524 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 135.619 

command must sign the preflight risk 
analysis worksheet and specify the 
date and time it was completed. 

(d) The certificate holder must retain 

the original or a copy of each com-
pleted preflight risk analysis work-
sheet at a location specified in its oper-
ations manual for at least 90 days from 
the date of the operation. 

§ 135.619 Operations control centers. 

(a) 

Operations control center. 

After 

April 22, 2016, certificate holders au-
thorized to conduct helicopter air am-
bulance operations, with 10 or more 
helicopter air ambulances assigned to 
the certificate holder’s operations 
specifications, must have an operations 
control center. The operations control 
center must be staffed by operations 
control specialists who, at a min-
imum— 

(1) Provide two-way communications 

with pilots; 

(2) Provide pilots with weather brief-

ings, to include current and forecasted 
weather along the planned route of 
flight; 

(3) Monitor the progress of the flight; 

and 

(4) Participate in the preflight risk 

analysis required under § 135.617 to in-
clude the following: 

(i) Ensure the pilot has completed all 

required items on the preflight risk 
analysis worksheet; 

(ii) Confirm and verify all entries on 

the preflight risk analysis worksheet; 

(iii) Assist the pilot in mitigating 

any identified risk prior to takeoff; and 

(iv) Acknowledge in writing, speci-

fying the date and time, that the pre-
flight risk analysis worksheet has been 
accurately completed and that, accord-
ing to their professional judgment, the 
flight can be conducted safely. 

(b) 

Operations control center staffing. 

Each certificate holder conducting hel-
icopter air ambulance operations must 
provide enough operations control spe-
cialists at each operations control cen-
ter to ensure the certificate holder 
maintains operational control of each 
flight. 

(c) 

Documentation of duties and respon-

sibilities. 

Each certificate holder must 

describe in its operations manual the 
duties and responsibilities of oper-
ations control specialists, including 

preflight risk mitigation strategies and 
control measures, shift change check-
list, and training and testing proce-
dures to hold the position, including 
procedures for retesting. 

(d) 

Training requirements. 

No certifi-

cate holder may use, nor may any per-
son perform the duties of, an oper-
ations control specialist unless the op-
erations control specialist has satisfac-
torily completed the training require-
ments of this paragraph. 

(1) 

Initial training. 

Before performing 

the duties of an operations control spe-
cialist, each person must satisfactorily 
complete the certificate holder’s FAA- 
approved operations control specialist 
initial training program and pass an 
FAA-approved knowledge and practical 
test given by the certificate holder. 
Initial training must include a min-
imum of 80 hours of training on the 
topics listed in paragraph (f) of this 
section. A certificate holder may re-
duce the number of hours of initial 
training to a minimum of 40 hours for 
persons who have obtained, at the time 
of beginning initial training, a total of 
at least 2 years of experience during 
the last 5 years in any one or in any 
combination of the following areas— 

(i) In military aircraft operations as 

a pilot, flight navigator, or meteorolo-
gist; 

(ii) In air carrier operations as a 

pilot, flight engineer, certified aircraft 
dispatcher, or meteorologist; or 

(iii) In aircraft operations as an air 

traffic controller or a flight service 
specialist. 

(2) 

Recurrent training. 

Every 12 

months after satisfactory completion 
of the initial training, each operations 
control specialist must complete a 
minimum of 40 hours of recurrent 
training on the topics listed in para-
graph (f) of this section and pass an 
FAA-approved knowledge and practical 
test given by the certificate holder on 
those topics. 

(e) 

Training records. 

The certificate 

holder must maintain a training record 
for each operations control specialist 
employed by the certificate holder for 
the duration of that individual’s em-
ployment and for 90 days thereafter. 
The training record must include a 
chronological log for each training 

525 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 135.619 

course, including the number of train-
ing hours and the examination dates 
and results. 

(f) 

Training topics. 

Each certificate 

holder must have an FAA-approved op-
erations control specialist training 
program that covers at least the fol-
lowing topics— 

(1) Aviation weather, including: 
(i) General meteorology; 
(ii) Prevailing weather; 
(iii) Adverse and deteriorating weath-

er; 

(iv) Windshear; 
(v) Icing conditions; 
(vi) Use of aviation weather products; 
(vii) Available sources of informa-

tion; and 

(viii) Weather minimums; 
(2) Navigation, including: 
(i) Navigation aids; 
(ii) Instrument approach procedures; 
(iii) Navigational publications; and 
(iv) Navigation techniques; 
(3) Flight monitoring, including: 
(i) Available flight-monitoring proce-

dures; and 

(ii) Alternate flight-monitoring pro-

cedures; 

(4) Air traffic control, including: 
(i) Airspace; 
(ii) Air traffic control procedures; 
(iii) Aeronautical charts; and 
(iv) Aeronautical data sources; 
(5) Aviation communication, includ-

ing: 

(i) Available aircraft communica-

tions systems; 

(ii) Normal communication proce-

dures; 

(iii) Abnormal communication proce-

dures; and 

(iv) Emergency communication pro-

cedures; 

(6) Aircraft systems, including: 
(i) Communications systems; 
(ii) Navigation systems; 
(iii) Surveillance systems; 
(iv) Fueling systems; 
(v) Specialized systems; 
(vi) General maintenance require-

ments; and 

(vii) Minimum equipment lists; 
(7) Aircraft limitations and perform-

ance, including: 

