Use of Supplemental Restraint Systems

<RULE> DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION <SUBAGY>Federal Aviation Administration</SUBAGY> <CFR>14 CFR Parts 1, 11, 91, 135, and 136</CFR> <DEPDOC>[Docket No.: FAA-2023-2250; Amdt. Nos. 1-76, 11-66, 91-376, 135-146, and 136-3]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2120-AL37</RIN> <SUBJECT>Use of Supplemental Restraint Systems</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT). <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Final rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> This rule prohibits civil aircraft operations conducted with supplemental restraint systems (SRS) unless operators meet certain requirements for ensuring passenger and crewmember safety during all phases of the operation. The FAA expects these requirements to increase the safety of individuals on board civil aircraft operations conducted with SRS. This rule addresses recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board and the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General. Additionally, this rule will codify, with updates, an Emergency Order of Prohibition currently in effect addressing safety concerns regarding the use of supplemental restraints. The rule applies to all civil aircraft operations conducted with use of SRS. The rule does not apply to parachute operations, rotorcraft external-load operations, or public aircraft operations. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> Effective October 21, 2024. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> For information on where to obtain copies of rulemaking documents and other information related to this final rule, see “How to Obtain Additional Information” in the <E T="02">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION</E> section of this document. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Raymond Plessinger, General Aviation and Commercial Division, Flight Standards Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; Telephone: (202) 267-1100; email <E T="03">Raymond.Plessinger@faa.gov.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">List of Abbreviations and Acronyms Frequently Used in This Document</HD> <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">IRFA—Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">LOA—Letter of Authorization</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">NAICS—North American Industry Classification System</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">NPRM—Notice of Proposed Rulemaking</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">NTSB—National Transportation Safety Board</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">OEM—Original Equipment Manufacturer</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">OMB—Office of Management and Budget</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">PIC—Pilot in Command</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">RFA—Regulatory Flexibility Act</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">SBA—Small Business Administration</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">SPRS—Supplemental Passenger Restraint System(s)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">SRS—Supplemental Restraint System(s)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-1">STC—Supplemental Type Certificate</FP> </EXTRACT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Table of Contents</HD> <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">I. Executive Summary</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Purpose of the Regulatory Action</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Summary of the Rule</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">II. Authority for This Rulemaking</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">III. Background</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. General Overview of Comments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Differences Between the NPRM and the Final Rule</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">IV. Discussion of Comments and the Final Rule</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Prohibitions Applicable to SRS and Doors Opened or Removed Flight Operations (§ 91.108(a) and (b))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Harness and Lanyard (§ 91.108(c)(1) and (2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Impede Egress in an Emergency After Being Released (§ 91.108(c)(3))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">D. Quick Release Requirements (§ 91.108(c)(4))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">E. Who May Provide the SRS (§ 91.108(d))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">F. Attachment Points (§ 91.108)(e)(1)(i)—(iii))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">G. Sizing Criteria (§ 91.108(e)(2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">H. SRS Function (§ 91.108(e)(3))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">I. Pilot in Command (§ 91.108(f)(1) Through (5))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">J. Passenger Briefing (§ 91.108(g)(1) and (2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">K. Passenger Demonstration (§ 91.108(h)(1) and (2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">L. Individuals Unable To Meet the Demonstration Requirements of the Enhanced Safety Briefing (§ 91.108(i)(1))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">M. Individuals Under the Age of 15 (§ 91.108(i)(2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">N. Individuals Seated in the Flightdeck (§ 91.108(i)(3))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">O. Passengers Who Occupy or Use an Approved Child Restraint System (§ 91.108(i)(4))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">P. Lap-Held