459 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 135.168 

batteries) that are essentially unaf-
fected during probable storage inter-
vals. 

[Doc. No. 16097, 43 FR 46783, Oct. 10, 1978, as 
amended by Amdt. 135–4, 45 FR 38348, June 
30, 1980; Amdt. 135–20, 51 FR 40710, Nov. 7, 
1986; Amdt. 135–49, 59 FR 32058, June 21, 1994; 
Amdt. 135–91, 68 FR 54586, Sept. 17, 2003] 

§ 135.168 Emergency equipment: 

Overwater rotorcraft operations. 

(a) 

Definitions. 

For the purposes of 

this section, the following definitions 
apply— 

Autorotational distance 

refers to the 

distance a rotorcraft can travel in 
autorotation as described by the manu-
facturer in the approved Rotorcraft 
Flight Manual. 

Shoreline 

means that area of the land 

adjacent to the water of an ocean, sea, 
lake, pond, river, or tidal basin that is 
above the high-water mark at which a 
rotorcraft could be landed safely. This 
does not include land areas which are 
unsuitable for landing such as vertical 
cliffs or land intermittently under 
water. 

(b) 

Required equipment. 

Except when 

authorized by the certificate holder’s 
operations specifications, or when nec-
essary only for takeoff or landing, no 
person may operate a rotorcraft be-
yond autorotational distance from the 
shoreline unless it carries: 

(1) An approved life preserver 

equipped with an approved survivor lo-
cator light for each occupant of the 
rotorcraft. The life preserver must be 
worn by each occupant while the rotor-
craft is beyond autorotational distance 
from the shoreline, except for a patient 
transported during a helicopter air am-
bulance operation, as defined in 
§ 135.601(b)(1), when wearing a life pre-
server would be inadvisable for medical 
reasons; and 

(2) An approved and installed 406 MHz 

emergency locator transmitter (ELT) 
with 121.5 MHz homing capability. Bat-
teries used in ELTs must be main-
tained in accordance with the fol-
lowing— 

(i) Non-rechargeable batteries must 

be replaced when the transmitter has 
been in use for more than 1 cumulative 
hour or when 50% of their useful lives 
have expired, as established by the 
transmitter manufacturer under its ap-

proval. The new expiration date for re-
placing the batteries must be legibly 
marked on the outside of the trans-
mitter. The battery useful life require-
ments of this paragraph (b)(2) do not 
apply to batteries (such as water-acti-
vated batteries) that are essentially 
unaffected during probable storage in-
tervals; or 

(ii) Rechargeable batteries used in 

the transmitter must be recharged 
when the transmitter has been in use 
for more than 1 cumulative hour or 
when 50% of their useful-life-of-charge 
has expired, as established by the 
transmitter manufacturer under its ap-
proval. The new expiration date for re-
charging the batteries must be legibly 
marked on the outside of the trans-
mitter. The battery useful-life-of- 
charge requirements of this paragraph 
(b)(2) do not apply to batteries (such as 
water-activated batteries) that are es-
sentially unaffected during probable 
storage intervals. 

(c) [Reserved] 
(d) 

ELT standards. 

The ELT required 

by paragraph (b)(2) of this section must 
meet the requirements in: 

(1) TSO–C126, TSO–C126a, or TSO– 

C126b; and 

(2) Section 2 of either RTCA DO–204 

or RTCA DO–204A, as specified by the 
TSO complied with in paragraph (d)(1) 
of this section. 

(e) 

ELT alternative compliance. 

Opera-

tors with an ELT required by para-
graph (b)(2) of this section, or an ELT 
with an approved deviation under 
§ 21.618 of this chapter, are in compli-
ance with this section. 

(f) 

Incorporation by reference. 

The 

standards required in this section are 
incorporated by reference into this sec-
tion with the approval of the Director 
of the Federal Register under 5 U.S.C. 
552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. To enforce 
any edition other than that specified in 
this section, the FAA must publish no-
tice of change in the F

EDERAL

R

EG

-

ISTER

and the material must be avail-

able to the public. All approved mate-
rial is available for inspection at the 
FAA’s Office of Rulemaking (ARM–1), 
800 Independence Avenue SW., Wash-
ington, DC 20591 (telephone (202) 267– 
9677) and from the sources indicated 
below. It is also available for inspec-
tion at the National Archives and 

460 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 135.169 

Records Administration (NARA). For 
information on the availability of this 
material at NARA, call (202) 741–6030 or 
go to 

http://www.archives.gov/fed-

eral

_

register/code

_

of

_

federal

_

regulations/ 

ibr

_

locations.html. 

