522 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 135.611 

(b) A certificate holder may des-

ignate local flying areas in a manner 
acceptable to the Administrator, that 
must— 

(1) Not exceed 50 nautical miles in 

any direction from each designated lo-
cation; 

(2) Take into account obstacles and 

terrain features that are easily identi-
fiable by the pilot in command and 
from which the pilot in command may 
visually determine a position; and 

(3) Take into account the operating 

environment and capabilities of the 
certificate holder’s helicopters. 

(c) A pilot must demonstrate a level 

of familiarity with the local flying 
area by passing an examination given 
by the certificate holder within the 12 
calendar months prior to using the 
local flying area. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2010–0982, 79 FR 9975, Feb. 21, 
2014; Amdt. 135–129A, 79 FR 41126, July 15, 
2014] 

§ 135.611 IFR operations at locations 

without weather reporting. 

(a) If a certificate holder is author-

ized to conduct helicopter IFR oper-
ations, the Administrator may author-
ize the certificate holder to conduct 
IFR helicopter air ambulance oper-
ations at airports with an instrument 
approach procedure and at which a 
weather report is not available from 
the U.S. National Weather Service 
(NWS), a source approved by the NWS, 
or a source approved by the FAA, sub-
ject to the following limitations: 

(1) The certificate holder must obtain 

a weather report from a weather re-
porting facility operated by the NWS, a 
source approved by the NWS, or a 
source approved by the FAA, that is lo-
cated within 15 nautical miles of the 
airport. If a weather report is not 
available, the certificate holder may 
obtain weather reports, forecasts, or 
any combination of them from the 
NWS, a source approved by the NWS, 
or a source approved by the FAA, for 
information regarding the weather ob-
served in the vicinity of the airport; 

(2) Flight planning for IFR flights 

conducted under this paragraph must 
include selection of an alternate air-
port that meets the requirements of 
§§ 135.221 and 135.223; 

(3) In Class G airspace, IFR depar-

tures with visual transitions are au-
thorized only after the pilot in com-
mand determines that the weather con-
ditions at the departure point are at or 
above takeoff minimums depicted in a 
published departure procedure or VFR 
minimum ceilings and visibilities in 
accordance with § 135.609. 

(4) All approaches must be conducted 

at Category A approach speeds as es-
tablished in part 97 or those required 
for the type of approach being used. 

(b) Each helicopter air ambulance op-

erated under this section must be 
equipped with functioning severe 
weather detection equipment, unless 
the pilot in command reasonably deter-
mines severe weather will not be en-
countered at the destination, the alter-
nate destination, or along the route of 
flight. 

(c) Pilots conducting operations pur-

suant to this section may use the 
weather information obtained in para-
graph (a) to satisfy the weather report 
and forecast requirements of § 135.213 
and § 135.225(a). 

(d) After completing a landing at the 

airport at which a weather report is 
not available, the pilot in command is 
authorized to determine if the weather 
meets the takeoff requirements of part 
97 of this chapter or the certificate 
holder’s operations specification, as ap-
plicable. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2010–0982, 79 FR 9975, Feb. 21, 
2014, as amended by Amdt. 135–131, 79 FR 
43622, July 28, 2014; Amdt. 135–141, 84 FR 
35823, July 25, 2019] 

§ 135.613 Approach/departure IFR 

transitions. 

(a) 

Approaches. 

When conducting an 

authorized instrument approach and 
transitioning from IFR to VFR flight, 
upon transitioning to VFR flight the 
following weather minimums apply— 

(1) For Point-in-Space (PinS) Copter 

Instrument approaches annotated with 
a ‘‘Proceed VFR’’ segment, if the dis-
tance from the missed approach point 
to the landing area is 1 NM or less, 
flight visibility must be at least 1 stat-
ute mile and the ceiling on the ap-
proach chart applies; 

(2) For all instrument approaches, in-

cluding PinS when paragraph (a)(1) of 

523 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 135.617 

this section does not apply, if the dis-
tance from the missed approach point 
to the landing area is 3 NM or less, the 
applicable VFR weather minimums 
are— 

(i) For Day Operations: No less than 

a 600-foot ceiling and 2 statute miles 
flight visibility; 

(ii) For Night Operations: No less 

than a 600-foot ceiling and 3 statute 
miles flight visibility; or 

(3) For all instrument approaches, in-

cluding PinS, if the distance from the 
missed approach point to the landing 
area is greater than 3 NM, the VFR 
weather minimums required by the 
class of airspace. 

