FAQ

Navigating Business Aviation: A practical field guide for US-based Part 91 owners and small flight departments: domestic ops, international trips, and the setup work in between.

I publish how-to guides, lessons learned, and free resources.

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Owners, chief pilots, and lean flight-department people running (or about to run) a turbine under Part 91 — typically a turboprop, light jet, or heavy jet, US-based, who want a coherent and simple operation.

Also for those new to running flight departments or those new to international operations.

Not a Part 135 or 121 training platform - although there's a lot of good information for you too. Not an aircraft broker listing. Not a substitute for your POH, AFM, insurance policy, or the current regulation.

If you need someone to take the keys, hire crews, and run the airplane as a managed asset, that is a different business. I can still help you see what a department is made of.

No. I help others manage their own flight departments.

I do not take operational control of your aircraft or run your airplane under a management contract. I write the guides, keep a short vendor list, and — if you ask — introduce you to people I use.

About · Connect

Robbie Moon. Husband, father of three, turbine and tailwheel pilot. ATP MEL/SEL, CFI/CFII/MEI. Type ratings include G-VII, G-280, CL-30, and L-39. 6,000+ hours, 15+ years in business aviation, North and South American and European Gulfstream ops, and 11 trans-Atlantic crossings in a PC-12.

About

I was thrown into a flight department management position with little prior experience. I had some people help me along the way, but a lot of it was jumping in and figuring it out as I went. My goal is to help others speed up the process from zero to a fully functioning, knowledgeable, and safe operation.

The site is free to read. Some vendor introductions pay me a commission. Most do not. Either way you do not pay extra. I only list people I would use.

Different job, and can offer outsider opinions.

- NBAA is the industry association — membership, advocacy, a much larger library. I recommend it. I am not a replacement for it.

- OEM / AFM / MMEL are the aircraft’s authority. I point at them. I do not outrank them.

- A management company can run the airplane. I help you see the pieces so you can run it, or hire that help with your eyes open.

NBAA via Providers / Flight Department Setup · Flight department setup

An interactive flight department checklist and hub for establishing or auditing operations.

You tell it who you are and which path fits — turboprop, light jet, or heavy jet. It pre-checks the usual items, saves progress, and lets you open a vendor site or request a human introduction. Same starting lists as the paper checklists on Downloads.

Open Flight Department Setup on the Providers page

The checklist and portal are free to use.

Vendors charge their own prices if you buy from them. Introductions do not add a fee on your side.

Sometimes. I may receive a commission from some of these vendors. For most I do not. There is no extra cost to you either way. I only list people I would use.

That disclosure already lives on the Providers page. It belongs in the open.

Not automatically.

Flight Department Setup saves what you type (name, email, phone, company, aircraft, N-number, path) and your checklist progress so you can come back later. A vendor only hears from us if you click Connect on that vendor. That email goes to the vendor and copies you and me.

Details: Legal.

Three doors into the same closet.

If you want to mark a PDF in a meeting, start with Downloads. If you want to work the list and ask for intros, use Flight Department Setup.

Flight-department checklists (Turboprop / Domestic, Light Jet / North America, Heavy Jet / International), a noise-certificate builder based on FAA AC 91-86, a journey log, a discrepancy log, a North Atlantic communication log, and oceanic checklists in paper and ForeFlight form.

The international series explains when each document matters.

Downloads

Typical buckets: scheduling, authorizations, regulations, finance, fuel, flight operations, training, maintenance, hangar, safety, privacy, and the subscriptions that hold it together. Aircraft type, mission, and department size change the mix. There is no single app that does all of it.

The long version is the Flight Department Setup article. The short version is a checklist: Downloads or Flight Department Setup.

During acquisition, some items have to exist before closing. Others can only finish after the tail is yours.

Practical order:

1. Read the acquisition walk-through so the steps are not a surprise (source, offer, contract, inspection, escrow, title, registration).

2. Download the checklist that matches the airplane.

3. Open Flight Department Setup and work the list instead of collecting random logins.

4. If international is even a “maybe,” include the authorization and CBP items.

No. Plenty of owners run a lean department with the right accounts, a short vendor set, and written procedures.

