Six aviation groups—including NBAA, GAMA, NATA, and HAI—are jointly questioning the FAA’s basis for proposed revisions to requirements for on-demand air carriers operating Department of Transportation (DOT)-authorized public charter operations under DOT Part 380. The FAA Notice of Intent (NOI) suggests potential revisions to the regulatory definitions of “on-demand operation,” “supplemental operation,” and “scheduled operation” under FAR Part 110, which governs Part 135 public charter carriers conducting DOT Part 380 flights.
These FAA regulations govern the operations of air carriers, while DOT Part 380 regulations address economic authority for those offering public charters. Current regulations allow a Part 380 operator to work with any air carrier, including on-demand carriers operating under Part 135.
“In putting forward the notice, FAA officials presented a data set pointing to the growth in flights conducted under Part 380 over the past decade as the basis for the agency’s proposed regulatory review,” the groups said. “However, the operational increase has come with no major incidents or accidents under the current regulatory framework, which makes the motive for the FAA’s action unclear.”
NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen noted, “For more than 45 years, Part 380 public charter regulations have allowed for a broad diversity of safe and secure air service options for U.S. consumers. We remain concerned about any action that may disrupt, or even deprive, air service to smaller communities, especially if action were taken without evidence, data, or stakeholder engagement on the adequacy of the existing regulatory framework and the desirability of changes to that framework.”
The groups said the FAA’s move follows concerns expressed by several associations earlier this year about “inaccurate characterizations” of Part 135 operators conducting Part 380 public charter flights in response to SkyWest Airline’s economic application to the agency to launch such an operation. They also expressed concern that changes to public charter regulations could negatively affect on-demand transportation.