VFR Day & Night Requirements and Inoperative Equipment

Let’s say that you’re just beginning your preflight inspection. You walk out to the airplane, turn on the lights, deploy the flaps, and during your initial walk around- you discover the right strobe light is not working. Can you go fly? What if the spinner was missing? Or the attitude indicator was inoperative? When asked the question, “who is responsible for determining the airworthiness of the aircraft?” what comes to mind first?

It may seem like these are owner/maintenance issues, but ultimately the responsibility falls upon us, the pilots. We are the last line of defense before taking the aircraft to the air. That is exactly how an FAA safety inspector would see it, and it’s also a question that will be on the FAA knowledge/written test.

§ 91.3(a) states, “The pilot in command (PIC) of an aircraft is directly responsible for, and is the final authority as to, the operation of that aircraft.”

and § 91.7(a) states, “No person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in airworthy condition.”

So how do we determine airworthiness? There are quite a few steps to thoroughly determine this. For the basis of this article, I will mainly focus on the regulation 91.205. We commonly refer to this as the acronyms ATOMATOFLAMES and FLAPS.

Now before we get to 91.205, I want to talk about the holistic thought process you must go through before arriving at 91.205 when determining an aircraft’s airworthiness. Our first stop is the required documents acronym, AROW or ARROW or ARROWE, or however you learned it (there will be another article in the future going over each of the acronyms discussed here). Once you’ve satisfied the requirements for the docs, then we arrive at the required inspections AVIATE or AVIATES. You must ensure there are not any overdue inspections or ADs.

Now it’s time for the preflight inspection. Here is where we are on the hunt for anything wrong with the aircraft that may affect airworthiness, and if there is any inoperative or missing equipment. So now back to one of the scenarios above. What if the right strobe light is inoperative? Missing spinner? The answer is the same across the board. Here we must first ask ourselves if the inoperative piece of equipment is required by a Minimum Equipment List or MEL. A MEL is something that an aircraft owner can request from the Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) for their specific airplane.

Upon determining that the inoperative item isn’t on the MEL, or that the aircraft simply do not have one, then it’s time to ask ourselves if the aircraft has a Kinds of Operations Equipment List or KOEL. This actually can be found on many general aviation aircraft, so you should see the limitations section of the AFM or POH to determine if it does. The KOEL specifies the kinds of operations (e.g., visual flight rules (VFR), instrument flight rules (IFR), day, or night) in which the aircraft can be operated. The KOEL also indicates the installed equipment that may affect any operating limitation (AC 91-67A).

What’s the difference between a MEL and a KOEL?

A KOEL is a list that's put together by the manufacturer and approved by the FAA that tells you what equipment can be inoperative and still be legal to fly. A MEL is a list put together by the owner/operator and approved by the FAA that tells you what equipment can be inoperative and still be legal to fly.

Additionally, we must look in the POH’s regular Equipment List to determine if the inoperative item is on it. This is in the Weight and Balance section in the POH (typically section 6).

Next, the inoperative or missing equipment can not be required by any Airworthiness Directives or ADs. Simply put, ADs are regulatory inspections required for specific make and model aircraft. They may be reoccurring, one-time-only, urgent, or non-urgent. For example, the Wing Spar AD- which grounded many Pipers in 2020, or the reoccurring Seat Rails AD in Cessna’s. More on ADs later.

Finally, we made it! After determining that none of these lists were keeping you from flying that day, we now have to see if the inoperative equipment is required by 91.205 Required Equipment. This regulation breaks down into three basic sections: VFR day, VFR night, and IFR equipment requirements. If you’re flying VFR during the daytime, all you need to worry about is the ATOMATOFLAMES acronym. If you’re flying during the nighttime, use both ATOMATOFLAMES and FLAPS.

Let’s break down these acronyms and then we’ll go over some examples.

Required Equipment 91.205

VFR Day Requirements from 91.205, ATOMATOFLAMES.

