| Sec. 135.21 Manual requirements | Sec. 135.41 Carriage of narcotic drugs, marihuana, and depressant or stimulant drugs or substances |
| Sec. 135.23 Manual contents | Sec. 135.25 Aircraft requirements |
Sec. 135.21 Manual requirements Index
(a) Each certificate holder, other than one who uses only one pilot in the
certificate holder's operations, shall prepare and keep current a manual
setting forth the certificate holder's procedures and policies acceptable to
the Administrator. This manual must be used by the certificate holder's
flight, ground, and maintenance personnel in conducting its operations.
However, the Administrator may authorize a deviation from this paragraph if
the Administrator finds that, because of the limited size of the operation,
all or part of the manual is not necessary for guidance of flight, ground, or
maintenance personnel.
(b) Each certificate holder shall maintain at least one copy of the manual
at its principal base of operations.
(c) The manual must not be contrary to any applicable Federal regulations,
foreign regulation applicable to the certificate holder's operations in
foreign countries, or the certificate holder's operating certificate or
operations specifications.
(d) A copy of the manual, or appropriate portions of the manual (and
changes and additions) shall be made available to maintenance and ground
operations personnel by the certificate holder and furnished to--
(1) Its flight crewmembers; and
(2) Representatives of the Administrator assigned to the certificate
holder.
(e) Each employee of the certificate holder to whom a manual or appropriate
portions of it are furnished under paragraph (d)(1) of this section shall
keep it up to date with the changes and additions furnished to them.
(f) For the purpose of complying with paragraph (d) of this section, a
certificate holder may furnish the persons listed therein with the
maintenance part of its manual in printed form or other form, acceptable to
the Administrator, that is retrievable in the English language. If the
certificate holder furnishes the maintenance part of the manual in other than
printed form, it must ensure there is a compatible reading device available
to those persons that provide a legible image of the maintenance information
and instructions, or a system that is able to retrieve the maintenance
information and instructions in the English language.
(g) If a certificate holder conducts aircraft inspections or maintenance at
specified stations where it keeps the approved inspection program manual, it
is not required to carry the manual aboard the aircraft en route to those
stations.
Each manual shall have the date of the last revision on each revised page.
The manual must include--
(a) The name of each management person required under Sec. 119.69(a) of
this chapter who is authorized to act for the certificate holder, the
person's assigned area of responsibility, the person's duties,
responsibilities, and authority, and the name and title of each person
authorized to exercise operational control under Sec. 135.77;
(b) Procedures for ensuring compliance with aircraft weight and balance
limitations and, for multiengine aircraft, for determining compliance with
Sec. 135.185;
(c) Copies of the certificate holder's operations specifications or
appropriate extracted information, including area of operations authorized,
category and class of aircraft authorized, crew complements, and types of
operations authorized;
(d) Procedures for complying with accident notification requirements;
(e) Procedures for ensuring that the pilot in command knows that required
airworthiness inspections have been made and that the aircraft has been
approved for return to service in compliance with applicable maintenance
requirements;
(f) Procedures for reporting and recording mechanical irregularities that
come to the attention of the pilot in command before, during, and after
completion of a flight;
(g) Procedures to be followed by the pilot in command for determining that
mechanical irregularities or defects reported for previous flights have been
corrected or that correction has been deferred;
(h) Procedures to be followed by the pilot in command to obtain
maintenance, preventive maintenance, and servicing of the aircraft at a place
where previous arrangements have not been made by the operator, when the
pilot is authorized to so act for the operator;
(i) Procedures under Sec. 135.179 for the release for, or continuation of,
flight if any item of equipment required for the particular type of operation
becomes inoperative or unserviceable en route;
(j) Procedures for refueling aircraft, eliminating fuel contamination,
protecting from fire (including electrostatic protection), and supervising
and protecting passengers during refueling;
(k) Procedures to be followed by the pilot in command in the briefing under
Sec. 135.117;
(l) Flight locating procedures, when applicable;
(m) Procedures for ensuring compliance with emergency procedures, including
a list of the functions assigned each category of required crewmembers in
connection with an emergency and emergency evacuation duties under Sec.
135.123;
(n) En route qualification procedures for pilots, when applicable;
(o) The approved aircraft inspection program, when applicable;
(p) Procedures and instructions to enable personnel to recognize hazardous
materials, as defined in Title 49 CFR, and if these materials are to be
carried, stored, or handled, procedures and instructions for--
(1) Accepting shipment of hazardous material required by Title 49 CFR, to
assure proper packaging, marking, labeling, shipping documents, compatibility
of articles, and instructions on their loading, storage, and handling;
(2) Notification and reporting hazardous material incidents as required by
Title 49 CFR; and
(3) Notification of the pilot in command when there are hazardous materials
aboard, as required by Title 49 CFR;
(q) Procedures for the evacuation of persons who may need the assistance of
another person to move expeditiously to an exit if an emergency occurs; and
(r) Other procedures and policy instructions regarding the certificate
holder's operations, that are issued by the certificate holder.
(a) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section, no certificate
holder may operate an aircraft under this part unless that aircraft--
(1) Is registered as a civil aircraft of the United States and carries an
appropriate and current airworthiness certificate issued under this chapter;
and
(2) Is in an airworthy condition and meets the applicable airworthiness
requirements of this chapter, including those relating to identification and
equipment.
(b) Each certificate holder must have the exclusive use of at least one
aircraft that meets the requirements for at least one kind of operation
authorized in the certificate holder's operations specifications. In
addition, for each kind of operation for which the certificate holder does
not have the exclusive use of an aircraft, the certificate holder must have
available for use under a written agreement (including arrangements for
performing required maintenance) at least one aircraft that meets the
requirements for that kind of operation. However, this paragraph does not
prohibit the operator from using or authorizing the use of the aircraft for
other than operations under this part and does not require the
certificate holder to have exclusive use of all aircraft that the certificate
holder uses.
(c) For the purposes of paragraph (b) of this section, a person has
exclusive use of an aircraft if that person has the sole possession, control,
and use of it for flight, as owner, or has a written agreement (including
arrangements for performing required maintenance), in effect when the
aircraft is operated, giving the person that possession, control, and use for
at least 6 consecutive months.
(d) A certificate holder may operate in common carriage, and for the
carriage of mail, a civil aircraft which is leased or chartered to it without
crew and is registered in a country which is a party to the Convention on
International Civil Aviation if--
(1) The aircraft carries an appropriate airworthiness certificate issued by
the country of registration and meets the registration and identification
requirements of that country;
(2) The aircraft is of a type design which is approved under a U.S. type
certificate and complies with all of the requirements of this chapter (14 CFR
Chapter I) that would be applicable to that aircraft were it registered in
the United States, including the requirements which must be met for issuance
of a U.S. standard airworthiness certificate (including type design
conformity, condition for safe operation, and the noise, fuel venting, and
engine emission requirements of this chapter), except that a U.S.
registration certificate and a U.S. standard airworthiness certificate will
not be issued for the aircraft;
(3) The aircraft is operated by U.S.-certificated airmen employed by the
certificate holder; and
(4) The certificate holder files a copy of the aircraft lease or charter
agreement with the FAA Aircraft Registry, Department of Transportation, 6400
South MacArthur Boulevard, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Mailing address: P.O. Box
25504, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73125).
If the holder of a certificate operating under this part allows any aircraft owned or leased by that holder to be engaged in any operation that the certificate holder knows to be in violation of Sec. 91.19(a) of this chapter, that operation is a basis for suspending or revoking the certificate.