RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PILOTS HOLDING SPECIAL ISSUANCE MEDICAL CERTIFICATES
Special issuance authorization (SIA) medical certificates require FAA aeromedical review before being reissued by the FAA or an aviation medical examiner (AME). The SIA letter directs the pilot to submit information to the FAA 60 days prior to the expiration. Although the government shutdown has slowed the FAA review timeline, SIAs are still being processed.
If you hold an SIA, you should obtain the required evaluations and documents 90 days before the expiration and ensure they are submitted to the FAA no later than 60 days prior to the SIA expiration date. You should not take a physical exam with your AME until the month your SIA expires (not 60–90 days prior).
Pilots with Conditions AMEs Can Issue medical certificates do not require review by the FAA and, with appropriate documentation, you can go to your AME at the normal time and be issued a medical certificate.
You can submit your renewal material though the ALPA Aeromedical Office (the Aviation Medicine Advisory Service, AMAS) or your AME. AMAS physicians can assist in submission, tracking, and renewal of pilot SIAs. For any questions or assistance, call AMAS
PILOTS AND INDUSTRY GATHER TO DISCUSS FATIGUE MANAGEMENT, DUTY RULES
Today, more than 100 pilots from 27 pilot groups met at ALPA's conference center in Herndon, Va., to discuss the implementation of flight-time and duty-time (FTDT) rules under FAR Part 117. Due to the ongoing partial government shutdown, representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were unable to attend.
Opening the two-day conference, ALPA president Capt. Joe DePete remarked that "pilot fatigue has always been a core issue for ALPA. When pilot pushing was commonplace, the safety risk faced by the first pilots is one of the reasons our union was founded. We have spent a lot of time and resources to see that the regulations are realistic in expectation and reasonable to line pilots."
ALPA FTDT Committee chairman Capt. Brian Noyes (UAL) observed, "We have adopted Part 117 pretty well as pilots in the five years since the rule became effective. Nearly all the issues have been worked out, with only a few letters of interpretation issued by the FAA—about six a year—but we can find new ways to improve our understanding and make the rules work better for pilots."
Panel discussions at the conference included identifying fatigue safety risks, mitigating those risks through data processing, a review of Part 117 implementation, reporting on extensions and fatigue calls, fitness for duty definitions, and best practices regarding fatigue risk management and systems.
Look for additional coverage in the March issue of Air Line Pilot.
CABIN AIR QUALITY MEETING: FEBRUARY 25
A one-day Cabin Air Quality meeting, hosted by the ALPA Air Safety Organization and Engineering and Air Safety Department, will take place on February 25 in the conference center at ALPA's offices in Herndon, Va. This event will facilitate information sharing about ongoing air quality activities at both the international ALPA level and the air carrier level. Discussions will include the medical, maintenance, and aircraft design aspects of the safety and health concerns around aircraft air quality. Each MEC is encouraged to send a rep, and this meeting is for ALPA members only.
INTERNATIONAL YOUTH EXCHANGE: A SUMMER PROGRAM FOR AIRLINE FAMILIES
International Youth Exchange matches your family with an airline family abroad so your teen can travel in the summer. The program connects teens ages 14 to 19 with a similar-aged teen from an airline family abroad, and each teen uses his or her family's flight privileges to travel. They spend two weeks together in each of their homes, for a total of four weeks. During the exchange, your son or daughter will have the opportunity to explore another country, learn about another culture and improve his or her foreign language skills from someone their same age.
The program costs $300 USD for the application fee, which is 100 percent refundable if a suitable match family is not found.