The FAA just released the long-awaited final order that revises the amateur-built aircraft certification policy and guidelines for how builders should properly certify every step of the building process (see page 42 of Tuesday’s edition of NBAA Convention News). While changes to the certification policy, better known as the “51-percent rule,” address a number of key points, two of the most critical are the final clarification of the required level of builder participation and professional builder assistance. Joe Norris, homebuilders manager for the Experimental Aircraft
Association, said, “We feel that this new policy is not only a victory for EAA and homebuilders, but also a victory for the FAA because it gives them better tools to enforce the regulation and make sure everyone is working under the same set of rules.” For more information, see the EAA at Booth No. 1263.