AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2021 - 28

SAFETY SPOTLIGHT
Document drill
New FAA interpretations set up
a nightmare scenario
BY RICHARD MCSPADDEN / Senior Vice President
AOPA Air Safety Institute
FORTY THOUSAND PILOTS woke up on July 12 suddenly at risk of
FAA enforcement action. Not a word in the regulations changed.
An FAA lawyer simply decided to change 60 years of regulatory
interpretation and precedence (see " Baker Calls for Action, " p.
14). No process, no rule-change procedure. No discussions with
industry. No analysis of potential safety impact. Just an overzealous
civil servant, inventing new interpretations that will impact tens
of thousands of pilots and set back general aviation safety. It's a
nightmare scenario, and unfortunately, it's not a dream.
Ironically, the FAA-founded for the very purpose of
advancing aviation safety-moved at lightning speed (by FAA
standards) to put safety in peril. Meanwhile, important initiatives
such as the Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certificates
(MOSAIC) plod along. MOSAIC is just one item grinding through
the FAA for close to a decade that is unanimously agreed to have
important safety implications.
The staff lawyer's new interpretation will make flight training
more difficult and expensive to acquire in the affected aircraft
categories. Safety principles and common sense dictate that
to improve safety, access to training and instruction should
be broadened and made more affordable. One would expect
FAA leaders to understand that, but according to their recent
explanations, bureaucratic red tape takes precedence over safety.
In July, the FAA abruptly announced that flight instruction in
primary, limited, and experimental aircraft is considered " compensation
for hire, " even if the instruction is provided at no cost.
The FAA now requires pilots who want training and instruction in
these aircraft to apply for a letter of deviation authority or exemption.
In the history of the regulations, flight instruction has never
been interpreted that way. Some in the FAA attribute this new
interpretation to an administrative law judge's refusal to stop an
FAA's cease and desist order against Warbirds of America earlier
this year. But, FAA insiders know better. The judge's ruling did
not reach that broadly. Opportunists inside the FAA jumped on
it and were allowed to romp unchecked on decades of generally
agreed principles. Some mid-level to senior leaders in the FAA are
privately perplexed, and rightfully concerned by the sudden sea
change in interpretation, how it was implemented in a small vacuum
within the FAA, what it portends for the FAA's future posture,
and especially how it may impact safety.
28
AOPA PILOT / October 2021
The FAA wants us to be sympathetic. In remarks at EAA
AirVenture the FAA labeled it " just a document drill. " The
brand-new interpretation may feel like a " document drill " to the
bureaucrats who don't participate in GA on a routine basis, but it
is much more than paperwork to those of us who do.
For a " document drill, " it seems something of a complicated
one, since the FAA estimates it will take the agency two to three
years to fully correct it. This, officials explained with complete
seriousness and no hint of embarrassment. Two to three years
to correct a problem that didn't exist until they created it. A
discussion with industry could have alerted the FAA leadership
to the potential impact of the issue, and perhaps saved the agency
some embarrassment. A respect for 60 years of precedent could
have helped the FAA address the issue more reasonably. Now the
best recourse is legislation that forces the FAA into more prudent,
reasonable, and safety-focused action.
Thankfully we have effective avenues in this country to override
the whims of unelected civil servants. AOPA and the rest of the
GA community are united in peeling back the FAA's ill-advised and
unnecessary " document drill. " We're fortunate to have Sen. James
Inhofe and Rep. Sam Graves, both active GA pilots who work hard
to protect our freedom to fly. They're sponsoring a bill called the
Certainty for General Aviation Pilots Act (S.2458 and H.R. 4645).
AOPA President Mark Baker issued a call to action for GA advocates
to contact your senators and representatives in support of this
legislation. We're better and more powerful when we act together,
and even if this issue doesn't impact us personally, the context
should scare us all. A staff lawyer wakes up one day and decides on
a completely different interpretation of a decades-old precedent and
shoves it by FAA leadership without resistance. Suddenly 40,000 GA
pilots are at risk of noncompliance, pilots find it harder and more
expensive to get needed training, and GA safety takes a back seat to
a " document drill. " That should scare us all into action.
Go fly. But first, express
your concern for GA safety.
Contact Washington and
demand support for the proposed
Certainty for General
Aviation Pilots Act. richard.
mcspadden@aopa.org
RICHARD MCSPADDEN
started flying as a teenager
and has logged more than
5,000 hours flying a variety of
civilian and military aircraft.
AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2021

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