Flightcrew Member Duty and Rest Requirements; Correction, 28763-28764 [2012-11592]

Agencies

• Federal Aviation Administration
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 95 (Wednesday, May 16, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 28763-28764]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-11592]



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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 95 / Wednesday, May 16, 2012 / Rules 
and Regulations

[[Page 28763]]



DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Parts 117, 119, and 121

[Docket No. FAA-2009-1093; Amdt. Nos. 117-1A, 119-16A, 121-357A]
RIN 2120-AJ58


Flightcrew Member Duty and Rest Requirements; Correction

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Final rule; correction.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FAA is correcting the final flightcrew member duty and 
rest rule published on January 4, 2012. In that rule, the FAA amended 
its existing flight, duty and rest regulations applicable to 
certificate holders and their flightcrew members operating certain 
domestic, flag, and supplemental operations. This document corrects the 
effective date and several errors in the codified text of the final 
flightcrew member duty and rest rule.

DATES: The effective date for the rule published January 4, 2012, at 77 
FR 330, is corrected to January 4, 2014. The corrections in this 
document are effective January 4, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For technical questions concerning 
this action, contact Dale E. Roberts, Air Transportation Division (AFS-
200), Flight Standards Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 267-
5749; email dale.e.roberts@faa.gov.
    For legal questions concerning this action, contact Alex Zektser, 
AGC-220, Office of Chief Counsel, Regulations Division, Federal 
Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 
20591; telephone (202) 267-3073; email: alex.zektser@faa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On January 4, 2012, the FAA published a final rule entitled, 
``Flightcrew Member Duty and Rest Requirements'' (77 FR 330). In that 
rule, the FAA created a new part, part 117, which replaced the then-
existing flight, duty, and rest regulations for part 121 passenger 
operations. As part of this rulemaking, the FAA also applied the new 
part 117 to certain part 91 operations, and it permitted all-cargo 
operations operating under part 121 to voluntarily opt into the part 
117 flight, duty, and rest regulations.
    After the final rule was published, the FAA discovered several 
errors in the regulatory text of the rule. These errors, and the 
corresponding corrections, are as follows.

Corrections

1. Effective Date
    The final rule has a 2-year effective date. The preamble to the 
final rule emphasizes that ``[t]he FAA has determined that two years is 
a substantial period of time, and that a longer effective date is 
unwarranted'' (77 FR 392). Because the final rule was published on 
January 4, 2012, the effective date of the rule should be January 4, 
2014 and not January 14, 2014. This rule has been corrected 
accordingly.
2. Definition of Flight Duty Period
    The punctuation in the last sentence of this definition has been 
corrected so that the sentence ends in a period and not a colon.
3. Definition of Theater
    The final rule defines theater as ``a geographical area where local 
time at the flightcrew member's flight duty period departure point and 
arrival point differ by more than 60 degrees longitude.'' This 
correction removes the phrase ``local time'' from this regulatory text 
because degrees longitude is a measure of distance and not time. In 
addition, to accurately depict the proper geographical area intended by 
the rule, the distance between departure and arrival points in a 
theater should differ by ``no more than'' 60 degrees longitude instead 
of ``more than'' 60 degrees longitude. Accordingly, the definition of 
theater has been corrected to specify that the distance between arrival 
and departure points in a single theater cannot exceed 60 degrees 
longitude.
4. Flight Duty Period Extension Reporting in Sec.  117.19(b)(4)
    The preamble to the final rule specifies that a certificate holder 
is only required to report FDP extensions that exceed the pertinent FDP 
limits by more than 30 minutes (77 FR 370-71). Accordingly, subsection 
117.19(b)(4) has been corrected to clarify that a report for an FDP 
extension is only necessary if the FDP exceeded the pertinent FDP limit 
by more than 30 minutes.
5. Cumulative Limitations in Sec.  117.23(b)
    The cumulative flight-time limitations in Sec.  117.23(b) have been 
corrected to clarify that a flightcrew member cannot accept an 
assignment that would cause that crewmember's total flight time to 
exceed either 100 hours in any 672 consecutive hours or 1,000 hours in 
any 365 consecutive calendar day period.
6. Rest Period in Sec.  117.25(b)
    Subsection 117.25(b) in the final rule states that ``[b]efore 
beginning any reserve or flight duty period a flightcrew member must be 
given at least 30 consecutive hours free from all duty in any 168 
consecutive hour period.'' This section has been corrected to clarify 
that the ``168 consecutive hour period'' is the period that precedes 
the beginning of the flight duty period.
7. Emergency and Government Sponsored Operations in Sec.  117.29
    Section 117.29 applies to certain emergency and government-
sponsored operations. The preamble to the final rule explains that, in 
certain situations, this section allows ``the FDP and the flight time 
for a particular operation to be extended if deemed necessary by the 
pilot-in-command'' (77 FR 387). However, the regulatory text of Sec.  
117.29 provided for an FDP extension but inadvertently did not apply 
the extension to flight-time. Accordingly, the regulatory text of this 
section has been corrected to provide for a flight-time extension in 
addition to an FDP extension. In addition, subsection 117.29(g) has 
been corrected so that it cross-references the correct paragraph of 
Sec.  117.29.