(b) 

Departures. 

For transitions from 

VFR to IFR upon departure— 

(1) The VFR weather minimums of 

paragraph (a) of this section apply if— 

(i) An FAA-approved obstacle depar-

ture procedure is followed; and 

(ii) An IFR clearance is obtained on 

or before reaching a predetermined lo-
cation that is not more than 3 NM from 
the departure location. 

(2) If the departure does not meet the 

requirements of paragraph (b)(1) of this 
section, the VFR weather minimums 
required by the class of airspace apply. 

§ 135.615 VFR flight planning. 

(a) 

Pre-flight. 

Prior to conducting 

VFR operations, the pilot in command 
must— 

(1) Determine the minimum safe 

cruise altitude by evaluating the ter-
rain and obstacles along the planned 
route of flight; 

(2) Identify and document the highest 

obstacle along the planned route of 
flight; and 

(3) Using the minimum safe cruise al-

titudes in paragraphs (b)(1)–(2) of this 
section, determine the minimum re-
quired ceiling and visibility to conduct 
the planned flight by applying the 
weather minimums appropriate to the 
class of airspace for the planned flight. 

(b) 

Enroute. 

While conducting VFR 

operations, the pilot in command must 
ensure that all terrain and obstacles 
along the route of flight are cleared 
vertically by no less than the fol-
lowing: 

(1) 300 feet for day operations. 
(2) 500 feet for night operations. 

(c) 

Rerouting the planned flight path. 

A 

pilot in command may deviate from 
the planned flight path for reasons 
such as weather conditions or oper-
ational considerations. Such deviations 
do not relieve the pilot in command of 
the weather requirements or the re-
quirements for terrain and obstacle 
clearance contained in this part and in 
part 91 of this chapter. Rerouting, 
change in destination, or other changes 
to the planned flight that occur while 
the helicopter is on the ground at an 
intermediate stop require evaluation of 
the new route in accordance with para-
graph (a) of this section. 

(d) 

Operations manual. 

Each certifi-

cate holder must document its VFR 
flight planning procedures in its oper-
ations manual. 

§ 135.617 Pre-flight risk analysis. 

(a) Each certificate holder con-

ducting helicopter air ambulance oper-
ations must establish, and document in 
its operations manual, an FAA-ap-
proved preflight risk analysis that in-
cludes at least the following— 

(1) Flight considerations, to include 

obstacles and terrain along the planned 
route of flight, landing zone conditions, 
and fuel requirements; 

(2) Human factors, such as crew fa-

tigue, life events, and other stressors; 

(3) Weather, including departure, en 

route, destination, and forecasted; 

(4) A procedure for determining 

whether another helicopter air ambu-
lance operator has refused or rejected a 
flight request; and 

(5) Strategies and procedures for 

mitigating identified risks, including 
procedures for obtaining and docu-
menting approval of the certificate 
holder’s management personnel to re-
lease a flight when a risk exceeds a 
level predetermined by the certificate 
holder. 

(b) Each certificate holder must de-

velop a preflight risk analysis work-
sheet to include, at a minimum, the 
items in paragraph (a) of this section. 

(c) Prior to the first leg of each heli-

copter air ambulance operation, the 
pilot in command must conduct a pre-
flight risk analysis and complete the 
preflight risk analysis worksheet in ac-
cordance with the certificate holder’s 
FAA-approved procedures. The pilot in