CHARTER FLT OPERATED BY CFI WHO DID NOT POSSESS AN 'ATCO;' AIR TAXI COMMERCIAL OPERATOR'S CERTIFICATE. FAR 13505 VIOLATED.

Date: 1993-01 · Aircraft: Small Transport; Low Wing; 2 Recip Eng

Anomalies: deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far

Synopsis

CHARTER FLT OPERATED BY CFI WHO DID NOT POSSESS AN 'ATCO;' AIR TAXI COMMERCIAL OPERATOR'S CERTIFICATE. FAR 13505 VIOLATED.

Narrative

I WORK FOR AN FBO AT TACOMA NARROWS ARPT. ON JAN/XX/93 I WAS GIVEN AN ASSIGNMENT BY MY MGR MR X; TO TAKE AN INSTRUCTIONAL FLT LEAVING TACOMA; WA; TO EDMONTON; ALBERTA; CANADA; JAN/XY/93 AND ARRIVING BACK TO TACOMA THE EVENING OF THE SAME DATE. I WAS TO TAKE AN SMT AND INSTRUCT OUR NEWEST FLT INSTRUCTOR; PLT 2 ON THE PERFORMANCE AND FLT CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS ACFT. WE WERE INSTRUCTED TO TAKE 2 MEN TO EDMONTON FOR A MEETING THAT WAS TO LAST FOR A FEW HRS. THE FBO WAS GOING TO SHARE EXPENSES WITH THESE MEN. I INTENDED TO DO NOTHING ILLEGAL. I WOULD NOT HAVE ACCEPTED THIS FLT IF I HAD THOUGHT IT WAS A VIOLATION OF FEDERAL REGS. AS WE WAITED FOR OUR PAX TO GET BACK TO THE TERMINAL; I WENT OVER SOME OF THE ACFT SYS AND SPDS WITH PLT 2. SHORTLY BEFORE OUR PAX WERE TO ARRIVE; I RECEIVED A CALL FROM MGR; MR S. HE SAID THAT MR. Y; AN ACI FROM THE FAA; WAS LOOKING FOR AN SMT THAT WAS APPARENTLY DOING ILLEGAL CHARTER WORK. I THEN CALLED MR. Y AND STATED THAT OUR PURPOSE FOR THE FLT WAS TWOFOLD: 1) TO GIVE INSTRUCTION TO PLT 2 ON THE PERFORMANCE AND FLT CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SMT; AND 2) TO TAKE THESE MEN TO EDMONTON FOR A MEETING. MR. Y EXPLAINED TO ME THAT THE ORIGINAL INTENT OF THE FLT WAS A CHARTER. I DO NOT HOLD A CHARTER CERTIFICATE; AND I WAS IN VIOLATION OF FAR PART 135. WE HAD OUR PAX FLY HOME WITH A CHARTER COMPANY THAT FLIES OUT OF EDMONTON. THE FBO PAID FOR THEIR TRIP HOME. PLT 2 AND I FLEW BACK TO TACOMA SEPARATELY. I HAVE SINCE MET WITH MR. Y. HE EXPLAINED THAT THE FLT ORIGINATED AS A CHARTER. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF THERE ARE 2 PURPOSES FOR 1 FLT. THE ORIGINAL INTENT IS WHAT CATEGORIZES THE FLT AS INSTRUCTIONAL OR CHARTER. AGAIN; I DID NOT INTEND TO VIOLATE THE REGS; AND I NOW UNDERSTAND WHAT CATEGORIZES A CHARTER. I WILL NOT TAKE ANY FURTHER FLTS OF THIS NATURE. I AM ENROLLED IN A PART 135 GND SCHOOL ALONG WITH MY MGR TO BE FURTHER EDUCATED IN PART 135 OPS. I AM ALSO TO TAKE A FLT IN THE SMT WITH MR. Y TO REEVALUATE MY COMMERCIAL LICENSE.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.