News and Updates – FAA Publishes Means to Comply with Part 23

Last August, the final rule overhauling the Part 23 airworthiness standards for general aviation airplanes officially went into effect. Now, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued 63 means of compliance (MOCs) for Part 23 that will foster faster installation of innovative, safety-enhancing technologies into small airplanes, while reducing costs for the aviation industry.

On May 11, the FAA published a notice of availability in the Federal Register accepting 63 MOCs to Part 23 that are based on consensus standards published by ASTM International. The MOCs listed in the notice are an acceptable means, but not the only means, to comply with the applicable regulations in Part 23, amendment 23-64, for normal category airplanes. The public comment period ends July 10.

The FAA participated with industry and other stakeholders in developing these consensus standards. The agency accepted 46 of the ASTM consensus standards as MOCs without change; the other 17 MOCs are a combination of the ASTM standards and FAA changes.

Accepting MOCsbased on consensus standardsto Part 23, amendment 23-64, is consistent with the Small Airplane Revitalization Act of 2013 and the FAAs stated intent in issuing the overhauled airworthiness rules

A summary of MOCs accepted by this notice is available on the FAA website. Guidance for proposing additional means of compliance to Part 23 for FAA acceptance is provided in Advisory Circular 23.2010-1.