Child (§ 91.108(j)(1) and (2))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">Q. Excluded Operations (§ 91.108(k)(1) Through (3))</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">R. Definition (§ 1.1)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">S. Miscellaneous Amendments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">V. Regulatory Notices and Analyses</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Summary of the Regulatory Impact Analysis</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Regulatory Flexibility Act</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. International Trade Impact Assessment</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">D. Unfunded Mandates Assessment</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">E. Paperwork Reduction Act</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">F. International Compatibility</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">G. Environmental Analysis</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">VI. Executive Order Determinations</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Executive Order 13132, Federalism</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Executive Order 13211, Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Executive Order 13609, Promoting International Regulatory Cooperation</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">VII. Additional Information</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Electronic Access and Filing</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act</FP> </EXTRACT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. Executive Summary</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. Purpose of the Regulatory Action</HD> This final rule addresses the use of supplemental restraint systems (SRS) in civil aircraft operations. An SRS is a device used to secure an individual inside an aircraft when that person is not secured by an FAA-approved safety belt and, if installed, shoulder harness, or an approved child restraint system. SRS are not installed on the aircraft pursuant to a Type Certificate, Supplemental Type Certificate, approved major alteration, or other FAA approval. An SRS consists of a harness secured around the torso of the individual using the SRS and a lanyard that connects the harness to an FAA-approved airframe attachment point inside the aircraft. On March 11, 2018, five passengers drowned when the open-door helicopter in which they were traveling ditched  <SU>1</SU> <FTREF/> on the East River in New York, New York. They were unable to exit the aircraft because the harness/tether system each used hindered their egress. As a result of preliminary information discovered during the investigation of this accident, on March 19, 2018, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued Urgent Safety Recommendation A-18-012, which recommended that the FAA prohibit all open-door aircraft operations using passenger harness systems unless the harness system allows passengers to rapidly release the harness with minimal difficulty and without having to cut or forcefully remove the harness. <SU>2</SU> <FTREF/> On March 22, 2018, the FAA issued an Emergency Order of Prohibition titled “Operators and Pilots of `Doors Off' Flights for Compensation or Hire”  <SU>3</SU> <FTREF/> to all operators and pilots of flights for compensation or hire with the doors opened or removed in the United States or using aircraft registered in the United States for doors-off flights. The Emergency Order of Prohibition prohibits the use of supplemental passenger restraint systems (SPRS) that cannot be released quickly in an emergency. <SU>4</SU> <FTREF/> At the time of the accident, no rules specifically addressed aircraft operations conducted with the use of SRS, <SU>5</SU> <FTREF/> including during operations with doors opened or removed. <FTNT> <SU>1</SU>  The NTSB final report describes “ditching” as “an emergency landing that is deliberately executed on water with the intent of abandoning the helicopter as soon as practical.” <E T="03">See</E> NTSB, <E T="03">Aircraft Accident Report: Inadvertent Activation of Fuel Shutoff Level and Subsequent Ditching</E> at 1, NTSB/AAR-19/04 PB2020-100100 (Dec. 10, 2019), <E T="03">https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR1904.pdf.</E> </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>2</SU>  NTSB Safety Recommendation A-18-012, available at <E T="03">https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-main-public/sr-details/A-18-012.</E> </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>3</SU>  Emergency Order of Prohibition, <E T="03">Operators and Pilots of “Doors Off” Flights for Compensation or Hire,</E> available at <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov/document/FAA-2018-0243-0001.</E> </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>4</SU>  The term “supplemental passenger restraint system,” as defined in the March 22, 2018, Emergency Order of Prohibition, means any passenger restraint that is not installed on the aircraft pursuant to an FAA approval, including (but not limited to) restraints approved through a Type Certificate, Supplemental Type Certificate, or as an approved major alteration using FAA Form 337. </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>5</SU>  The FAA uses the term “supplemental restraint system” (SRS) to refer to the device in general, but for the purposes of this rulemaking document, uses the term “supplemental passenger restraint system” (SPRS) when quoting or referring to documents that use the term “SPRS” ( <E T="03">e.g.,</E> The Emergency Order of Pro ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 119k characters. 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