You do need someone accountable for the operation, training, and paper. That can be you, a chief pilot, or a management company. Complexity scales with the airplane, the mission, and whether you leave the country.

If you want the pieces laid out before you hire anyone, that is what this site is for.

It depends on the airplane and the trip, but the recurring stack looks like: scheduling / dispatch, flight planning and charts, maintenance tracking, fuel programs, insurance, training, manuals / LOAs, and a way to talk to the crew and the owner.

I keep that stack short on purpose. The buffet in the open market overlaps. The setup article walks the categories. Providers is the short list I would start from.

A lot of pure Part 91 departments sit outside the mandate and still build an SMS because insurers, international expectations, or their own standard ask for it. Jets and aircraft over 12,500 lbs MTOW should have one.

A binder on a shelf is not an SMS. If you want a system, start here: Safety Management System.

Do not take a one-line FAQ as the applicability test. Read the current Part 5 text or have counsel do it.

Not fully. In the ADS-B era the airplane is trackable. FAA programs (CARES, LADD, PIA) can reduce how widely the picture is published. None of them is truly anonymous.

The walk-through: Incognito Mode.

Enroute CPDLC is live for US domestic airspace. L3Harris runs the portal most operators use to apply and learn the procedures. It is not the same thing as oceanic FANS / datalink LOAs.

It is optional, but recommended if you have the equipment for it. The explainer: Domestic CPDLC. Broader context: Datalink Communications.

A Letter of Authorization is the FAA saying you (the operator) — not just the N-number — have the training and procedures for a specific operation.

For Part 91 turbines, think in three buckets:

- Core — MEL (D095 or D195), and RVSM (B046 or the domestic ADS-B path).

- Enroute / oceanic — the long-range and Oceanic set, when the mission actually needs them (especially in the North Atlantic).

- Approach / airport — Special approaches, HUD/EVS ops, and descent procedures.

You can get by with none, depending on the operation. Newer airplanes are simpler to authorize than they used to be. Mission should pull the list, international ops generally require more LOAs.

Part 91 LOAs

If you fly a turbine and you want to depart with something inoperative, you need an approved MEL. Turbines do not get the simple 91.213 KOEL out that a lot of piston operators use. Without a MEL, a dead box often means you sit until it is fixed.

- D095 — you adopt the published MMEL for the type. Faster.

- D195 — custom to the serial number. Get this one for international ops; EASA ramp inspectors have treated a D095 as a finding.

More: Inoperative equipment · LOAs

Not always. Some US operators can use the ADS-B RVSM exemption (Part 91 Appendix G / section 9 path): qualifying airplane, trained crew, and the monitoring paperwork. That path is US domestic. It is not a worldwide ticket.

If you operate internationally in RVSM airspace, plan on LOA B046.

Walk-through: RVSM authorizations.

MEL is the everyday one for a turbine. RVSM matters the moment you use FL290–410. Privacy programs and domestic CPDLC are optional tools, not LOAs in the same sense.

Oceanic and most approach LOAs can wait until international is real. You can bundle 9 LOAs all at once via the FAA streamlined process (not all airframes qualify). Otherwise, the FSDO route still works but is more lengthy.

LOAs · Domestic

The international series is a 22-article path from zero to a US–Europe trip. It is written from a US Part 91 seat, aimed at the North Atlantic and Europe, and it is a usable foundation for other regions.

Practical first moves:

1. Read the introduction so the shape of the work is visible.

2. Inventory airplane equipment against the aircraft equipment article.

3. Pull ARROW docs, passports, insurance geographic limits, and the paperwork list.

4. Download the journey log and noise-certificate tools.

5. Run the tabletop before you pick a date.

Even if you're not flying to Europe, this series is a great foundation of international ops.

On the airplane: ARROW documents, plus CBP user-fee decal, a way to show maintenance status, and a noise certificate (or the exemption document).

On the people: pilot certificate, medical, FCC restricted radiotelephone operator permit, passport, and whatever visas / crew letters / permits the destination actually wants.

