FAA has a new twist for International flyers

[bahama flier]

Most of us who travel to other Countries, take out some extra seats so we can travel with more baggage.

FAA inspectors have been showing up in Florida at arrival points checking seats and wanting your W/B sheets for the change of weight. They have caught some off guard with these ramp checks and have been writing some serous tickets.

All you have to do is weight the seats you take out and change the moment on another sheet referencing the original W/B.

I have a six seat aircraft and I have sheets made to reflect any of the extra four seats I sometimes take out, with the subtracting weight from my original W/B.

Most of the W/B sheets are in the Aircraft owners manual, you just have to fill in the correct weight-moment and arm information.

The CBP guys told be about it in Ft. Pierce, they were there the day before I landed, I made the proper paperwork up just in case.

I was lucky they missed me by a day,,,,

 

[frfly172]

Nothing better to do. Do they actually run the numbers?

 

[poadeleted20]

If you have the equipment list you're supposed to have, you don't even have to weigh/measure -- just pull the data off the equipment list.

 

[Captain]

Not sure what international has to do with this. Why wouldn't you adjust the BOW if you change the aircraft configuration? I wouldn't want to fly a plane if I didn't know the CG.

 

[Greg Bockelman]

I wouldn't want to fly a plane if I didn't know the CG.

The seat has a known arm. Take it out, weigh it, and do a simple math computation. Not difficult.

The legal paperwork, on the other hand, is a completely different matter.

 

[Geico266]

If you have the equipment list you're supposed to have, you don't even have to weigh/measure -- just pull the data off the equipment list.

No such equipment list is available for experimentals. I would just subtract the weight from the W&B sheet like the OP suggested.

Thank you for the heads up.

 

[poadeleted20]

No such equipment list is available for experimentals.

Why not? Is there some reason it can't be developed by the builder during the build?

 

[Geico266]

Why not? Is there some reason it can't be developed by the builder during the build?

I'm sure you could develope one, but one is not required per the Operating Limitations on each Experimental aircraft. Too many variables to be standardized I guess. You are certainly required to have a W&B with gross, min fuel, solo, etc., for that specific aircraft. So it would be easy to rmove and weight the seats and have it prepared for the gestapo.