FAA and Regs

As the ball gets ready to drop on the ADS-B mandate, five owners of a stock 1946 Luscombe are asking for an exemption that would allow them to turn off the ADS-B when they’re outside mandated airspace. The plane is based at busy El Paso Airport and must be able to operate in Class C […]

A broad spectrum of aviation groups is opposing a congressional bill that would allow local authorities to set noise standards at general aviation airports. In a letter to House leaders, nine groups representing operators that use municipal, regional and major airports say H.R. 5423, the Aircraft Noise Reduction Act, would undermine the federal authority that […]

The FAA will require that all FAA airman certificate applicants obtain an FAA Tracking Number (FTN) before registering for an airman knowledge test, the agency said on Monday. The FTN requirement (PDF) will go into effect on Jan. 13, 2020, and applies to certifications for both manned and unmanned aircraft operators along with mechanic, parachute […]

With cold and flu season underway, the FAA has published its annual list of acceptable and unacceptable over-the-counter (OTC) medications for pilots who want to fly through the pain. The first recommendation is for sick pilots to take their self-certification responsibilities to heart and to wait until they’re feeling better. It’s more complicated than that, […]

The FAA says it’s establishing a new “safety division” but says it has nothing to do with the Boeing 737 MAX.  The Washington Post first revealed the new department but the agency says it’s old news, part of a reorganization that began two years ago. “The FAA is constantly evolving and changing to continue addressing […]

Boeing’s manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington, may have been “prioritizing production speed over quality and safety” during the time when two 737 MAX aircraft involved in fatal accidents were built at the factory, according to testimony given by former Boeing employee Edward Pierson at a U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing on […]

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) is appealing an FAA decision regarding city handling of federal grant funds at California’s Santa Monica Airport (SMO). As previously reported by AVweb, the FAA issued a determination (PDF) in November that stated that the City of Santa Monica had failed to comply with its grant obligations for reasons […]

The FAA has selected twelve organizations to advise the agency as it develops test administration requirements for an aeronautical knowledge and safety test for recreational Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS/drone) operators. Among the organizations that will be advising the FAA are Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, DJI, King Schools, the Unmanned Safety Institute, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association […]

On Jan. 8, the FAA will discontinue the Hazardous Inflight Weather Advisory Service (HIWAS) after discussions with industry going back a year and a half. Ending HIWAS is “part of FAA efforts to modernize and streamline service delivery.” Citing new weather-dissemination technologies, the FAA says that “the demand for inflight services from Flight Service specialists […]

A former FAA inspector who claims he was “promoting aviation” has been sentenced to six years in jail for a string of corruption and theft charges that even involved his mother. The Miami Herald is reporting that Manuel Fernandez, a senior FAA safety inspector in South Florida, stole expensive repair manuals and resold them, took […]