US public structure operator JSX Air responded to criticisms from American Airways and the Air Line Pilots Affiliation (ALPA) in a model new regulatory submitting to the Division of Transportation (DOT). The criticisms concentrate on JSX’s enterprise model that allows it to perform on pre-scheduled journeys whereas utilizing pilots with fewer than 1,500 hours of flight experience and avoiding TSA security checks for its passengers.
Union and airline criticisms
The ALPA, along with a cadre of various pilot unions, submitted a submitting on Would possibly 5 expressing their concern over the working model of corporations like JSX. American Airways moreover submitted a submitting to the DOT on Would possibly 16, whereby they characterize JSX as a “scheduled structure” that exists due to the exploitation of a regulatory loophole.
“The JSX model is decided by exploiting a ‘public structure’ loophole to fly a printed schedule with 30-seat turbojet aircraft beneath Half 135,” American Airways Vice President/Head of Regulatory Affairs and Worldwide Affairs Molly Wilkinson acknowledged. “American believes that the ‘scheduled structure’ model as leveraged by JSX degrades our nation’s aviation system and distorts rivals. DOT ought to complete this misuse.”
JSX Air Chief Authorities Officer Alex Wilcox acknowledged these criticisms mischaracterize the company’s enterprise model and amount to a “political advertising and marketing marketing campaign to outlaw JSX.”
“They verify with JSX’s ‘scheduled structure service,’ suggesting that JSX’s public charters are literally scheduled suppliers and should be regulated as such beneath Half 121,” Wilcox acknowledged. “Really, no such ‘loophole’ exists. JSX complies completely with all related DOT, FAA, and TSA requirements.”
Wilcox further argued that JSX’s model presents an very important pathway for pilots to appreciate extraordinarily associated experience, serving to to alleviate half 121 carriers’ ongoing pilot shortage.
These suggestions come following a pending software program sooner than the DOT by SkyWest Airways, a US half 121 commuter operator, to launch a model new service utilizing the identical development to that utilized by JSX beneath half 135. Such a development might allow SkyWest to lease a lot much less expert and cheaper pilots. It’d potential take advantage of these pilots on lower-volume, backed Vital Air Service routes, which the supplier has been decreasing once more on inside the wake of an ongoing captain shortage.
Allowing a severe commuter airline like SkyWest to start out working flights on this technique poses a potential menace to pilot unions, which might lose leverage in compensation negotiations if principal carriers uncover strategies to lease from a giant pool of a lot much less expert pilots. It moreover could pose a menace to principal airways which is able to see elevated rivals on certain routes that corporations like SkyWest could also be succesful to perform reasonably extra inexpensively beneath half 135 tips.
Half 121 vs half 135
To know the entire fuss, let’s fill inside the gaps with a bit of little bit of background information.
American Airways and totally different principal air carriers inside the US are regulated beneath 14 CFR half 121. Since 2010, half 121 has required every captains and first officers working these flights to hold an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certification. Amongst totally different requirements, an ATP requires pilots in most circumstances to construct up 1,500 hours of flight experience.
This 1,500 hour requirement represents a severe hurdle for a lot of aspiring airline pilots that requires a serious funding of time and money. It’s undoubtedly among the many many challenges behind the pilot shortage that has plagued half 121 airways particularly over the previous quite a few years.
Totally different carriers, though, along with JSX and Tennessee-based Contour Airways, are regulated beneath 14 CFR half 135. Although pilots working half 135 flights ought to nonetheless be commercially rated, first officers legally need solely 250 hours of full flight experience, whereas captains can fly with as few as 1,200 hours.
Usually speaking, half 135 oversees on-demand structure operations. Although half 135 does embody restricted scheduled commuter operations, the legal guidelines solely allow these operations to include a most of 9 seats and as a lot as a payload functionality of seven,500 kilos. Extra, half 135 commuter operations couldn’t take advantage of any turbo-jet aircraft.
This, then, is the place points get understandably sticky.
How JSX legally works
JSX flights occur aboard a fleet of forty-seven Embraer 135s and 145s; all twin-jet regional airliners with a payload functionality that far exceeds 7,500 kilos, and all of which embody 30 seats. Extra, JSX passengers purchase tickets which is likely to be purchased in step with a predetermined schedule, making JSX appear – on the very least on the ground – to perform no in one other means than a component 121 supplier.
So, why doesn’t JSX fall beneath the an identical regulatory development as half 121 carriers like American Airways?
When passengers e-book tickets and fly with JSX, they’re in actuality dealing with two corporations. First, they e-book tickets with JetSuiteX, which itself is certainly a 14 CFR Half 380 operator. Half 380 operators are in every other case generally called indirect air carriers (IAC), which means they don’t instantly perform the flights they put together and promote tickets for.
What this means inside the case of JSX is that the company passengers purchase tickets from is certainly performing as an intermediary between passengers and the Direct Air Supplier. It’s solely designing flight schedules after which selling tickets. This agency then contracts with a structure operator to fly them.
The company actually working the flights is called Delux Public Structure, though it does enterprise beneath the determine JSX Air. This agency is an element 135 structure supplier on account of it isn’t setting any flight schedules nonetheless fairly merely flying irrespective of flights it’s contracted to fly.
Since Delux Public Structure is simply not instantly setting flight schedules, it isn’t subject to the restrictions talked about above related to half 135 scheduled carriers. Thus, it is able to fly jets with better than 9 seats with out falling beneath half 121 legal guidelines.
Together with allowing the company to perform flights with lower-time pilots, this lack of half 121 legal guidelines moreover permits its passengers to skip the TSA security line so long as its aircraft have fewer than 31 seats. Without having to fly from airports with TSA, JSX can provide flights to and from airports which is likely to be in every other case inconceivable for half 121 passenger carriers to right away entry.
Thus, JSX’s model permits it to advertise tickets in step with a schedule whereas working flights beneath half 135. This comes with many benefits for every the airline and its passengers however moreover might pose a menace to half 121 carriers and the pilot unions that characterize their pilots if further corporations begin utilizing the identical model. These carriers and unions moreover argue that the model makes aviation a lot much less protected and undercuts their capability to compete on many routes.
What do you assume? Is JSX’s model good for US aviation, or is the company exploiting a loophole? Inform us inside the suggestions underneath.