Mini-chronology: Regulatory History of Flight Limitation Rules
1931: Commerce Department sets monthly flight time limit of 110 hours. Operators want 140 hours/month, but ALPA’s founder and first president, Capt. Dave Behncke, campaigns for 85 hours/month.
1934: ALPA prevails—National Labor Board’s Decision 83 limits flight time to 85 hours per month.
1938: Substance of Decision 83 is incorporated into Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938. Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB, predecessor to FAA) issues domestic flight-time rules, limiting flight time to 8 hours in a 24-hour period.
1942: CAB amends rules to limit flight time to 30 hours/week.
1945–1947: CAB issues flag (international) and supplemental flight-time rules.
1953–1954: CAB amends supplemental and flag rules, saying deadheading is not rest.
1962: FAA issues moratorium on series of flight-time rules.
1976: ALPA sues FAA to remove moratorium.
1946–1982: CAB and FAA issue 30 proposals to amend flight-time limits.
1985: FAA revises domestic flight limit rules, establishing that rest is still required even after less than 8 hours of flight time, and includes a look-back provision.
1989: FAA limits two-pilot flight crews of aircraft in flag operations to 8 hours of flight time.
1985–1990: Air Transport Association (twice), Regional Airline Pilots Association, and ALPA file petitions for rulemaking.
1992: FAA issues bulletin to enforce interpretation of “reserve rest” rule, but in fact fails to enforce the rule.
1995: FAA issues NPRM 95-18 to revise all flight- and duty-time limits and rest requirements.
1999: After ALPA applies considerable public pressure, the FAA informs airlines that the agency will enforce the reserve rest rule, which requires airlines to give pilots on reserve duty at least 9 hours of rest before being put on reserve (“on call”) status.
2000–2008: No action by FAA. 2009: FAA Administrator J. Randolph Babbitt creates an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (in which ALPA is a full participant) to develop consensus-based recommendations leading to an NPRM by the end of 2009, with a final rule expected by the end of 2010.