Source: https://www.global-regulation.com/law/united-states/27438/removal-of-pilot-pairing-requirement.html
Timestamp: 2019-01-23 02:59:21
Document Index: 312270671

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 61', '§ 61', '§ 61', 'art 121', 'art 61', 'art 121', 'art 61', 'art 121', '§ 61', '§ 61', '§ 61', '§ 61', 'arts 121', '§ 121', 'art 121', '§ 61', 'art 61', '§ 61', 'art 121', 'art 61', 'art 121', '§ 61', 'art 121', '§ 61', '§ 61', '§ 61', '§ 121', '§ 121']

Removal of Pilot Pairing Requirement (United States)
Link to law: https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/text/raw_text/201/514/248.txt
Recent action by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to remove the requirement in ICAO Annex 1 (Personnel Licensing), Chapter 2 (Licenses and Ratings for Pilots), Standard 2.1.10.1 to pair a pilot in command (PIC) who has reached age 60 with a pilot under age 60, triggered the sunset of the pilot pairing limitation in 49 U.S.C. 44729(c)(1). Based on this action, as of November 13, 2014, the statutory basis for the pilot pairing requirements in §§ 61.3(j)(2), 61.77(g), and 121.383(d)(2) and (e)(2) of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) no longer exists and these regulations are contrary to 49 U.S.C. 44729.
It is contrary to the public interest to allow regulatory requirements pertaining to pilot age limitations to remain in the Code of Federal Regulations when those requirements present a direct conflict with the statutory requirements in the United States Code pertaining to pilot age limitations. Further, under section 553(d)(3) of the APA, the FAA finds that good cause exists for making this rule effective upon publication to minimize any possible confusion between the statutory requirements pertaining to pilot age limitations in 49 U.S.C. 44729 and the regulatory requirements pertaining to pilot age limitations in §§ 61.3(j)(2), 61.77(g), and 121.383(d)(2) and (e)(2) of 14 CFR.
This final rule removes the requirements in §§ 61.3(j)(2), 61.77(g), and 121.383(d)(2) and (e)(2) for a PIC who has reached age 60 to be paired with a pilot under age 60 in international commercial air transport operations conducted under part 121, as well as for pilots relying on a certificate issued under part 61 and serving in certain international operations using civil airplanes on the U.S. registry. The removal of this restriction will allow all pilots serving on airplanes in international commercial air transport with more than one pilot, to serve beyond 60 years of age (until 65 years of age) without a requirement to be paired with a pilot under 60 years of age. This final rule conforms FAA regulations with ICAO standards and the Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act, which no longer contain a pilot pairing requirement.
On December 13, 2007, the Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act (Pub. L. 110-135) amended Title 49 of the United States Code by adding section 44729. Section 44729(a) raised the age limit for pilots serving in operations under part 121 1
from age 60 to age 65, subject to the limitations in section 44729(c) applicable to PICs on international flights.
Accordingly, to harmonize the Agency's regulations with the ICAO standard and further the intent of the Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act, the 2009 final rule added the pilot age limitations and pilot pairing requirement for pilots conducting operations between two international territories using U.S.-registered airplanes and relying on certificates issued under part 61. 2
As a result, for multi-pilot operations, the 2009 final rule increased the maximum age for a pilot to serve and added the pilot pairing requirement for part 121 operations and certain other international air service and air transportation operations using airplanes on the U.S. registry ( See §§ 61.3(j), 61.77(e) and (g), and 121.383(d) and (e)).
The 2009 final rule did not change the maximum age for pilots serving in international operations covered by § 61.3(j)(1) using a single pilot ( i.e., the pilot must be under age 60). See § 61.3(j)(2) and 61.77(g). A pilot is only permitted to continue to serve upon reaching age 60 if that pilot serves as a member of a multi-pilot crew that includes a pilot under age 60. Thus, as was the case prior to the 2009 final rule, operations covered by § 61.3(j)(1) that use a single pilot can only be operated by a pilot who has not yet reached 60 years of age.
