E7-339. Use of Certain Portable Oxygen Concentrator Devices Onboard Aircraft

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

ACTION:

Final rule; technical amendment.

SUMMARY:

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is making minor technical changes to a final rule published in the Federal Register on July 12, 2005 (70 FR 40156). That final rule created Special Federal Aviation Regulation 106 (SFAR 106). In that final rule the FAA inadvertently failed to make conforming amendments to additionally apply the SFAR to parts 125 and 135 as proposed, and to include references in those parts to the existence of SFAR 106 published in part 121.

EFFECTIVE DATES:

Effective on February 12, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

David L. Catey, Air Transportation Division, AFS-200, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published SFAR 106, “Use of Certain Portable Oxygen Concentrator Devices onboard Aircraft,” in the Federal Register on July 12, 2005 (70 FR 40156). We inadvertently failed to attach notes to parts 125 and 135 of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) that would direct operators subject to those regulations to the body of SFAR 106. When the FAA published the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that offered the proposed SFAR to the public for comment, we clearly stated that the proposed regulation would apply to civil aircraft in parts 121, 125, and 135. The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on July 14, 2004 (69 FR 42324), and in the heading we noted that the proposal applied to 14 CFR Parts 121, 125, and 135. The applicability for an SFAR to a specific part of 14 CFR is not specifically cited in the Applicability section of the regulatory language, but rather cited in the heading of the SFAR and the parts affected contain an editorial note referring readers to the text of the SFAR. When the final rule was published, we failed to include those notes to parts 125 and 135. This technical amendment will add the editorial notes to parts 125 and 135 that direct the reader to the text of SFAR 106 and ensure that readers know the regulation applies to operations conducted under those parts. This amendment will not impose any additional restrictions on operators affected by these regulations.

SFAR 106 permits passengers to carry on and use certain portable oxygen concentrator devices (POCs) onboard aircraft if the aircraft operator ensures that the conditions specified in the SFAR for their use are met. Aircraft operators can now offer medical oxygen service as they did before SFAR 106 was enacted, or they can arrange for passengers to carry on and use one of the devices covered in SFAR 106. SFAR 106 is an enabling rule, which means that no aircraft operator is required to allow passengers to operate these devices onboard, but they may allow them to be operated onboard. If one of these devices is allowed by the aircraft operator to be carried on board, the conditions in the SFAR must be met. SFAR 106 allows for the use of five specific POC devices the FAA has found to be acceptable.

Need for the Correction

As stated above, this correction is needed to make clear that the conditions and regulations of SFAR 106 are also applicable to operations conducted under parts 125 and 135, as proposed in the NPRM and intended in the final rule.

Technical Amendment

The technical amendment will correct the omission of the editorial notes that direct operators under parts 125 and 135 to SFAR 106 in part 121.

List of Subjects

14 CFR Part 125

• Aircraft
• Airmen
• Aviation safety
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements

14 CFR Part 135

• Air taxis
• Aircraft
• Aviation safety
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements

Accordingly, Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 125 and 135 are amended as follows:

PART 125—CERTIFICATION AND OPERATIONS: AIRPLANES HAVING A SEATING CAPACITY OF 20 OR MORE PASSENGERS OR A MAXIMUM PAYLOAD CAPACITY OF 6,000 POUNDS OR MORE; AND RULES GOVERNING PERSONS ON BOARD SUCH AIRCRAFT.

1. The authority citation for part 125 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701-44702, 44705, 44710-44711, 44713, 44716-44717, 44722.

2. Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 106 is added to part 125 to read as follows:

SPECIAL FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATION NO. 106

Editorial Note:

For the text of SFAR No. 106, see part 121 of this chapter.

PART 135—OPERATING REQUIREMENTS: COMMUTER AND ON-DEMAND OPERATIONS AND RULES GOVERNING PERSONS ON BOARD SUCH AIRCRAFT

3. The authority citation for part 135 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701-44702, 44705, 44709, 44711-44713, 44715-44717, 44722.

4. Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 106 is added to part 135 to read as follows:

SPECIAL FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATION NO. 106

Editorial Note:

For the text of SFAR No. 106, see part 121 of this chapter.

Issued in Washington, DC, on January 4, 2007.

Rebecca B. MacPherson,

Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulations.