832 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 171.115 

(3) A final approach fix; and 
(4) Compass locator (COMLO) or 

marker if suitable fixes and initial ap-
proach routes are not available from 
existing facilities. 

(c) The facility must have a reliable 

source of suitable primary power, ei-
ther from a power distribution system 
or locally generated. Also, adequate 
power capacity must be provided for 
operation of test and working equip-
ment at the SDF. A determination by 
the Federal Aviation Administration 
as to whether a facility will be required 
to have standby power for the SDF and 
monitor accessories to supplement the 
primary power will be made for each 
airport based upon operational mini-
mums and density of air traffic. 

(d) A determination by the Federal 

Aviation Administration as to whether 
a facility will be required to have dual 
transmitting equipment with auto-
matic changeover for the SDF will be 
made for each airport based upon oper-
ational minimums and density of air 
traffic. 

(e) There must be a means for deter-

mining, from the ground, the perform-
ance of the equipment (including an-
tennae), initially and periodically. 

(f) The facility must have the fol-

lowing ground-air or landline commu-
nication services: 

(1) At facilities outside of and not im-

mediately adjacent to controlled air-
space, there must be ground-air com-
munications from the airport served by 
the facility. The utilization of voice on 
the SDF should be determined by the 
facility operator on an individual basis. 

(2) At facilities within or imme-

diately adjacent to controlled airspace, 
there must be ground/air communica-
tions required by paragraph (b)(1) of 
this section and reliable communica-
tions (at least a landline telephone) 
from the airport to the nearest Federal 
Aviation Administration air traffic 
control or communications facility. 

Compliance with paragraphs (f) (1) and 
(2) of this section need not be shown at 
airports where an adjacent Federal 
Aviation Administration facility can 
communicate with aircraft on the 
ground at the airport and during the 
entire proposed instrument approach 
procedure. In addition, at low traffic 
density airports within or immediately 

adjacent to controlled airspace, and 
where extensive delays are not a fac-
tor, the requirements of paragraphs (f) 
(1) and (2) of this section may be re-
duced to reliable communications (at 
least a landline telephone) from the 
airport to the nearest Federal Aviation 
Administration air traffic control or 
communications facility, if an adjacent 
Federal Aviation Administration facil-
ity can communicate with aircraft dur-
ing the proposed instrument approach 
procedure down to the airport surface 
or at least down to the minimum ap-
proach altitude. 

(g) At those locations where two sep-

arate SDF facilities serve opposite 
ends of a single runway, an interlock 
must insure that only the facility serv-
ing the approach direction in use can 
radiate, except where no operationally 
harmful interference results. 

(h) At those locations where, in order 

to alleviate frequency congestion, the 
SDF facilities serving opposite ends of 
one runway employ identical fre-
quencies, an interlock must insure that 
the facility not in operational use can-
not radiate. 

(i) Provisions for maintenance and 

operations by authorized persons only. 

(j) Where an operational advantage 

exists, the installation may omit a 
back course. 

[Doc. No. 10116, 35 FR 12711, Aug. 11, 1970, as 
amended by Amdt. 171–16, 56 FR 65664, Dec. 
17, 1991] 

§ 171.115 Maintenance and operations 

requirements. 

(a) The owner of the facility shall es-

tablish an adequate maintenance sys-
tem and provide qualified maintenance 
personnel to maintain the facility at 
the level attained at the time it was 
commissioned. Each person who main-
tains a facility shall meet at a min-
imum the Federal Communications 
Commission’s licensing requirements 
and show that he has the special 
knowledge and skills needed to main-
tain the facility, including proficiency 
in maintenance procedures and the use 
of specialized test equipment. 

(b) The SDF must be designed and 

maintained so that the probability of 
operation within the performance re-
quirements specified is high enough to 
insure an adequate level of safety. In 

833 

Federal Aviation Administration, DOT 

§ 171.115 

the event out-of-tolerance conditions 
develop, the facility shall be removed 
from operation, and the designated 
control point notified. 

(c) The owner must prepare, and ob-

tain approval of, and each person oper-
ating or maintaining the facility shall 
comply with, an operations and main-
tenance manual that sets forth proce-
dures for operations, preventive main-
tenance, and emergency maintenance, 
including instructions on each of the 
following: 

(1) Physical security of the facility. 

This includes provisions for desig-
nating critical areas relative to the fa-
cility and preventing or controlling 
movements within the facility that 
may adversely affect SDF operations. 

(2) Maintenance and operations by 

authorized persons only. 

(3) Federal Communications Commis-

sion requirements for operating per-
sonnel and maintenance personnel. 

(4) Posting of licenses and signs. 
(5) Relation between the facility and 

Federal Aviation Administration air 
traffic control facilities, with a de-
scription of the boundaries of con-
trolled airspace over or near the facil-
ity, instructions for relaying air traffic 
control instructions and information 
(if applicable), and instructions for the 
operation of an air traffic advisory 
service if the facility is located outside 
of controlled airspace. 

(6) Notice to the Administrator of 

any suspension of service. 

(7) Detailed and specific maintenance 

procedures and servicing guides stating 
the frequency of servicing. 

(8) Air-ground communications, if 

provided, expressly written or incor-
porating appropriate sections of Fed-
eral Aviation Administration manuals 
by reference. 

(9) Keeping of station logs and other 

technical reports, and the submission 
of reports required by § 171.117. 

(10) Monitoring of the facility. 
(11) Names, addresses, and telephone 

numbers of persons to be notified in an 
emergency. 

