The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) plans to modify regulations governing public charter flights — flights in which an airline or tour operator leases an aircraft and sells seats through an agency — to ensure that they are subject to the same safety requirements as non-public charter operations.
Although some public charter flights appear to be operated in the same manner as scheduled airline flights, they are subject to less rigorous safety regulations — a fact that often is not apparent to individuals who buy tickets, the FAA says.
“Part of the safety mission of the FAA is identifying risk early on, and that’s exactly what we’re doing on public charters as usage expands,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said on Monday. “If a company is effectively operating as a scheduled airline, the FAA needs to determine whether those operations should follow the same stringent rules as scheduled airlines.”
The FAA’s current statements follow its August 2023…
