November 1, 2021; IBR approved for 

§§ 65.75 and 65.79. 

(2) FAA–S–ACS–1, Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and 

Powerplant Airman Certification 

Standards, November 1, 2021; IBR 

approved for §§ 65.75 and 65.79. 

(b) [Reserved] 

■ 5. Amend § 65.75 by revising 

paragraph (a) and adding paragraph (c) 

to read as follows: 

§ 65.75 Knowledge requirements. 

(a) Except as specified in paragraph 

(c) of this section, each applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating must, after 

meeting the applicable experience 

requirements of § 65.77, pass a written 

test, appropriate to the rating sought, 

which includes: 

(1) Until July 31, 2023, the subject 

areas contained in the Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and 

Powerplant Practical Test Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see § 65.23), 

as appropriate to the rating sought. 

(2) After July 31, 2023, the 

aeronautical knowledge subject areas 

contained in the Aviation Mechanic 

General, Airframe, and Powerplant 

Airman Certification Standards 

(incorporated by reference, see § 65.23), 

as appropriate to the rating sought. 

* * * * * 

(c) An applicant for a mechanic 

certificate or rating may take the 

mechanic general written test prior to 

meeting the applicable experience 

requirements of § 65.77, provided the 

applicant presents an authenticated 

document from a certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school that 

demonstrates satisfactory completion of 

the general portion of the school’s 

curriculum and specifies the completion 

date. 

■ 6. Effective August 1, 2023, amend 

§ 65.75 by revising paragraph (a) to read 

as follows: 

§ 65.75 Knowledge requirements. 

(a) Except as specified in paragraph 

(c) of this section, each applicant for a 

mechanic certificate or rating must, after 

meeting the applicable experience 


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requirements of § 65.77, pass a written 

test, appropriate to the rating sought, 

which includes the aeronautical 

knowledge subject areas contained in 

the Aviation Mechanic General, 

Airframe, and Powerplant Airman 

Certification Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see § 65.23), as appropriate to 

the rating sought. 

* * * * * 

■ 7. Revise § 65.77 to read as follows: 

§ 65.77 Experience requirements 

Each applicant for a mechanic 

certificate or rating must present 

either— 

(a) An authenticated document from a 

certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school in accordance with 

§ 147.21 of this chapter; or 

(b) Documentary evidence, 

satisfactory to the Administrator, of— 

(1) At least 18 months of practical 

experience with the procedures, 

practices, materials, tools, machine 

tools, and equipment generally used in 

constructing, maintaining, or altering 

airframes or powerplants, appropriate to 

the rating sought; or 

(2) At least 30 months of practical 

experience concurrently performing the 

duties appropriate to both the airframe 

and powerplant ratings. 

■ 8. Revise § 65.79 to read as follows: 

§ 65.79 Skill requirements. 

Each applicant for a mechanic 

certificate or rating must pass an oral 

test and a practical test, as appropriate 

to the rating sought, by demonstrating: 

(a) Until July 31, 2023, the prescribed 

proficiency in the assigned objectives 

for the subject areas contained in the 

Aviation Mechanic General, Airframe, 

and Powerplant Practical Test Standard 

(incorporated by reference, see § 65.23), 

as appropriate to the rating sought. 

(b) After July 31, 2023, satisfactory 

understanding of the knowledge, risk 

management, and skill elements for 

each subject contained in the Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and 

Powerplant Airmen Certification 

Standards (incorporated by reference, 

see § 65.23), as appropriate to the rating 

sought. 

■ 9. Effective August 1, 2023, revise 

§ 65.79 to read as follows: 

§ 65.79 Skill requirements. 

Each applicant for a mechanic 

certificate or rating must pass an oral 

test and a practical test, as appropriate 

to the rating sought, by demonstrating 

satisfactory understanding of the 

knowledge, risk management, and skill 

elements for each subject contained in 

the Aviation Mechanic General, 

Airframe, and Powerplant Airmen 

Certification Standards (incorporated by 

reference, see § 65.23), as appropriate to 

the rating sought. 

■ 10. Revise § 65.80 to read as follows: 

§ 65.80 Certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school students. 

Whenever an aviation maintenance 

technician school certificated under part 

147 of this chapter shows to the 

Administrator that any of its students 

has made satisfactory progress at the 

school and is prepared to take the oral 

and practical tests prescribed by § 65.79, 

that student may take those tests during 

the final subjects of the student’s 

training in the curriculum required 

under part 147, before the student meets 

the applicable experience requirements 

of § 65.77 and before the student passes 

each section of the written test 

prescribed by § 65.75. 