In the trip folder: journey log, insurance evidence that matches the geography, and the authorizations you are going to claim.

Start: Aircraft documentation · Pilot documentation

Bare minimum for a US operator going to Europe, from the equipment article: one long-range navigation unit (GPS), short-range nav (VOR, DME, ADF as required), VHF with 8.33 spacing and immunity, Mode S transponder, and 1090ES ADS-B Out.

More equipment — and the LOAs that match it — unlocks NAT HLA and better routings. FL285 through FL420 need, with exceptions, dual long-range navigation systems, CPDLC, HF radios, and a host of LOAs.

Read Aircraft equipment and North Atlantic overview and then your AFM.

Journey log: aircraft on international air navigation are expected to carry one — it is a basic log of your travels and you may already have one. EASA ramp inspections look for it. I keep a free template on Downloads.

Noise certificate: internationally flown aircraft need a document that summarizes noise certification (ICAO Annex 16 territory). The site has a certificate builder based on FAA AC 91-86.

Neither is required for US Domestic operations.

A ramp inspection. RIP is the European version of the FAA ramp check, and it is more itemized than most US crews are used to (on the order of 50+ points). Knowing the list in advance is how you make it boring.

RIP

Not officially. As of March 2025 those routes no longer exist in the technical sense, but you could fly the same ground track. Most operators are unaffected, as the Blue Spruce routes have been replaced by the Iceland - Greenland corridor. The current picture is in Goodbye Blue Spruce Routes and the NAT articles.

Private aircraft need eAPIS, the right kind of airport (AOE / landing rights / user-fee), and an annual user-fee decal. Local port practices dictate local entry procedures.

The Europe-side processes are their own article: Customs.

1. Start with Domestic articles.
2. If you're already set up, look at International Articles.
3. If you fly Jets, my most important work is here (A Runway Excursion Excursion).

No. The site is general information and one operator’s reading of how the pieces fit. It can be wrong, outdated, or a bad fit for your airplane. You own the operation. Primary sources win: FAA, eCFR, CBP, foreign AIPs, your AFM, your insurer.

The honor code on the Legal page is FAR 61.153(c).

Connect — questions, comments, corrections, or if you want help.

If you are already in Flight Department Setup, you can also ask for an introduction to me from the checklist. That is the same person.

Part 91 is the general operating rule for most private and corporate flying in the US. You are not holding the airplane out as an air carrier. The operator still follows the FARs, the AFM, and the authorizations they claim.

It is not when paying customers are flown -- Part 135 or 121.

If you are mixing company travel, cost-sharing, or outside passengers, stop and talk to counsel.

Part 91 is private / corporate ops. Part 135 is on-demand commercial (charter, air taxi). Different manuals, training, maintenance, and FAA oversight.

This site is written for Part 91. It is not a 135 certificate guide.

No. I do not file your LOAs or take operational control.

I will show you the map, the short vendor list, and — if you click Connect — introduce you to people who do manuals, training, insurance, and the rest. You (or the company you hire) still own the application.

An introduction email goes to that vendor and copies you and me. It is not an automatic share of your whole list. One vendor, one click.

You can open a vendor’s site without connecting. Connect is only when you want a human handoff.

Use the return link from the welcome email, on the phone or computer you want to work from. Progress is saved so you do not start over.

If the link is gone, Connect and say so.

Short list, not a marketplace. I would use them if I were standing the department up from scratch. They are meant to cover all facets of a department up through heavy international operation without stacking three tools that do the same job.

Some pay a commission. Most do not. That does not change the price you pay, and it is not a guarantee they are the right fit for your airplane.

Providers

No. There is a new/used aircraft rundown and a cost calculator under Domestic. That is education, not a brokerage.

Most of the depth is turbine Part 91: MEL, RVSM, international equipment, the checklists. A piston owner can still use the international series, the downloads, and the “how a department is built” thinking.

Do not force a heavy jet vendor stack onto a Bonanza.

The FAA’s faster path for many Part 91 operational approvals, used when the airplane and training already fit the template. It is how a lot of MEL / RVSM / approach / datalink paper gets done now, instead of a custom novel for every tail.

