The charter operator responds by noting that “JSX and similar Part 135 operators provide one of the most effective and relevant means for first officers to achieve their 1,500h flight time requirement to join Part 121 airlines”. ”Under current Part 135 safety regulations, first officers do not have to meet the safety-critical first officer qualification rules as Congress authorized in the Airline Safety and FAA Extension Act of 2010, which regional airlines continue to try to weaken,” ALPA adds. They are also subject to different rest requirements. In May, 10 aviation unions called on the US government to prevent the charter service from gaining DOT approval, arguing that Skywest Charter plans to “link small communities to the national airline network under a lesser standard of safety”.įor example, pilots operating under the FAA’s so-called “Part 135” rules do not need the standard 1,500h of aviation experience, and can be older than the mandatory retirement age of 65 years old. The company responded by touting that it has “operated securely” since 2016 and has voluntarily implemented “state-of-the-art security practices and technology”.ĪLPA has argued for months that regional US carrier Skywest Airlines’ new charter unit, SkyWest Charter, is attempting to bypass safety laws that apply to Part 121 carriers. The union also accuses JSX of allowing passengers and their luggage to ”bypass the screening regimen that all other scheduled commercial airline passengers and bags must go through”. However, in a response to ALPA and American Airlines last month – which complained of “unfair competition” from the start-up – JSX argues that “no such ‘loophole’ exists” and that it is fully compliant with all safety regulations. JSX declined to comment on ALPA’s filing. Targeted at affluent markets, the company operates point-to-point routes mostly in the South and Southwestern USA, with its main base at Hollywood-Burbank airport and headquarters in Dallas.Ĭirium fleets data show that JSX currently has 42 Embraer ERJ-135s and -145s in service, all configured with 30 seats. “To the consumer, unaware of fine-line regulatory distinctions… JSX’s flight are scheduled, just like its Part 121 competitors.” NO ‘LOOPHOLE’: JSX ”JSX applied to operate 110,305 scheduled departures in 2022 with its 37-aircraft operating fleet – more scheduled departures than comparably sized regional Part 121 operators” such as Piedmont Airlines, ALPA says. The “hop-on jet service” – which bills itself as a “unique public charter operator” – has achieved an operational scale that is “untenable”, ALPA says. “Part 121” refers to a group of rules governing the vast majority of commercial flights in the USA.
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