AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - July 2017 - T-20

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If my hangar neighbor has a letter of
authorization and approved MEL for his
Piper Meridian, it doesn't mean I can make
a copy and use it for mine, even if our
airplanes are identical.
may not fly with any equipment in the airplane not working, unless "an approved
minimum equipment list exists for that aircraft, [and] the aircraft has within it a letter
of authorization (LOA) issued by the FAA...
authorizing operation of the aircraft under
the minimum equipment list." This LOA is
issued to a specific combination of operator
and N number aircraft. If my hangar neighbor has an LOA and approved MEL for his
Piper Meridian or Embraer Phenom, it
doesn't mean I can make a copy and use it
for mine, even if our airplanes are identical.
The process of creating and receiving approval for an MEL is time
consuming, but fortunately for Part 91
operators a more expedient option exists.
Manufacturers of turbine aircraft create
and periodically update a master minimum equipment list (MMEL) for their
aircraft, which receives approval directly
from the FAA. Operators may submit
to the FAA a package consisting of the
MMEL and a separate document detailing
how they will adapt some of the generic
language in the MMEL to their operation.
Together with an LOA authorizing use of
the MMEL as an MEL, this package is
considered to be the FAA-approved MEL.
Once approved to do so, a pilot can
now consult his MEL to determine if a
flight can be made with given equipment
inoperative. For some cases the process is simple-a Phenom 100 pilot with
an inoperative cockpit voice recorder
(CVR), would consult the MEL (see
chart, page T-18) and see the flight may
be operated with no CVR. In most cases,
however, some restriction on operation
or maintenance steps that must be taken
prior to flight are specified.
These operational and maintenance
procedures are indicated by the presence of an "O" or "M" in the remarks
and exceptions column of the MEL. If
the Phenom pilot had an inoperative
outflow valve (a key part of the pressurization system), flight would only
T-20 | AOPA PILOT July 2017

be legal after a mechanic had physically
removed another safety valve, and the
pilot would be limited to making unpressurized flights at or below 10,000 feet
msl (see chart, page T-18).
Operating with an MEL isn't permission to fly an aircraft forever with broken
parts. For-hire operators must abide by
repair categories specified in the MEL,
varying from as little as a single flight to
as much as four months. Part 91 operators are given more latitude from the FAA;
they need not comply with the "A, B, C,
or D" calendar-based repair categories,
but only with any limits specified in the
remarks and exceptions. Again, even this
more lenient procedure isn't intended to
be permission for continuous deferral of
maintenance; at the next required aircraft
inspection all inoperative equipment must
be repaired or removed.
One note of interest as this issue goes
to press: In the past few months a controversy has arisen regarding use of an
MMEL as an MEL for operators who travel
to Europe. The French Safety Oversight
Authority conducts the dreaded "safety
assessment of foreign aircraft (SAFA)"
inspections of aircraft visiting France-
think ramp check on steroids, taking up
to two hours. France has stated it will no
longer accept the use of an MMEL as an
MEL, as this process allegedly doesn't
comply with ICAO guidelines.
As a result, some operators are proactively beginning the process of creating
their own MELs, while others are anticipating push-back from the FAA, which
would be faced with thousands of manhours of new work should every operator
in the U.S. need to have a custom MEL
approved. As the process to create and
have approved a custom MEL can be very
lengthy, international operators would do
well to watch this issue closely.
AOPA
NEIL SINGER is a master CFI with more than
8,500 hours.

http://www.AOPAFINANCE.ORG

AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - July 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - July 2017