■ 11. Revise part 147 to read as follows: 

PART 147—AVIATION MAINTENANCE 

TECHNICIAN SCHOOLS 

Subpart A—General 

Sec. 

147.1 Applicability. 

147.3 Certificate required. 

147.5 Application requirements. 

147.7 Duration of certificates. 

147.11 Ratings. 

Subpart B—Certification and Operating 

Requirements 

147.13 Facilities, equipment, and material 

requirements. 

147.15 Training provided at another 

location. 

147.17 Training requirements. 

147.19 Instructor requirements. 

147.21 Certificate of completion. 

147.23 Quality control system. 

147.25 Minimum passage rate. 

147.27 FAA inspection. 

147.29 Display of certificate. 

147.31 Early testing. 

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

44702, 44707–44709; Sec. 135, Public Law 

116–260, 134 Stat. 1182. 

Subpart A—General 

§ 147.1 Applicability. 

This part prescribes the requirements 

for issuing aviation maintenance 

technician school certificates and 

associated ratings and the general 

operating rules for the holders of those 

certificates and ratings. 

§ 147.3 Certificate required. 

No person may operate an aviation 

maintenance technician school without, 

or in violation of, an aviation 

maintenance technician school 

certificate and the operations 

specifications issued under this part. 

§ 147.5 Application requirements. 

(a) To be issued a certificate or rating 

under this part, an applicant must 

demonstrate compliance with the 

requirements of this part. 

(b) An application for a certificate and 

rating to operate an aviation 

maintenance technician school must 

include the following: 

(1) A description of the facilities, 

including the physical address of the 

applicant’s primary location for 

operation of the school, and any 

additional fixed locations where 

training will be provided, and the 

equipment and materials to be used at 

each location; 

(2) A description of the manner in 

which the school’s curriculum will 

ensure the student has the knowledge 

and skills necessary for attaining a 

mechanic certificate and associated 

ratings under subpart D of part 65 of this 

chapter; 

(3) A description of the manner in 

which the school will ensure it provides 

the necessary qualified instructors to 

meet the requirements of § 147.19; and 

(4) Any additional information 

necessary to demonstrate compliance 

with the requirements of this part. 

(c) An application for an additional 

rating or amended certificate must 

include only the information required 

by paragraph (b) of this section that is 

necessary to substantiate the reason for 

the additional rating or change sought. 

§ 147.7 Duration of certificates. 

An aviation maintenance technician 

school certificate or rating issued under 

this part is effective from the date of 

issue until the certificate or rating is 

surrendered, suspended, or revoked. 

§ 147.11 Ratings. 

The following ratings may be issued 

under this part: 

(a) Airframe. 

(b) Powerplant. 

(c) Airframe and powerplant. 

Subpart B—Certification and Operating 

Requirements 

§ 147.13 Facilities, equipment, and 

material requirements. 

(a) Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must 

provide and maintain the facilities, 

equipment, and materials that are 

appropriate to the rating or ratings held 

by the school and the number of 

students taught. 

(b) For certificated aviation 

maintenance technician schools that 

provide training at more than one 

location in accordance with § 147.15, 

the facilities, equipment, and materials 


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used at each location must be 

appropriate to the curriculum or portion 

of the curriculum, and the number of 

students being taught, at that location. 

§ 147.15 Training provided at another 

location. 

A certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school may provide training 

at any fixed location other than its 

primary location, provided the 

additional training location meets the 

requirements of this part and is listed in 

the certificate holder’s operations 

specifications. 

§ 147.17 Training requirements. 

(a) Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must: 

(1) Establish, maintain, and utilize a 

curriculum that is designed to 

continually align with the mechanic 

airman certification standards 

referenced in paragraph (b) of this 

section, as appropriate for the ratings 

held; 

(2) Provide training of a quality that 

meets the requirements of § 147.25; and 

(3) Ensure students have the 

knowledge and skills necessary to be 

prepared to test for a mechanic 

certificate and associated ratings under 

subpart D of part 65 of this chapter. 

(b) FAA–S–ACS–1, Aviation 

Mechanic General, Airframe, and 

Powerplant Airman Certification 

Standards, November 1, 2021, is 

incorporated by reference into this 

section with the approval of the Director 

of the Federal Register under 5 U.S.C. 

