513 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 135.426 

maintenance, preventive maintenance, 
and alteration functions is exercised. 

[Doc. No. 16097, 43 FR 46783, Oct. 10, 1978. Re-
designated by Amdt. 135–81, 67 FR 72765, Dec. 
6, 2002. Redesignated by Amdt. 135–81, 70 FR 
5533, Feb. 2, 2005] 

§ 135.425 Maintenance, preventive 

maintenance, and alteration pro-

grams. 

Each certificate holder shall have an 

inspection program and a program cov-
ering other maintenance, preventive 
maintenance, and alterations, that en-
sures that— 

(a) Maintenance, preventive mainte-

nance, and alterations performed by it, 
or by other persons, are performed 
under the certificate holder’s manual; 

(b) Competent personnel and ade-

quate facilities and equipment are pro-
vided for the proper performance of 
maintenance, preventive maintenance, 
and alterations; and 

(c) Each aircraft released to service 

is airworthy and has been properly 
maintained for operation under this 
part. 

§ 135.426 Contract maintenance. 

(a) A certificate holder may arrange 

with another person for the perform-
ance of maintenance, preventive main-
tenance, and alterations as authorized 
in § 135.437(a) only if the certificate 
holder has met all the requirements in 
this section. For purposes of this sec-
tion— 

(1) A 

maintenance provider 

is any per-

son who performs maintenance, preven-
tive maintenance, or an alteration for 
a certificate holder other than a person 
who is trained by and employed di-
rectly by that certificate holder. 

(2) 

Covered work 

means any of the fol-

lowing: 

(i) Essential maintenance that could 

result in a failure, malfunction, or de-
fect endangering the safe operation of 
an aircraft if not performed properly or 
if improper parts or materials are used; 

(ii) Regularly scheduled mainte-

nance; or 

(iii) A required inspection item on an 

aircraft. 

(3) 

Directly in charge 

means having re-

sponsibility for covered work per-
formed by a maintenance provider. A 
representative of the certificate holder 

directly in charge of covered work does 
not need to physically observe and di-
rect each maintenance provider con-
stantly, but must be available for con-
sultation on matters requiring instruc-
tion or decision. 

(b) Each certificate holder must be 

directly in charge of all covered work 
done for it by a maintenance provider. 

(c) Each maintenance provider must 

perform all covered work in accordance 
with the certificate holder’s mainte-
nance manual. 

(d) No maintenance provider may 

perform covered work unless that work 
is carried out under the supervision 
and control of the certificate holder. 

(e) Each certificate holder who con-

tracts for maintenance, preventive 
maintenance, or alterations must de-
velop and implement policies, proce-
dures, methods, and instructions for 
the accomplishment of all contracted 
maintenance, preventive maintenance, 
and alterations. These policies, proce-
dures, methods, and instructions must 
provide for the maintenance, preven-
tive maintenance, and alterations to be 
performed in accordance with the cer-
tificate holder’s maintenance program 
and maintenance manual. 

(f) Each certificate holder who con-

tracts for maintenance, preventive 
maintenance, or alterations must en-
sure that its system for the continuing 
analysis and surveillance of the main-
tenance, preventive maintenance, and 
alterations carried out by a mainte-
nance provider, as required by 
§ 135.431(a), contains procedures for 
oversight of all contracted covered 
work. 

(g) The policies, procedures, methods, 

and instructions required by para-
graphs (e) and (f) of this section must 
be acceptable to the FAA and included 
in the certificate holder’s maintenance 
manual, as required by § 135.427(b)(10). 

(h) Each certificate holder who con-

tracts for maintenance, preventive 
maintenance, or alterations must pro-
vide to its responsible Flight Standards 
office, in a format acceptable to the 
FAA, a list that includes the name and 
physical (street) address, or addresses, 
where the work is carried out for each 
maintenance provider that performs 
work for the certificate holder, and a 
description of the type of maintenance,