(12) Inspection by U.S. personnel. 
(13) Shutdowns for routine mainte-

nance and issue of ‘‘Notices to Airmen’’ 
for routine or emergency shutdowns, 
except that private use facilities may 
omit ‘‘Notices to Airmen.’’ 

(14) Commissioning of the facility. 
(15) An acceptable procedure for 

amending or revising the manual. 

(16) An explanation of the kinds of 

activities (such as construction or 
grading) in the vicinity of the facility 
that may require shutdown or certifi-
cation of the facility by Federal Avia-
tion Administration flight check. 

(17) Procedure for conducting a 

ground check of SDF course alignment, 
width and clearance. 

(18) The following information con-

cerning the facility: 

(i) Facility component locations with 

respect to airport layout, instrument 
runway, and similar areas; 

(ii) The type, make, and model of the 

basic radio equipment that will provide 
the service; 

(iii) The station power emission and 

frequencies of the SDF, markers and 
associated COMLOs, if any; 

(iv) The hours of operation; 
(v) Station identification call letters 

and method of station identification 
and the time spacing of the identifica-
tion; 

(vi) A description of the critical parts 

that may not be changed, adjusted, or 
repaired without a Federal Aviation 
Administration flight check to confirm 
published operations. 

(d) The owner shall make a ground 

check of the facility each month in ac-
cordance with procedures approved by 
the Federal Aviation Administration 
at the time of commissioning, and 
shall report the results of the checks as 
provided in § 171.117. 

(e) If the owner desires to modify the 

facility, he shall submit the proposal 
to the Federal Aviation Administra-
tion and may not allow any modifica-
tions to be made without specific ap-
proval. 

(f) The owner’s maintenance per-

sonnel shall participate in initial in-
spections made by the Federal Avia-
tion Administration. In the case of sub-
sequent inspections, the owner or his 
representatives shall participate. 

(g) Whenever it is required by the 

Federal Aviation Administration, the 
owner shall incorporate improvements 
in SDF maintenance. In addition, he 
shall provide a stock of spare parts, of 
such a quantity, to make possible the 

834 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 171.117 

prompt replacement of components 
that fail or deteriorate in service. 

(h) The owner shall provide Federal 

Aviation Administration approved test 
instruments needed for maintenance of 
the facility. 

(i) The owner shall close the facility 

by ceasing radiation and shall issue a 
‘‘Notice to Airmen’’ that the facility is 
out of service (except that private use 
facilities may omit ‘‘Notices to Air-
men’’), upon receiving two successive 
pilot reports of its malfunctioning. 

§ 171.117 Reports. 

The owner of each facility to which 

this subpart applies shall make the fol-
lowing reports, at the time indicated, 
to the Federal Aviation Administra-
tion Regional Office for the area in 
which the facility is located: 

(a) Record of meter readings and ad-

justments (Form FAA–198). To be filled 
out by the owner or his maintenance 
representative with the equipment ad-
justments and meter readings as of the 
time of commissioning, with one copy 
to be kept in the permanent records of 
the facility and two copies to the ap-
propriate Regional Office of the Fed-
eral Aviation Administration. The 
owner shall revise the form after any 
major repair, modification, or re-
tuning, to reflect an accurate record of 
facility operation and adjustment. 

(b) Facility maintenance log (FAA 

Form 6030–1) This form is a permanent 
record of all equipment malfunctioning 
met in maintaining the facility, in-
cluding information on the kind of 
work and adjustments made, equip-
ment failures, causes (if determined), 
and corrective action taken. The owner 
shall keep the original of each report 
at the facility and send a copy to the 
appropriate Regional Office of the Fed-
eral Aviation Administration at the 
end of each month in which it is pre-
pared. 

(c) Radio equipment operation record 

(Form FAA–418), containing a complete 
record of meter readings, recorded on 
each scheduled visit to the facility. 
The owner shall keep the original of 
each month’s record at the facility and 
send a copy of it to the appropriate Re-

gional Office of the Federal Aviation 
Administration. 

[Doc. No. 10116, 35 FR 12711, Aug. 11, 1970, as 
amended by Amdt. 171–10, 40 FR 36110, Aug. 
19, 1975] 

Subpart G—Distance Measuring 

Equipment (DME) 

S

OURCE

: Docket No. 10116, 35 FR 12715, Aug. 

11, 1970, unless otherwise noted. 

§ 171.151 Scope. 

This subpart sets forth minimum re-

quirements for the approval and oper-
ation of non-Federal DME facilities 
that are to be involved in the approval 
of instrument flight rules and air traf-
fic control procedures related to those 
facilities. 

§ 171.153 Requests for IFR procedure. 

(a) Each person who requests an IFR 

procedure based on a DME facility that 
he owns must submit the following in-
formation with that request: 

(1) A description of the facility and 

evidence that the equipment meets the 
performance requirements of § 171.157 
and is installed in accordance with 
§ 171.159. 

(2) A proposed procedure for oper-

ating the facility. 

(3) A proposed maintenance organiza-

tion and maintenance manual that 
meets the requirement of § 171.161. 

(4) A statement of intention to meet 

the requirements of this subpart. 

(5) A showing that the facility has an 

acceptable level of operational reli-
ability and an acceptable standard of 
performance. Previous equivalent oper-
ational experience with a facility with 
identical design and operational char-
acteristics will be considered in show-
ing compliance with this paragraph. 

(b) After the Federal Aviation Ad-

ministration inspects and evaluates 
the facility, it advises the owner of the 
results and of any required changes in 
the facility or the maintenance manual 
or maintenance organization. The 
owner must then correct the defi-
ciencies, if any, and operate the facil-
ity for an in-service evaluation by the 
Federal Aviation Administration.