552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. This material 

is available for inspection at the Federal 

Aviation Administration (FAA) and the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). Contact FAA, 

Airman Testing Standards Branch/ 

Regulatory Support Division, 405–954– 

4151, AFS630Comments@faa.gov. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, email: fr.inspection@

nara.gov, or go to www.archives.gov/ 

federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. 

The material may be obtained from 

FAA, 800 Independence Avenue SW, 

Washington, DC 20591, 866–835–5322, 

www.faa.gov/training_testing. 

§ 147.19 Instructor requirements. 

Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must: 

(a) Provide qualified instructors to 

teach in a manner that ensures positive 

educational outcomes are achieved; 

(b) Ensure instructors either— 

(1) Hold a mechanic certificate with 

one or more appropriate ratings; or 

(2) If they do not hold a mechanic 

certificate, are otherwise specifically 

qualified to teach their assigned content; 

and 

(c) Ensure the student-to-instructor 

ratio does not exceed 25:1 for any shop 

class. 

§ 147.21 Certificate of completion. 

Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must 

provide an authenticated document to 

each graduating student, indicating the 

student’s date of graduation and 

curriculum completed. 

§ 147.23 Quality control system. 

(a) Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must— 

(1) Be accredited within the meaning 

of 20 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5); or 

(2) Establish and maintain a quality 

control system that meets the 

requirements specified in paragraph (b) 

of this section, and is approved by the 

Administrator. 

(b) The quality control system 

specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this 

section must provide procedures for 

recordkeeping, assessment, issuing 

credit, issuing of final course grades, 

attendance, ensuring sufficient number 

of instructors, granting of graduation 

documentation, and corrective action 

for addressing deficiencies. 

§ 147.25 Minimum passage rate. 

(a) Each certificated aviation 

maintenance technician school must 

maintain the pass rate specified in 

paragraph (b) of this section for the most 

recent 3-year period. 

(b) For students who take an FAA 

mechanic test under part 65 of this 

chapter within 60 days after graduation, 

at least 70 percent of students must pass 

one of the following tests or any 

combination thereof: 

(1) Written test; 

(2) Oral test; or 

(3) Practical test. 

(c) For students who take a 

combination of tests within the 60-day 

window specified in paragraph (b) of 

this section, an aviation maintenance 

technician school must count a failure 

on any one test as a student failure for 

purposes of determining the pass rate, 

unless that failed test is subsequently 

passed within the 60-day window. 

§ 147.27 FAA inspection. 

A certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school must allow the 

Administrator such access as the 

Administrator determines necessary to 

inspect the one or more locations of the 

school for purposes of determining the 

school’s compliance with the 

requirements of this part. 

§ 147.29 Display of certificate. 

A certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school must display its 

aviation maintenance technician school 

certificate at a place in each location of 

the school, including the primary 

location and any additional fixed 

locations, that is visible by and 

normally accessible to the public. 

§ 147.31 Early testing. 

When a student satisfactorily 

completes the general portion of a 

certificated aviation maintenance 

technician school’s curriculum, the 

school may issue an authenticated 

document that demonstrates the 

student’s preparedness to take the 

mechanic general written test in 

accordance with § 65.75(c) of this 

chapter. 

Issued under authority provided by 49 

U.S.C. 106(f), 44701(a), and 44703, and Sec. 

135 of the Aircraft Certification, Safety, and 

Accountability Act within Public Law 116– 

260, in Washington, DC, on May 6, 2022. 

Billy Nolen, 

Acting Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2022–10367 Filed 5–23–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DELAWARE RIVER BASIN 

COMMISSION 

18 CFR Parts 401 and 420 

Regulatory Program Fees and Water 

Charges Rates 

AGENCY: Delaware River Basin 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: Notice is provided of the 

Delaware River Basin Commission’s 

regulatory program fees and schedule of 

water charges for the fiscal year 

beginning July 1, 2022. 

DATES: This final rule is effective July 1, 

2022. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elba 

L. Deck, CPA, Director of Finance and 

Administration, 609–883–9500, ext. 

201. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Delaware River Basin Commission 

(‘‘DRBC’’ or ‘‘Commission’’) is a 

Federal-interstate compact agency 

charged with managing the water 

resources of the Delaware River Basin 

on a regional basis without regard to 

political boundaries. Its members are 

the governors of the four basin states— 

Delaware, New Jersey, New York and 

Pennsylvania—and on behalf of the 

federal government, the North Atlantic 

Division Commander of the U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers. 

In accordance with 18 CFR 401.43(c), 

on July 1 of every year, the 


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