[[Page 28764]]

8. Flight attendant duty period limitations and rest requirements in 
Sec.  121.467(c)
    The final rule intended to change this subsection so that it cross-
references part 117 instead of subparts Q, R, and S, as the pertinent 
flight, duty, and rest provisions have been moved out of subparts Q, R, 
and S and into part 117. However, the regulatory text of the final rule 
also inadvertently deleted a number of other provisions that were in 
this subsection. As such, Sec.  121.467(c) has been corrected so that 
this subsection cross-references part 117, but retains its other 
provisions. The FAA notes that, pursuant to Sec.  117.13, an 
unaugmented crew of flight attendants who operate under part 117 would 
be subject to the flight duty period limits set out in Table B.
    Accordingly, in the final rule, FR Doc. 2011-33078, published on 
January 4, 2012 (77 FR 330), make the following corrections:

Effective Date [Corrected]

0
1. On page 330, in the first column, the text of DATES is corrected to 
read as follows:

DATES: Effective January 4, 2014.

0
2. On page 398, in the third column, in Sec.  117.3, the definition of 
``flight duty period (FDP)'' is corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.3  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Flight duty period (FDP) means a period that begins when a 
flightcrew member is required to report for duty with the intention of 
conducting a flight, a series of flights, or positioning or ferrying 
flights, and ends when the aircraft is parked after the last flight and 
there is no intention for further aircraft movement by the same 
flightcrew member. A flight duty period includes the duties performed 
by the flightcrew member on behalf of the certificate holder that occur 
before a flight segment or between flight segments without a required 
intervening rest period. Examples of tasks that are part of the flight 
duty period include deadhead transportation, training conducted in an 
aircraft or flight simulator, and airport/standby reserve, if the above 
tasks occur before a flight segment or between flight segments without 
an intervening required rest period.
* * * * *

0
3. On page 399, in the second column, in Sec.  117.3, the definition of 
``theater'' is corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.3  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Theater means a geographical area in which the distance between the 
flightcrew member's flight duty period departure point and arrival 
point differs by no more than 60 degrees longitude.
* * * * *

0
4. On page 400, in the third column, in Sec.  117.19, paragraph (b)(4) 
is corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.19  Flight duty period extensions.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (4) Each certificate holder must report to the Administrator within 
10 days any flight duty period that exceeded the maximum flight duty 
period limits permitted by Tables B or C of this part by more than 30 
minutes. The report must contain a description of the circumstances 
surrounding the affected flight duty period.

0
5. On page 401, in the first column, in Sec.  117.23, paragraph (b)(1) 
is corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.23  Cumulative limitations.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (1) 100 hours in any 672 consecutive hours or
* * * * *

0
6. On page 401, in the first column, in Sec.  117.25, paragraph (b) is 
corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.25  Rest Period.

* * * * *
    (b) Before beginning any reserve or flight duty period a flightcrew 
member must be given at least 30 consecutive hours free from all duty 
within the past 168 consecutive hour period.
* * * * *

0
7. On the third column of page 401 and the first column of page 402, in 
Sec.  117.29, paragraphs (b) and (g) are corrected to read as follows:


Sec.  117.29  Emergency and government sponsored operations.

* * * * *
    (b) The pilot-in-command may determine that the maximum applicable 
flight duty period and/or flight time must be exceeded to the extent 
necessary to allow the flightcrew to fly to the closest destination 
where they can safely be relieved from duty by another flightcrew or 
can receive the requisite amount of rest prior to commencing their next 
flight duty period.
* * * * *
    (g) Each certificate holder must implement the corrective action(s) 
reported pursuant to paragraph (f)(2) of this section within 30 days 
from the date of the extended flight duty period and/or the extended 
flight time.
* * * * *

0
8. On page 402, in the second and third columns, in Sec.  121.467, 
correctly revise paragraphs (c) introductory text and (c)(1) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  121.467  Flight attendant duty period limitations and rest 
requirements: Domestic, flag, and supplemental operations.

* * * * *
    (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this section, a certificate 
holder conducting domestic, flag, or supplemental operations may apply 
the flightcrew member flight time and duty limitations and rest 
requirements of part 117 of this chapter to flight attendants for all 
operations conducted under this part provided that--
    (1) The certificate holder establishes written procedures that--
    (i) Apply to all flight attendants used in the certificate holder's 
operation;
    (ii) Include the flightcrew member requirements contained in part 
117, as appropriate to the operation being conducted, except that rest 
facilities on board the aircraft are not required;
    (iii) Include provisions to add one flight attendant to the minimum 
flight attendant complement for each flightcrew member who is in excess 
of the minimum number required in the aircraft type certificate data 
sheet and who is assigned to the aircraft under the provisions of part 
117, as applicable, of this part;
    (iv) Are approved by the Administrator and are described or 
referenced in the certificate holder's operations specifications; and
* * * * *

    Issued in Washington, DC, on April 30, 2012.
Rebecca MacPherson,
Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulations, AGC-200.
[FR Doc. 2012-11592 Filed 5-15-12; 8:45 am]
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