Today, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a notice highlighting the responsibility of certificate holders to maintain and exercise operational control for all Part 135 operations. The notice was developed in response to FAA concerns arising from the investigation into the February 2005 accident at TeterboroAirport and other recent occurrences.

Notice 8400.83, “Responsibility for Operational Control During Part 135 Operations and the Use of a DBA (Doing-Business-As) Name,” instructs all Part 135 principal operations inspectors (POIs) to review the notice and discuss its contents with all operators under their supervision.

Specifically, POIs are instructed to ascertain whether each of their assigned Part 135 operators has in place an operator control system that is adequate to ensure that operational control over each Part 135 flight is maintained and to address any inadequacies found.

The notice does not provide any guidance or information contrary to existing regulation, but emphasizes the certificate holder’s responsibility to maintain operational control of all flights conducted under the authority of its certificate and provides specific information on how operational control is exercised. This information is detailed in section 4.a.(2) of the notice which begins on page 2 of the notice.

The notice also calls attention to other issues that might be found in some management agreements that may raise questions as to the certificate holder’s ability to maintain and exercise operational control over flights conducted under the auspices of the Part 135 certificate. These issues are found in section 4.a.(4)(a) beginning on Page 3 on the notice.

Information on the use of DBAs is also provided, beginning on page 4 of the notice. POIs are instructed to evaluate the DBAs utilized by certificate holders under their supervision to determine if the DBA “represents the trade, marketing or nickname of the carrier or whether the DBA is associated with a person or other business entity independent of the carrier.” If the DBA does not represent the carrier, the POI will ask the operator to voluntarily agree to its removal from the Operations Specifications.

Recommended Certificate Holder Actions:

  1. Review the notice.
  1. Be prepared to discuss the notice with your POI and answer any questions related to your operational control system.
  1. If you have one or more DBAs listed in your Operations Specifications (OpSpecs), be prepared to explain how the alternate name(s) relates to the certificate name. If the name does not directly represent the air carrier, but is instead associated with an independent person or business entity, the POI will request that the operator agree to its voluntary removal from the OpSpecs. (See notice Page 5.) You are not required to consent to its removal.

Responding to Problems:

  1. Any operator attempting to add new aircraft to their certificate who encounters problems as a result of the notice and the existence of an aircraft management agreement
  2. The operator should request that the POI provide specific details on his/her concerns with how operational control could be impacted by the management agreement so both parties may work together to address those concerns in a timely manner.
  1. If the POI cannot provide specific details or a resolution is not reached, FAA headquarters recommends that operators contact the Flight Standards and Counsel’s staff at their FAA Regional office for assistance.
  1. Importantly, nothing within the notice requires FAA approval of aircraft management agreements.
  1. Any operator asked to voluntarily remove a DBA from OpSpecs
  2. The operator is not required to remove a DBA already on its OpSpecs.
  1. The FAA may initiate a change to OpSpecs to remove the DBA in question. The process for an FAA-initiated change to OpSpecs is located at 14 CFR 119.51. This regulation requires the FAA to follow a formal process to change the OpSpecs and provides the operator with specific rights, including appeal rights. Certificate holders are encouraged to review this regulation and avail themselves of their due process rights. Ultimately, the decision to remove or retain the DBA will be made by FAA headquarters staff.
  1. Any operator unable to add a new DBA to OpSpecs
  2. A certificate holder who would like to add a DBA but cannot obtain approval from his/her POI should contact:

Kent Stephens

Air Transportation Division

  1. The operator will be permitted the opportunity to demonstrate how the DBA meets FAA regulatory standards and a decision regarding the DBA will be issued by FAA headquarters.
  1. Please contact Jacqueline Rosser, NATA Senior Manager of Regulatory Affairs, at with any additional comments or questions.