395 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 129.17 

program and approved aircraft min-
imum equipment list to the FAA office 
prescribed in paragraph (b)(2) of this 
section for review and evaluation. The 
foreign operator must show that it is 
capable of operating under the lessor’s 
approved maintenance program and 
that it is also capable of meeting the 
maintenance and operational require-
ments specified in the lessor’s approved 
minimum equipment list. 

(4) The FAA operations specification 

permitting the operator to use an ap-
proved minimum equipment list is car-
ried aboard the aircraft. An approved 
minimum equipment list, as authorized 
by the operations specifications, con-
stitutes an approved change to the 
type design without requiring recertifi-
cation. 

(5) The approved minimum equip-

ment list provides for the operation of 
the aircraft with certain instruments 
and equipment in an inoperable condi-
tion. 

(6) The aircraft records available to 

the pilot must include an entry de-
scribing the inoperable instruments 
and equipment. 

(7) The aircraft is operated under all 

applicable conditions and limitations 
contained in the minimum equipment 
list and the operations specification 
authorizing the use of the list. 

[Doc. No. 24856, 52 FR 20029, May 28, 1987, as 
amended by Amdt. 129–49, 76 FR 7490, Feb. 10, 
2011; Docket FAA–2018–0119, Amdt. 129–53, 83 
FR 9174, Mar. 5, 2018] 

§ 129.15 Flightcrew member certifi-

cates. 

Each person acting as a flightcrew 

member must hold a certificate or li-
cense that shows the person’s ability to 
perform duties in connection with the 
operation of the aircraft. The certifi-
cate or license must have been issued 
or rendered valid by: 

(a) The State in which the aircraft is 

registered; or 

(b) The State of the Operator, pro-

vided that the State of the Operator 
and the State of Registry have entered 
into an agreement under Article 83

bis 

of the Convention on International 
Civil Aviation that covers the aircraft. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2009–0140; 76 FR 7491, Feb. 10, 
2011] 

§ 129.17 Aircraft communication and 

navigation equipment for oper-

ations under IFR or over the top. 

(a) 

Aircraft navigation equipment re-

quirements—General. 

No foreign air car-

rier may conduct operations under IFR 
or over the top unless— 

(1) The en route navigation aids nec-

essary for navigating the aircraft along 
the route (e.g., ATS routes, arrival and 
departure routes, and instrument ap-
proach procedures, including missed 
approach procedures if a missed ap-
proach routing is specified in the pro-
cedure) are available and suitable for 
use by the aircraft navigation equip-
ment required by this section; 

(2) The aircraft used in those oper-

ations is equipped with at least the fol-
lowing— 

(i) Except as provided in paragraph 

(c) of this section, two approved inde-
pendent navigation systems suitable 
for navigating the aircraft along the 
route to be flown within the degree of 
accuracy required for ATC; 

(ii) One marker beacon receiver pro-

viding visual and aural signals; and 

(iii) One ILS receiver; and 
(3) Any RNAV system used to meet 

the navigation equipment require-
ments of this section is authorized in 
the foreign air carrier’s operations 
specifications. 

(b) 

Aircraft communication equipment 

requirements. 

No foreign air carrier may 

operate an aircraft under IFR or over 
the top, unless it is equipped with— 

(1) At least two independent commu-

nication systems necessary under nor-
mal operating conditions to fulfill the 
functions specified in § 121.347(a) of this 
chapter; and 

(2) At least one of the communica-

tion systems required by paragraph 
(b)(1) of this section must have two- 
way voice communication capability. 

(c) 

Use of a single independent naviga-

tion system for operations under IFR or 
over the top. 

Notwithstanding the re-

quirements of paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this 
section, the aircraft may be equipped 
with a single independent navigation 
system suitable for navigating the air-
craft along the route to be flown with-
in the degree of accuracy required for 
ATC if: 

(1) It can be shown that the aircraft 

is equipped with at least one other 

396 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 129.18 

independent navigation system suit-
able, in the event of loss of the naviga-
tion capability of the single inde-
pendent navigation system permitted 
by this paragraph at any point along 
the route, for proceeding safely to a 
suitable airport and completing an in-
strument approach; and 

(2) The aircraft has sufficient fuel so 

that the flight may proceed safely to a 
suitable airport by use of the remain-
ing navigation system, and complete 
an instrument approach and land. 

