REFLECTOR: Velocity MEL (Minimum Equipment List)

[Scott Baker]

I forgot to mention ... The FAA is here to help you!

Scott Baker

On Jan 12, 2013, at 2:42 PM, "Bob Jackson \(Jax Tech\)" <bobj at jaxtechllc.com> wrote:

> I lost an alternator on takeoff returning from KCHS at night, so I cancelled my IFR clearance and returned to KCHS for the night.  As the Repairman certificate holder, I inspected and determined on the ground that the plane was safe for flight (since we have two buses that can be cross-fed, two batteries and two alternators, each with adequate capacity for all electrical equipment operation) and flew home from KCHS the next morning on an IFR flight plan.
>  
> A week later I got a call from the FAA in South Carolina asking if we had a minimum equipment list, and if not, how I got the plane back from Charleston to Florida without first obtaining ferry permission from the local FSDO.  He also asked that I send him a statement explaining what happened along with my license and Repairman’s certificate numbers, which I did (a two sentence statement).  Apparently, the KCHS tower (or ATC) ‘turned me in’ when I cancelled my IFR clearance.
>  
> Two weeks later I just received a new voicemail from the Charlotte FAA office – which I haven’t been able to return yet, but that I suspect is over the same issue.
>  
> My questions are:
> Do any other small planes, Velocity’s, or Experimental planes in general ever have MELs?  Do MELs apply to Experimentals?
> If not, wouldn’t the equipment list included in FAR 91.205(d) (‘Instrument and Equipment Requirements’) serve essentially as a MEL – which says for IFR flight you are required to have ‘a generator or alternator of adequate capacity’?
> Since we included considerable redundancy (including dual alternators) in our build, should we have created, or should we create now, a Minimum Equipment List (MEL) for our plane to cover this type of situation?
>  
> The Velocity POH that we carry in our plane includes a top level electrical schematic showing a single alternator.  The original Weight & Balance sheet we also carry lists oxygen system, two batteries, two alternators, IFR panel, etc as included in the empty weight for the W&B calculation.  Does the fact that we originally listed two imply to the FAA that we must always have TWO alternators now to safely fly (since we don’t have a MEL)?
>  
> We included two alternators in our design just for this situation -- to give us the redundancy to fly safely with only one alternator.  But now it seems like we can’t legally utilize it without asking for a ferry permit!
>  
> Does anyone have any suggestions for:
> Short term – how to handle Charlotte FSDO discussion?
> Long term – should we create (and get approved) our own MEL to allow us to fly with less than all the equipment we originally designed in?
>  
> Bob Jackson
> N2XF  Velocity XL/RG
> 750 hrs
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