FAA and Regs

As expected, the FAA has approved the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for use by controllers and pilots with a 48-hour waiting period. The FDA approved the new vaccine on Saturday and the FAA quickly announced its approval. It’s still adding the rider that the approval could be pulled if problems crop up. The agency said it […]

An overhaul of the aircraft certification process is likely part of the omnibus spending bill that Congress will likely pass Monday. The bill is expected to pass along with a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill that has been mired in partisan bickering. The clause on the FAA suffered no such political hand wringing, however. It […]

Correspondence from the FAA is enough to elevate a pilot’s heart rate well into triple digits. A letter from the FAA stating that the pilot’s competence has been called into question and requesting that the pilot take a reexamination checkride with an FAA inspector will make even the toughest pilot go weak in the knees. […]

Cargo carriers all over the world are loading up aircraft with up to five times as much of a hazardous substance than they would normally be allowed to carry in the name of delivering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. With the recent approvals granted by various governments for use of the vaccine, the race is now […]

The FAA has cleared pilots and air traffic controllers to take the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine as long as they take 48 hours away from the cockpit or console to clear any immediate side effects. The agency issued a news release on Saturday, the day after the FDA gave emergency use authorization for the vaccine, which […]

The Department of Transportation has cleared the air somewhat on how airlines may decide which animals can travel in the cabin with their owners, and flight crews are breathing easier. Last week the DOT essentially rid the already-cramped aluminum tubes of “emotional support” animals, which have heretofore been limited only by the imaginations and temerity […]

The FAA’s Piper PA-28 and PA-32 wing spar inspection AD takes effect Dec. 28 and it involves 11,476 aircraft. The FAA issued the notice on Nov. 23 and requires operators of the affected aircraft to have a look at the hard-to-reach section of spar within 100 hours or 12 months of that date. Extensive input […]

The FAA announced on Monday that it has published airworthiness criteria for the proposed certification of ten unmanned aircraft systems (UAS/drone) models. Calling the move a “a crucial step to enabling more complex drone operations,” the agency emphasized that applicants still need to demonstrate that they have met the posted requirements prior to certification. Separate […]

The European Aviation Safety Agency has announced it will likely allow the Boeing 737 MAX’s return to service in January after it has completed its own review of changes to the aircraft. EASA Executive Director Patrick Ky told an online aviation forum on Saturday that so far there have been no major snags in the […]

A 22-year-old drone operator who wanted to “see what was going on” could face a one-year jail term after his aircraft hit a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter Sept. 18. According to Fox News, Andrew Rene Hernandez’s drone hit the fuselage of the chopper, prompting an emergency landing but no injuries. It’s not clear if […]