I am with the FAA this is a Ramp check.

[Check 6]

You can give the FAA feedback (good or bad) regarding a ramp check HERE.

8900.1 ramp check guidelines

Form 110A and associated badge: http://i41.tinypic.com/2ake74p.gif

[Jim Hann]

Jim, Ron has it right. Original effective date of annual flight review was Aug 30, 1989, delayed via several amendments. Amt 90-4 put the enactment date at 9-1-91, by the time that date rolled around it was canned. Some of the commerical publications had published the rule as becoming effective on the original or amended dates, so it would not be impossible for someone to pick up a copy of a '90 or '91 FAR/AIM, see that and think it was a valid rule. I'm pretty sure I have an old FAR/AIM book that has 61.56 showing an annual fight review requirement but that is a misprint. The rule was never activated.

As stated, they ANNUAL requirement for the low time/non-ir pilot effective date kept getting pushed off into the future several times until they finally did away with it. NOBODY EVER was subject to the 12 month requirement.

Yep, it would have been 1990-91 and that is what happened, we all read up on our regs and never checked with the FAA about it. I received my CFI ratings between April and November of 1989, so it was probably a topic on my FIA ride. The school I landed at didn't have any CFI candidates in that time period either so we were further insulated from talking to Feds. We all had the ASA FAR/AIM books, if they were wrong, we were wrong.

[WLIU]

For what its worth, since you are not obligated, and some think it is not wise, to carry your pilot log books, your currency and BFR status are not required info during a ramp check. You are also not obligated, and again it is not wise, to carry the aircraft logbooks. So that annual status is not a normal topic of the usual ramp check either. As with all government exams, only answer the question asked and no more.

I will observe that most folks do not get into trouble for violating a regulation or law. They get into trouble for pissing off the cop. So read the FSIMs and know the right answers to the quiz and you will do fine.

I wiil also note that not only are private airports off limits without the owner's permission, an FAA inspector can not go into your airplane without permission. If your doors are closed and you are not present, they can only look at the outside. I flew with a pilot who after 30 years of interacting with the FAA as a flight test pilot, chose to go to the men's room or head for the airport cafe whenever an FAA staff member was on the field and he was on his personal flying time. A perfectly OK thing to do. The FAA can only "inspect" pilots and aircraft that are in the act of committing aviation. Sitting in the cafe is not committing aviation...

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

[Joe LaMantia]

So, The $100 hamburger is a good deal!

Joe

[WLIU]

My flight test friend would tell you that the $100 hamburger can be a GREAT deal.

BUt right now, with the sequester having every FAA employee taking one unpaid day off every pay period, the FSDO's do not have a budget for Aviation Safety Inspectors to be in the field on the weekends. And GA is lower on the priority list than air carriers. So you will only see them M-F 9-5 these days if then. Weekend warriors are unlikely to meet an ASI unless you have been issued out of the ordinary paperwork like me.

Fly safe,

Wes
N78PS

[Frank Giger]

However, that is a sweet looking badge.

[Richard Warner]

Another note on required equipment. If the Aircraft Type Certificate Data Sheet/Aircraft Specs., requires an FAA APPROVED FLIGHT MANUAL, this is not necessarily the Pilot or Aircraft Operating Manual that the manufacturer provides. It may or may not be. If it doesn't have "FAA APPROVED" on it and you are required to have one in the aircraft, you may fail your ramp check. Also, I don't beleve you are required to have current aeronautical charts in your aircraft unless you are operating IFR, unless this has been changed very recently. Its not too smart not to have the latest, but I don't think it is required.

[Tanille Elaine DeLair]

I was just ramp checked yesterday. I fly an experimental amphibious seaplane called an Aventura II by Aero Adventure. The FAA asked to see 'the limitations'. I said "Well, I have a POH that was made by the builder." They kept saying no, that to be legal to fly I needed to have the 'Limitations'. I opened up the POH and it did say the word limitations on the title page of the POH. I said, "The acronym is AROW, not ARLOW" and they smiled. After a small conference between the two of them they said that I was all good but that I should look into getting a copy of the limitations and carrying it in the plane in the future. Is this an FAA experimental requirement - or is it a couple of FAA guys that dont get to ramp to many experimental aircraft and not have something to pick on? They were charmingly nice.

[CarlOrton]

Tanielle,

Yes, for an experimental, you are required to carry a doc called Operating Limitations. Phase 1 limitations are used during the flight test period. Phase 2 are used for post flight test activities.

They are generated by the DAR during the airworthiness inspection.

You might contact the original builder to see if they still have them.

You were lucky they didn't come down harder on you.

[martymayes]

The FAA guys are correct. Part of the special airworthiness certificate is a set of operating limitations which must be carried on board the aircraft at all times. Having someone list various limitations in a handbook is all well and good but not a substitute for the FAA issued operating limitations. I would imagine you do indeed have this document.