AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - October 2012 - 98

NEWS & NOTES

MEMBER PRODUCTS

AV8Rs

AOPA

Pilots of Tomorrow: Know a young person interested in aviation? Introduce them to AV8Rs, AOPA’s youth membership opportunity (www.aopa.org/av8rs).

Pilot Protection Services: The FAA wants to talk to me...Now what?
wants “to talk”?
Q.: What should a pilot do when the FAA
BY KATHY YODICE

AOPA Pilot Protection Services

A.: Before responding to the FAA in any way, take the opportunity to reflect on what happened to cause the FAA’s inquiry and what your rights and options may be. Your instinct may be to tell the FAA everything you know and speculate about what happened, but this could be exactly the wrong thing to do. If a response is required or warranted, the response you give to the FAA should be appropriate in scope, truthful, and not misleading. In most cases, you have no obligation to say or provide anything to the FAA. In those limited circumstances when you are required to respond to the FAA, there is usually an opportunity to prepare a proper response. If you are a participant in AOPA’s Pilot Protection Services, which includes the Legal Services Plan, you are entitled to legal consultation for any alleged FAA violations. If an emergency requires a pilot to deviate from the regulations, or results in a controller giving the pilot priority, then FARs 91.3(c) and 91.123(d) require that the pilot submit a written statement to the FAA, but only if requested to do so by the FAA. If the FAA does not request a report, there is no requirement to submit one. If a reasonable request is made by the FAA to see your pilot certificate—including your medical certificate and photo ID—or to see your pilot logbook, or to see your aircraft maintenance records, then FARs 61.51(i) and 91.417(c) require that you make this information available (although pilot and aircraft logbooks do not immediately need to be presented). In addition, although not specifically requiring presentation, FAR 91.203

requires that you carry on board your aircraft an appropriate and current airworthiness certificate and a valid U.S. registration certificate. So, if you’re operating an aircraft and an FAA inspector inspects your aircraft, the regulation requires that these documents be accessible to passengers or crew, effectively creating a presentation requirement. There is no requirement to answer the FAA and give them any information, and there is nothing the FAA can do in action against you for failing to respond. Should an FAA inspector send you a letter of investigation and you write back; if an FAA inspector calls you and you speak with him or her; or a controller asks you about a possible deviation and you discuss this with him or her, be aware that any information that you provide
WEB

will be used in the FAA’s investigation of the matter. So, if there is a dispute as to the facts, or if the FAA might have some trouble establishing some necessary element of proof, you’ll want to think hard about what to say or what not to say. We want to trust the FAA to help guide us and to do the fair thing when something happens, but that sometimes takes a little thinking and a little planning on our part to be sure we’re not making matters worse for ourselves.
Kathy Yodice is an aviation attorney for AOPA’s Pilot Protection Services and Legal Services Plan. She’s assisted AOPA members for more than 13 years and is a former FAA attorney. She owns a Cherokee 180 and has been a pilot since 1994.

Visit the website (www.aopa.org/pps) for more information

ANSWERS FOR PILOTS

AOPA BUILDING A FLYING CLUB COMMUNITY
LOOKING FOR A PILOT COMMUNITY? One that includes flying and a lot more—where pilots and their families are involved socially with other aviation enthusiasts? Do you wish you could own your own airplane so you could fly whenever you wanted to, but the cost of individual ownership is just too high? A flying club may be the answer. Club members have access to well-maintained aircraft at reasonable prices, as well as a social network for themselves and their families,

including students and pilots not currently flying. Many clubs also provide information and education to the local community. AOPA is building a national network of affiliated flying clubs with benefits for pilots, the aviation industry, and the clubs. Find out more in this month’s online Answers for Pilots (www.aopa.org/members/ answers1012). Or call AOPA Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern time, 800-USA-AOPA (872-2672).

98 | AOPA PILOT October 2012

http://www.aopa.org/av8rs http://www.aopa.org/pps http://www.aopa.org/members/answers1012 http://www.aopa.org/members/answers1012

AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - October 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - October 2012