It is still an authorization. Read Part 91 LOAs and the current FAA streamlined guide before you treat a blog post as the application.

The codes have to match what is installed and authorized. Wrong letters are causing more problems than they used to in the CPDLC era.

ICAO equipment codes

North Atlantic High Level Airspace, FL285–FL420. Extra nav, comm, surveillance, and LOAs (typically including B039, plus the oceanic / RVSM / datalink set your airplane actually supports).

You can still cross outside it — lower or above — with a thinner LOA stack. That is the old Blue Spruce idea, not a free pass.

North Atlantic overview

Geographic limits, liability limits, open-pilot warranty, training requirements, and exclusions.

Read the policy. Then read Insurance before you pick a date.

The US, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, and Europe all have lists, and they get long for single-engine airplanes. Beyond the regulation: a satellite comms device, a fire-containment idea, and training you have actually taken.

Survival equipment

An altimeter setting that makes the altimeter read height above the airfield, not above sea level. Some places still use it. It's rare, and hopefully on its way to extinction.

Approaching Zero — QFE operations

Industry shorthand for discounted fuel, not one product. Contract providers, brokers, memberships, and volume programs overlap.

Contract fuel

If you start flying Europe at any scale, yes. EU / UK / Swiss emissions schemes and ICAO’s CORSIA can create reporting and credit obligations once you cross thresholds (most operations won't).

SAF is a bio-Jet-A fuel that emits less emissions.

ETS, CORSIA, and SAF

Runway excursions are the lowest hanging fruit for preventing deaths and accidents in business aviation.

In my opinion, some of today's solutions have the unintended consequence of making excursions more likely, and I offer some advice for your consideration in your operation.

I believe this is my greatest contribution to business aviation.

A Runway Excursion Excursion

Yes, for your own operation. Please don't steal, but share.

Selective calling. Instead of listening to HF static the whole ocean, the radio can ding you when ATC wants you. Useful, not required. Register the code (ASRI) and put it in the flight plan if you have it.

Aircraft equipment

Get the structure right from the start, know the cost, and work with good people.

The purchase is the short part. Accounts, insurance, registration, taxes, and the first LOAs start before closing and finish after the tail is yours.

Read the acquisition walk-through once so the sequence is not a surprise, then use the checklist that matches the airplane.

I published a rundown of in-production airplanes and a used-market lineage piece so you can see the field. If you want to talk airplanes and your mission, Connect.

New aircraft · Used aircraft · Cost calculator

It is when you purchase an aircraft as its own LLC while you use the aircraft for your primary business. The FAA sees this as a commercial operation. The solution is usually a dry lease (or direct ownership).

Start here, then call someone who does this for a living: Taxes.

Datalink is the umbrella: the airplane sending and receiving text. ACARS is one stream (company / ops). CPDLC is the ATC stream.

FANS CPDLC is the most common. European ATN CPDLC is the same idea, different network, equipment, and authorization. Domestic CPDLC is FANS but no LOA is required.

Datalink · Domestic CPDLC

Yes, with exceptions. Redundant long-range comms can be two HFs, or HF plus satvoice / FANS CPDLC, depending on the airspace.

The former Blue Spruce / corridor idea was a way to stay in VHF coverage and not require HF radios. That is still possible, depending on the route, from FL200-FL280.

Aircraft equipment

Tighter VHF channel spacing used in Europe. US 25 kHz radios run out of frequencies over there. From Iceland east, your comms need 8.33 and immunity.

Current data in the box and on the EFB, for the regions you will actually fly. Jeppesen and ForeFlight both cover it; Garmin if that is your stack.

Navigation data

A working flight-plan log for the ocean: track, fuel, times, and a dead-reckoning backup. Required thinking for a NAT crossing, and the thing a ramp inspector understands when they ask how you flew the water. It can be digital.

Master Document

Start with Annex 2 and Annex 6 Part II, then NAT Doc 007 for the water. Then go to the AIPs.

ICAO documents · NAT operations

Aeronautical Information Publication. Each country tells foreign operators how to fly there legally. When you open a new State, read the entry, customs, comms, and differences sections first.

