Aviation & Regulatory Updates Archive

FAA ISSUES FINAL POLICY ON NON-AERONAUTICAL USE OF AIRPORT HANGARS

FAA UPDATES GUIDANCE ON OIL AND GAS REVENUE AT AIRPORTS

The FAA recently updated its Advisory Circular (AC)Guidance on the Extraction of Oil and Gas at Federally Obligated Airports. AC 150/5100-20discusses oil and gas development on federally obligated airport land, including any drilling that penetrates the subsurface of the airport owned land.

DOT TO ESTABLISH AN ACCESSIBLE AIR TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE

On April 7, 2016, the U.S. Department of Transportation (“DOT”) issued a new Proposed Rule, with request for comments, announcing its intent to establish a negotiated rulemaking committee to negotiate and develop proposed amendments to DOT’s disability regulations on three issues:

DOT ISSUES SAFETY NOTICE REGARDING THE SAFE TRANSPORT OF LITHIUM BATTERIES BY AIR

On April 7, 2016, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”), an agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation (“DOT”), issued a Safety Advisory Notice regarding the transport of lithium batteries. The new Safety Notice is as a result of the recent actions that were taken by the International Civil Aviation Organization (“ICAO”) to enhance the safe transport of lithium batteries by air.

On March 21, 2016, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) published an Interim Final Rule with request for comments, which includes a change to the current travel regulations affecting flights between Cuba and the United States. The new Rule amends the regulations by removing Subpart O in order to make them consistent with the arrangement with Cuba signed in February 2016 that opened up scheduled air services between the two countries.

The FAA recently updated its guidance for lessees and conditional buyers of U.S.-registered aircraft.  This is the first update to this guidance since 1978.  While “truth-in-leasing” requirements are mandatory for aircraft greater than 12,500 pounds, FAA Advisory Circular 91-37B is a good explanation of the concepts of leasing and operational control for aircraft of any size.  

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently issued a revised draft policy for approvals of minor modifications to products using Parts Manufacturer Authority (PMA).  The FAA has asked for comments on its draft Policy Statement.  Comments to the draft Policy are requested by May 1, 2016.

On March 9, 2016, the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) published a notice regarding changes to its Aviation Safety Action Program (“ASAP”) and Voluntary Disclosure Reporting Program (“VDPR”) in order to line them up with the Agency’s new Compliance Philosophy.

On February 16, 2016, the United States and Cuba signed a historic agreement that opens up a scheduled air services market that has been closed for more than half a century.

The new agreement, signed by United States Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in Cuba, provides each country with the opportunity to operate up to 20 daily roundtrip flights between the U.S. and Havana, the capital of Cuba.

Employers are due to submit the first annual summary of workplace incidents to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) according to recent rule changes to OSHA’s recordkeeping and reporting requirements, which took effect January 1, 2015.  This rule changed who must complete certain OSHA forms that record workplace incidents, and it also increased certain requirements for employers to orally report workplace incidents to OSHA.