A - Airspeed indicator

T - Tachometer

O - Oil pressure gauge

M - Manifold pressure gauge for each altitude engine (turbocharged or supercharged)

A - Altimeter

T - Temperature gauge for each liquid-cooled engine (probably not your C172 or PA28)

O - Oil temperature gauge for each air-cooled engine

F - Fuel gauge for each fuel tank

L - Landing gear position indicator (If retractable gear)

A - Anti-collision lights (If certificated after March 11, 1996)

M - Magnetic compass

E - ELT - Emergency locator transmitter

S - Safety belts with an approved metal-to-metal latching for small civil airplanes manufactured after July 18, 1978, an approved shoulder harness or restraint system for each front seat. If after December 12, 1986, an approved shoulder harness or restraint system for all seats.

Other - For-hire over water beyond power-off glide distance: must have approved flotation gear readily available to each occupant, and at least one pyrotechnic signaling device.

Now for VFR Night Requirements- you not only need everything in ATOMATOFLAMES, but also FLAPS.

F - Fuses, three of each kind, or a full spare set, that are accessible to the pilot in flight. Seldom will your trainer have them, but sometimes they do!

L - Landing light (If operating for hire)

A - Anti-collision lights (If initially installed after August 11, 1971)

P - Position lights

S - Source of electrical energy for all installed electrical and radio equipment (Generator or Alternator)

Inoperative Equipment 91.213

Now that we have the VFR acronyms listed, let’s revisit the scenarios in the beginning. Let’s say you find that the right strobe isn’t working on your 2001 Cessna 172N. Can you go fly during the daytime? After determining that you don’t have a MEL, it’s not on the KOEL, and it isn’t required by the POH or an AD- then we refer to 91.205. The strobes are part of the anti-collision system, which is one of the requirements on 91.205. However, since the airplane was certificated after March 11, 1996, we do not need the strobes lights during the daytime. On the other hand, we would need them for night flights.

To be legal to fly this plane you would have to satisfy the requirements of 91.213 which states,

The inoperative instruments and equipment are -

(i) Removed from the aircraft, the cockpit control placarded, and the maintenance recorded in accordance with § 43.9 of this chapter; or

(ii) Deactivated and placarded “Inoperative.” If deactivation of the inoperative instrument or equipment involves maintenance, it must be accomplished and recorded in accordance with part 43 of this chapter

Most of the time you’re going to go with option B. What this means is that you must placard the switch in the cockpit “Inop” with, say a sticky note. Then depending on who you speak to you’ll need to have maintenance pull the circuit breaker and zip tie it. Then have them write in the maintenance logs stating that the aircraft is still airworthy with the inoperative equipment. Most San Diego DPEs want it done this way. Whereas most people on the flight line say the regulation doesn’t state the need to pull the circuit breaker or write in the logs, as turning the switch off doesn’t involve maintenance. I’d say use your best judgment on that one ;)

So, what if the plane was certificated in 1968? Most instructors (myself included until recently) would say that you could still go fly as long as the beacon light was working. However, there was a legal interpretation in 2017 from the FAA which states that both the rotating beacon AND the strobe lights need to be operable.

Here is a quote from the Letts Legal Interpretation:

“…the FAA considers the aircraft's rotating beacon and strobe lights to be part of the aircraft's anti-collision light system. As § 91.205(a) specifies that the instruments and equipment required by that section be "in operable condition" both the rotating beacon and strobe lights would need to be operable for the requirements of§ 91.205 to be met.”

I can’t tell you how many times I (allegedly) went flying with the strobes not working, but thought it was still airworthy since the beacon light was working. I was, again allegedly, wrong.

Okay, so what about the spinner? Same thought process. MEL? Nope. KOEL? Not on there. AD? Nope. POH? Yes! The spinner is on the equipment list in the POH.

So there you have it. Take this order of operations into your check ride for determining airworthiness with inoperative equipment and your examiner will be impressed.

Let me know in the comments section below something unusual you found during preflight,

Feel free to shoot me an email with any questions, comments, or concerns.

Seeyuh!

Chance@ChanceToFly.com