SURVIVING AN FAA RAMP CHECK
You are standing on the ramp performing a pre-flight inspection. A man
who you have never seen before approaches you and starts chatting about
the weather and asking you questions: “What’s your name?”, “Where are
you going?” etc. How do you respond?
First, know who you are talking to. Ask for the person’s name. Find out
what he or she is doing there. In this post 9/11 era, knowing who is at
the airport and what they are doing is good practice and prevention.
This is the premise of AOPA’s GA Secure program. Second, if the person
is an FAA inspector, you want to find that out as soon as possible. If
he or she is, ask to see his or her FAA Identification card.
During the course of a ramp check, the FAA inspector will ask to
inspect/review a number of items. Some of those items and how you
produce them for the FAA inspector are discussed below. Quite a bit of
this is common sense. Much of it is information all pilots learned, or
should have learned, when they learned how to fly.
Personal Documents
When you fly an aircraft, you must have certain personal documents in
your possession. You must have your airman certificate and it must be
appropriate to the aircraft and type of flying you are doing. You must
also have your medical certificate. It must be the original certificate
issued by your Airman Medical Examiner and it must also be current and
appropriate to the type of flying you are doing. Finally, in the
aftermath of 9/11, you must also have in your possession a drivers
license or other government issued ID containing your photograph.
Logbook
Next, the inspector may ask to see your flight logbook. I advise pilots
not to bring their logbook with them when they are flying. Why? Two
reasons: One, if you bring your logbook with you and it is destroyed if
you are in an accident, you won’t have any documentation to prove your
flight time and currency. This can raise potentially ugly issues not
only with the FAA, but also with your insurance company if they
question your currency at the time of the accident and deny coverage.
To avoid the insurance coverage issue, if you must bring your logbook
with you I suggest you keep a photocopy of your logbook at home or in
some other safe place.
Second, if you have your logbook with you and the inspector asks to
review it, you will have to provide the entire logbook. Rather than
allowing the inspector to review more logbook entries than are
necessary or pertinent at the time of the ramp check, I prefer having
the opportunity after the ramp check to simply photocopy the pages
documenting your currency and then providing them to the inspector.
Aircraft Documents In The Aircraft
Similar to the requirement that you have certain personal documents in
your possession, the aircraft you fly also needs to contain certain
documents. The inspector may want to review the aircraft documents
during the ramp check. However, an inspector cannot inspect the
interior of your aircraft without consent. Consequently, rather than
giving consent, I recommend that you personally remove the requested
documents from the aircraft and give them to the inspector.
You may need to supply the aircraft’s registration certificate. Make
sure the N-number on the certificate matches the N-number on the
aircraft. Also, if you are operating with a temporary certificate,
remember that it is only valid for 120 days. The aircraft’s
airworthiness certificate will likely be inspected as well. Here again,
make sure the N-number on the certificate matches the N-number on the
aircraft data plate.
Additional aircraft documents that are fair game during a ramp check
include the operator/flight manual, or operating limitations if the
aircraft is a homebuilt aircraft, and the aircraft’s weight and balance
information. For certificated aircraft, the weight and balance
information should be in the manual. For homebuilt aircraft, this
information will be contained in the aircraft’s operating limitations.
Charts
Since a pilot is required to be familiar with all available information
for each flight, an inspector may also ask to see the aeronautical
charts you intend to use on your flight. Make sure the charts you have
in the aircraft or your flight bag are current and appropriate to your
flight. This seems like a "no-brainer", but you would be surprised how
many pilots are flying with sectional charts that are several years old
or instrument approach plates that are more than 56 days old. From a
compliance perspective and, more importantly, from a safety
perspective, use current and appropriate charts.
Interacting With The Inspector
During the course of the ramp check, you can also take the initiative
and ask the inspector questions. Ask the inspector why he or she
suspects you and what information the inspector has that leads to his
or her suspicion. You can also ask the inspector which FAR's you are
suspected of violating.
If the answers to these questions indicates that a simple
misunderstanding is present, you can certainly try to clarify the
situation for the inspector. However, if it appears that the
inspector’s issues are more than a simple misunderstanding or if you do
not receive adequate responses to your questions, do not volunteer any
information to the inspector. Remain polite and respectful, but don’t
give the inspector any more information than is required.
Do not try to argue with the inspector. Very rarely will you win an
argument with the inspector. On the contrary, an argument with the
inspector will usually get you in deeper trouble. You will either
provide the inspector with information that helps the inspector make
his or her case against you or you will exhibit a “poor compliance
attitude”, or both. Don’t do it. Discretion and respect will serve you
better.
Most pilots will never find themselves in a ramp check, due to the
minimal manpower the FAA has available for ramp checks. However, if you
find yourself in a ramp check, it is survivable. Hopefully this
information, along with the right attitude, will get you through it. As
always, fly safe and fly smart.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
by Gregory J.
Reigel
Greg is an aviation attorney, author and holds a
commercial pilot
certificate with instrument rating. His practice concentrates on
aviation litigation, including insurance matters and creditor’s rights,
FAA certificate actions and aviation related transactional matters. He
can be reached via e-mail at greigel@aerolegalservices.com or check out
his website at www.aerolegalservices.com.
© 2004 All
rights reserved.
|