(d) 

VOR navigation equipment. 

If VOR 

navigation equipment is required by 
paragraph (a) or (c) of this section, no 
foreign air carrier may operate an air-
craft unless it is equipped with at least 
one approved DME or suitable RNAV 
system. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2002–14002, 72 FR 31683, June 7, 
2007] 

§ 129.18 Collision avoidance system. 

Effective January 1, 2005, any air-

plane you, as a foreign air carrier, op-
erate under part 129 must be equipped 
and operated according to the fol-
lowing table: 

C

OLLISION

A

VOIDANCE

S

YSTEMS

 

If you operate in the 

United States any 

. . . 

Then you must operate that airplane 

with: 

(a) Turbine-powered 

airplane of more 
than 33,000 
pounds maximum 
certificated take-
off weight.

(1) An appropriate class of Mode S 

transponder that meets Technical 
Standard Order (TSO) C–112, or a 
later version, and one of the fol-
lowing approved units; 

(i) TCAS II that meets TSO C–119b 

(version 7.0), or takeoff weight a 
later version. 

(ii) TCAS II that meets TSO C–119a 

(version 6.04A Enhanced) that was 
installed in that airplane before May 
1, 2003. If that TCAS II version 
6.04A Enhanced no longer can be 
repaired to TSO C–119a standards, 
it must be replaced with a TCAS II 
that meets TSO C–119b (version 
7.0), or a later version. 

(iii) A collision avoidance system equiv-

alent to TSO C–119b (version 7.0), 
or a later version, capable of coordi-
nating with units that meet TSO C– 
119a (version 6.04A Enhanced), or a 
later version. 

(b) Turbine-powered 

airplane with a 
passenger-seat 
configuration, ex-
cluding any pilot 
seat, of 10–30 
seats.

(1) TCAS I that meets TSO C–118, or 

a later version, or 

(2) A collision avoidance system equiv-

alent to excluding any TSO C–118, 
or a later version, or 

(3) A collision avoidance system and 

Mode S transponder that meet para-
graph (a)(1) of this section. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2001–10910, 68 FR 15903, Apr. 1, 
2003; Doc. No. FAA–2022–1355; Amdt. No. 129– 
54; 87 FR 75847, Dec. 9, 2022] 

§ 129.19 Air traffic rules and proce-

dures. 

(a) Each pilot must be familiar with 

the applicable rules, the navigational 
and communications facilities, and the 
air traffic control and other proce-
dures, of the areas to be traversed by 
him within the United States. 

(b) Each foreign air carrier shall es-

tablish procedures to assure that each 
of its pilots has the knowledge required 
by paragraph (a) of this section and 
shall check the ability of each of its pi-
lots to operate safely according to ap-
plicable rules and procedures. 

(c) Each foreign air carrier shall con-

form to the practices, procedures, and 
other requirements prescribed by the 
Administrator for U.S. air carriers for 
the areas to be operated in. 

§ 129.20 Digital flight data recorders. 

No person may operate an aircraft 

under this part that is registered in the 
United States unless it is equipped 
with one or more approved flight re-
corders that use a digital method of re-
cording and storing data and a method 
of readily retrieving that data from the 
storage medium. The flight data re-
corder must record the parameters 
that would be required to be recorded if 
the aircraft were operated under part 
121, 125, or 135 of this chapter, and must 
be installed by the compliance times 
required by those parts, as applicable 
to the aircraft. 

[Doc. No. 28109, 62 FR 38396, July 17, 1997] 

§ 129.21 Control of traffic. 

(a) Subject to applicable immigration 

laws and regulations, each foreign air 
carrier must furnish sufficient per-
sonnel necessary to provide two-way 
voice communications between its air-
craft and stations at places where the 
FAA finds that communication is nec-
essary but cannot be maintained in a 
language with which station operators 
are familiar. 

(b) Each person furnished by a for-

eign air carrier under paragraph (a) of 
this section must be able to speak 
English and the language necessary to