(i) Aircraft operational limitations; 
(ii) Aircraft performance; 
(iii) Weight and balance procedures 

and limitations; and 

(iv) Landing zone and landing facility 

requirements; 

(8) Aviation policy and regulations, 

including: 

(i) 14 CFR Parts 1, 27, 29, 61, 71, 91, 

and 135; 

(ii) 49 CFR Part 830; 
(iii) Company operations specifica-

tions; 

(iv) Company general operations poli-

cies; 

(v) Enhanced operational control 

policies; 

(vi) Aeronautical decision making 

and risk management; 

(vii) Lost aircraft procedures; and 
(viii) Emergency and search and res-

cue procedures, including plotting co-
ordinates in degrees, minutes, seconds 
format, and degrees, decimal minutes 
format; 

(9) Crew resource management, in-

cluding: 

(i) Concepts and practical applica-

tion; 

(ii) Risk management and risk miti-

gation; and 

(iii) Pre-flight risk analysis proce-

dures required under § 135.617; 

(10) Local flying area orientation, in-

cluding: 

(i) Terrain features; 
(ii) Obstructions; 
(iii) Weather phenomena for local 

area; 

(iv) Airspace and air traffic control 

facilities; 

(v) Heliports, airports, landing zones, 

and fuel facilities; 

(vi) Instrument approaches; 
(vii) Predominant air traffic flow; 
(viii) Landmarks and cultural fea-

tures, including areas prone to flat- 
light, whiteout, and brownout condi-
tions; and 

(ix) Local aviation and safety re-

sources and contact information; and 

(11) Any other requirements as deter-

mined by the Administrator to ensure 
safe operations. 

(g) 

Operations control specialist duty 

time limitations. 

(1) Each certificate 

holder must establish the daily duty 
period for an operations control spe-
cialist so that it begins at a time that 
allows that person to become thor-
oughly familiar with operational con-
siderations, including existing and an-
ticipated weather conditions in the 

526 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 135.621 

area of operations, helicopter oper-
ations in progress, and helicopter 
maintenance status, before performing 
duties associated with any helicopter 
air ambulance operation. The oper-
ations control specialist must remain 
on duty until relieved by another 
qualified operations control specialist 
or until each helicopter air ambulance 
monitored by that person has com-
pleted its flight or gone beyond that 
person’s jurisdiction. 

(2) Except in cases where cir-

cumstances or emergency conditions 
beyond the control of the certificate 
holder require otherwise— 

(i) No certificate holder may sched-

ule an operations control specialist for 
more than 10 consecutive hours of 
duty; 

(ii) If an operations control specialist 

is scheduled for more than 10 hours of 
duty in 24 consecutive hours, the cer-
tificate holder must provide that per-
son a rest period of at least 8 hours at 
or before the end of 10 hours of duty; 

(iii) If an operations control spe-

cialist is on duty for more than 10 con-
secutive hours, the certificate holder 
must provide that person a rest period 
of at least 8 hours before that person’s 
next duty period; 

(iv) Each operations control spe-

cialist must be relieved of all duty with 
the certificate holder for at least 24 
consecutive hours during any 7 con-
secutive days. 

(h) 

Drug and alcohol testing. 

Oper-

ations control specialists must be test-
ed for drugs and alcohol according to 
the certificate holder’s Drug and Alco-
hol Testing Program administered 
under part 120 of this chapter. 

§ 135.621 Briefing of medical per-

sonnel. 

(a) Except as provided in paragraph 

(b) of this section, prior to each heli-
copter air ambulance operation, each 
pilot in command, or other flight crew-
member designated by the certificate 
holder, must ensure that all medical 
personnel have been briefed on the fol-
lowing— 

(1) Passenger briefing requirements 

in § 135.117(a) and (b); and 

(2) Physiological aspects of flight; 
(3) Patient loading and unloading; 

(4) Safety in and around the heli-

copter; 

(5) In-flight emergency procedures; 
(6) Emergency landing procedures; 
(7) Emergency evacuation proce-

dures; 

(8) Efficient and safe communica-

tions with the pilot; and 

(9) Operational differences between 

day and night operations, if appro-
priate. 

(b) The briefing required in para-

graphs (a)(2) through (9) of this section 
may be omitted if all medical per-
sonnel on board have satisfactorily 
completed the certificate holder’s 
FAA-approved medical personnel train-
ing program within the preceding 24 
calendar months. Each training pro-
gram must include a minimum of 4 
hours of ground training, and 4 hours of 
training in and around an air ambu-
lance helicopter, on the topics set forth 
in paragraph (a)(2) through (9) of this 
section. 

(c) Each certificate holder must 

maintain a record for each person 
trained under this section that— 

(1) Contains the individual’s name, 

the most recent training completion 
date, and a description, copy, or ref-
erence to training materials used to 
meet the training requirement. 

(2) Is maintained for 24 calendar 

months following the individual’s com-
pletion of training. 

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

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Applicability 

1. 

Applicability. 

This appendix prescribes 

the additional airworthiness standards re-
quired by § 135.169. 

2. 

References. 

Unless otherwise provided, 

references in this appendix to specific sec-
tions of part 23 of the Federal Aviation Reg-
ulations (FAR part 23) are to those sections 
of part 23 in effect on March 30, 1967. 

Flight Requirements 

3. 

General. 

Compliance must be shown with 

the applicable requirements of subpart B of