(1) U.S. Department of Transpor-

tation, Subsequent Distribution Office, 
DOT Warehouse M30, Ardmore East 
Business Center, 3341 Q 75th Avenue, 
Landover, MD 20785; telephone (301) 
322–5377. Copies are also available on 
the FAA’s Web site. Use the following 
link and type the TSO number in the 
search box: 

http://www.airweb.faa.gov/

Regulatory

_

and

_

Guidance

_

Library/

rgTSO.nsf/Frameset?OpenPage. 

(i) TSO–C126, 406 MHz Emergency Lo-

cator Transmitter (ELT), Dec. 23, 1992, 

(ii) TSO–C126a, 406 MHz Emergency 

Locator Transmitter (ELT), Dec. 17, 
2008, and 

(iii) TSO–C126b, 406 MHz Emergency 

Locator Transmitter (ELT), Nov. 26, 
2012. 

(2) RTCA, Inc., 1150 18th Street NW., 

Suite 910, Washington, DC 20036, tele-
phone (202) 833–9339, and are also avail-
able on RTCA’s Web site at 

http:// 

www.rtca.org/onlinecart/index.cfm. 

(i) RTCA DO–204, Minimum Oper-

ational Performance Standards 
(MOPS) 406 MHz Emergency Locator 
Transmitters (ELTs), Sept. 29, 1989, and 

(ii) RTCA DO–204A, Minimum Oper-

ational Performance Standards 
(MOPS) 406 MHz Emergency Locator 
Transmitters (ELT), Dec. 6, 2007. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2010–0982, 79 FR 9973, Feb. 21, 
2014, as amended by Amdt. 135–138, 83 FR 
1189, Jan. 10, 2018] 

§ 135.169 Additional airworthiness re-

quirements. 

(a) Except for commuter category 

airplanes, no person may operate a 
large airplane unless it meets the addi-
tional airworthiness requirements of 
§§ 121.213 through 121.283 and 121.307 of 
this chapter. 

(b) No person may operate a small 

airplane that has a passenger-seating 
configuration, excluding pilot seats, of 
10 seats or more unless it is type cer-
tificated— 

(1) In the transport category; 
(2) Before July 1, 1970, in the normal 

category and meets special conditions 
issued by the Administrator for air-

planes intended for use in operations 
under this part; 

(3) Before July 19, 1970, in the normal 

category and meets the additional air-
worthiness standards in Special Fed-
eral Aviation Regulation No. 23; 

(4) In the normal category and meets 

the additional airworthiness standards 
in appendix A; 

(5) In the normal category and com-

plies with section 1.(a) of Special Fed-
eral Aviation Regulation No. 41; 

(6) In the normal category and com-

plies with section 1.(b) of Special Fed-
eral Aviation Regulation No. 41; 

(7) In the commuter category; or 
(8) In the normal category, as a 

multi-engine certification level 4 air-
plane as defined in part 23 of this chap-
ter. 

(c) No person may operate a small 

airplane with a passenger seating con-
figuration, excluding any pilot seat, of 
10 seats or more, with a seating con-
figuration greater than the maximum 
seating configuration used in that type 
airplane in operations under this part 
before August 19, 1977. This paragraph 
does not apply to— 

(1) An airplane that is type certifi-

cated in the transport category; or 

(2) An airplane that complies with— 
(i) Appendix A of this part provided 

that its passenger seating configura-
tion, excluding pilot seats, does not ex-
ceed 19 seats; or 

(ii) Special Federal Aviation Regula-

tion No. 41. 

(d) Cargo or baggage compartments: 
(1) After March 20, 1991, each Class C 

or D compartment, as defined in § 25.857 
of part 25 of this chapter, greater than 
200 cubic feet in volume in a transport 
category airplane type certificated 
after January 1, 1958, must have ceiling 
and sidewall panels which are con-
structed of: 

(i) Glass fiber reinforced resin; 
(ii) Materials which meet the test re-

quirements of part 25, appendix F, part 
III of this chapter; or 

(iii) In the case of liner installations 

approved prior to March 20, 1989, alu-
minum. 

(2) For compliance with this para-

graph, the term ‘‘liner’’ includes any