On May 25, 2007 the FAA issued Notice 8900.4 Guidance for Operations Specifications A002 and A008: Operational Control. The Notice provides principal inspectors (PIs) with revised guidance to ensure standardized compliance with the operational control requirements of FAR Parts 119 and 135. The 37-page Notice addresses (1) Operational control; (2) Two tier operational control system; (3) Lease agreements; (4) Payments; (5) Insurance arrangements; (6) Holding out; (7) Operator responsibility to ensure a sustainable transfer; (8) Inspections, surveillance, and investigations; and (9) The use of “doing business as” names (DBAs).
The Notice states that as of March 15, 2007, approximately 20 percent of all certificate holders authorized to conduct operations under part 135 had not been issued amended OpSpecs A002 and A008. As a result, “the Flight Standards Service has determined June 30, 2007 to be the sunset date for pre-revision 100 paragraphs A002 and pre-revision 020 paragraphs A008. After June 30, 2007, these obsolete OpSpecs will be rescinded, and operators who have not been issued amendment paragraphs referenced in N8000.347 will no longer have an approved operational control system and, therefore, will no longer be authorized to conduct part 135 operations until the amended OpSpecs are issued.”
As with the previous notice, certificate holders may appeal the revised OpSpecs pursuant to FAR 119.51. Certificate holders are encouraged to review the Notice, address questions or concerns with their respective PIs (or an aviation attorney) and confirm that they are in compliance with operational control requirements.