During a meeting of the ICAO Council on March 3, 2014, Council members adopted Amendment 172 to Annex 1, Personnel Licensing. The amendment removed the requirement in Standard 2.1.10.1 to pair a PIC who has reached age 60 with a pilot under age 60, and renumbered the standard as 2.1.10. Without the pairing requirement, all pilots on multi-pilot crews serving in international air transport commercial operations may continue to serve as long as they have not reached 65 years of age. 3
Amendment 172 to Annex 1, Personnel Licensing, became applicable on November 13, 2014.
As previously discussed, 49 U.S.C. 44729(c)(2) states that the pilot pairing requirement in 49 U.S.C. 44729(c)(1) ceases to be effective when ICAO removes the pilot pairing requirement from Annex 1 (Personnel Licensing), Chapter 2 (Licenses and Ratings for Pilots), Standard 2.1.10.1. On November 13, 2014, the revised Standard 2.1.10, that no longer contains the pilot pairing requirement, became applicable. Accordingly, on November 13, 2014, the pilot pairing limitation of 49 U.S.C. 44729(c)(1) ceased to be effective.
This final rule conforms FAA regulations in Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) with the Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act by removing the current pilot pairing requirements from parts 121 and 61. Specifically, the Agency has amended § 121.383(d) and (e) to allow all pilots serving in part 121 operations of any kind ( i.e., domestic, flag, or supplemental) to serve as long as that pilot has not reached his or her 65th birthday. Additionally, the Agency has amended §§ 61.3 and 61.77 to allow all pilots relying on a certificate issued under part 61 and serving in certain international operations using civil airplanes on the U.S. registry to continue to serve in multi-pilot crews as long as they have not reached their 65th birthday. The maximum age for pilots serving in single pilot crews in operations covered by § 61.3(j)(1) has not changed.
This rulemaking provides relieving changes that create the opportunity for scheduling efficiencies because only the maximum pilot age of 65 needs to be considered in bidding for, or flying international flights. All pilots serving in any kind of part 121 operation ( i.e., domestic, flag, or supplemental) may continue to serve until they reach their 65th birthday, regardless of the age of the other pilot(s) on their flightcrew. This rulemaking also provides relieving changes for certain other pilots with certificates issued in accordance with part 61, who serve with multi-pilot crews in international operations using civil airplanes on the U.S. registry.
This final rule is relieving in that it removes the requirement to pair a pilot who has reached age 60 with a pilot who is under age 60 in international operations covered by part 121 and certain other international operations identified in §§ 61.3 and 61.77. The removal of this pilot pairing requirement eases flight scheduling and crew rest requirement costs because, for multi-pilot operations, only the maximum pilot age of 65 needs to be considered in bidding for, or flying international flights covered by part 121 and certain other international operations. The expected outcome will be lower costs. Therefore, a regulatory evaluation was not prepared.
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 final rule and determined that it conforms to international standards regarding pilot age limits and, therefore, does not create unnecessary obstacles to the foreign commerce of the United States.
1. Search the Federal eRulemaking Portal (http://www.regulations.gov );
Airmen, Aviation safety.
Air carriers, Aircraft, Airmen, Aviation safety.
49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g), 40113, 44701-44703, 44707, 44709-44711, 44729, 45102-45103, 45301-45302.
2. Amend § 61.3 as follows:
a. Revise paragraph (j)(1) introductory text;
3. Amend § 61.77 as follows:
§ 61.77
49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g), 40113, 40119, 41706, 44101, 44701-44702, 44705, 44709-44711, 44713, 44716-44717, 44722, 44729, 44732, 46105; Pub. L. 111-216, 124 Stat. 2348 (49 U.S.C. 44701 note); Pub. L. 112-95, 126 Stat. 62 (49 U.S.C. 44732 note).
5. Amend § 121.383 by revising paragraphs (d) and (e) to read as follows:
§ 121.383