Many Tenets Of Unpopular 2003 NPRM Remain Intact

Two months after the Office of Management and Budget completed its (somewhat mysterious) review of the FAA's long-awaited final rule on air tour safety, on Thursday the agency unveiled the final notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) placing new restrictions on air tour operators, and for pilots offering rides at air shows and charity events.

"These new standards will increase overall air tour safety, improve the FAA’s ability to track and monitor commercial air tour flights, and help us identify and address operational trends that could lead to accidents," said FAA Administrator Marion Blakey.

Under the new rule, which goes into effect in six months, air tour operators will have to meet the safety requirements in the expanded National Air Tour Safety Standards of the Federal Aviation Regulations, including some operators who were not previously covered by those standards.

The NPRM dates back to 2003, when the FAA first proposed such requirements as raising the minimum number of hours required for pilots conducting charity fundraising flights from 200 to 500, and removing an exemption that allows Part 91 sightseeing flights within 25 nm of an airport. Outcry from the GA community to the initial proposal was swift... as many groups feared the rule would shrink the number of pilots allowed to conduct charity flights.

By the FAA's own admission, the rules as first proposed would have driven hundreds of small sightseeing operations out of the business.

The NPRM released Thursday states pilots giving rides at air shows, or charity events, must have 500 hours total flight time... or, a commercial pilots license. The legislation also places restrictions on the number of days each year such flights may be conducted.

In better news, the exemption on Part 91 sightseeing and charity flights within 25 nautical miles of an airport will remain in place... contrary to the original NPRM. There is one exception, however -- flights over the Grand Canyon National Park must now be conducted by Part 121 or 135 operators.

Each operator must now also apply for, and operate in accordance with, a Letter of Authorization (LOA) issued by the FAA. The agency says the LOA removes the burden of Operations Specifications that come with full air carrier status, yet allows the FAA to better monitor the safety records of part 91 operators conducting air tour operations.

If those flights are conducted over water, the new law requires more thorough passenger briefings, as well as life preservers for all passengers. The law also states within 18 months, all helicopters flying tours over water must install floats.

As far as charity flights, the final rule establishes a new FAR 91.146 for charitable, nonprofit, and community event flights. The new subset allows those flights to continue operating, and to be flown by private pilots (as long as they have 500 hours flight time).

The rule also restricts sponsors and their pilots for a community event to one event per calendar year. As defined in the new rule, an "event" may involve several flights but may not last more than three consecutive days. No sponsor or pilot may exceed four charitable or non-profit events per calendar year, states the FAA, or exceed one community event per calendar year.

ANN will continue to follow this story, and report on reaction from the air tour and larger general aviation community.

FMI: Read The Full NPRM (.pdf)