AIPs

Tighter airspace, 8.33 comms, different ATC vocabulary, different altimetry habits, more permits and PPR, extensive ramp inspections, and fees, fees, fees. The article is a highlight reel.

European differences

A dress rehearsal on the ground: paperwork, routing, fuel, contingencies, who calls whom. I wrote one for a PC-12 corridor crossing and a G600 nonstop, KDAL to EDDF.

When acquiring your LOAs, a tabletop may be required by your FSDO inspector to make sure you know your stuff.

Tabletop

Decide your personal risk line before the trip (ice, single-engine, ferry tanks, night arrivals) and treat rest as work. Fatigue is when mistakes happen. Risks increase when you've been up for over 16 hours, plan accordingly.

Psychology and physiology

CBP’s advance passenger/crew filing for private aircraft leaving or entering the US. Open the account before you need it. Attention to detail is important here. Handlers, ForeFlight, and Garmin can all assist with filings.

The Europe article covers the other side of the pond. A full US-arrival CBP piece is still on the writing list.

Customs

An annual sticker / account for private aircraft entering the US. Required for all international operations into or out of the USA.

An airport of entry is built and staffed for clearing customs. A landing-rights airport often means you ask CBP for permission to land that arrival. User-fee airports are another flavor of the same problem.

Call the port. Hours and local practice vary.

For international, yes, along with the pilot certificate, medical, and passport. Not required for domestic US flying.

Pilot documentation

A voluntary industry safety standard (IBAC). Some departments use it as the SMS wrapper. It is not required for Part 91, but it can give outside eyes on your flight department.

If you want the thinking without buying a binder first, start with the SMS article.

The site and the setup portal are free. Introductions to vendors are free to you. If you want a working session with me, Connect and ask. I will tell you if I am the right person or if you need someone else.

Aviation is constantly changing, and I do my best to keep the site current.

If you catch something stale, tell me. Always check the source material.

A way to put the airplane in one entity and the operating company in another, with a written lease, so you are not accidentally in the flight-department-company trap. The lease has to be real. Paper without following it does not help.

I am not your lawyer. Read Taxes and then talk to someone who does aircraft structures.

Standard Industry Fare Level. IRS numbers to impute personal use of a company aircraft for personal taxes.

Taxes.

Prior permission required. Some airports will not support you without it — slots, parking, hours, or customs. Europe and busy GA fields use it a lot, expect it to get more common in the future.

The handling request is not the same as PPR.

A trip-support / handling company that does permits, slots, fuel, ground transport, and the local phone tree. Not required but recommended. The international landscape changes fast.

Tabletop · European differences

An old-school crew/pax/aircraft form some countries and handlers still want. A Gen Dec and a pilot license used to get you about anywhere.

Now eAPIS and European APIS-style systems have eaten a lot of this, but it has not disappeared.

Permission to cross a country’s airspace without landing. Some States want it every time, some have a standing deal, some want it only for certain registrations.

Your handler or permit shop usually files these.

No. NASA ASRS is the voluntary safety report most Part 91 crews can file. ASAP is a formal program with the FAA, usually through a certificate holder or a qualifying group (for example ACSF for some operators). Different protections, different paperwork.

The biggest advantage is that ASAP covers your whole operation (all crew, maintenance, ground ops), not just the NASA ASRS flight ops.

A Flight Operations Manual is how this department flies: weather, duty, who can release, what the airplane is allowed to do. SOPs are the crew-level how — callouts, flows, profiles.

Part 91 does not automatically require an airline-size FOM. NBAA's Standard Operating Procedures Manual, published in 2026, will be picked up by training providers. If you don't have one in place, expect to be introduced at an upcoming recurrent training event.

Flight Operational Quality Assurance: pull flight-data recorder / QAR data and look for trends. Valuable in a fleet. Culture trumps trends in a small department.

Do not buy a FOQA program because a brochure said “safety.” Fix the runway-excursion habits first.

A Runway Excursion Excursion

ESTA is the US electronic permission tied to the Visa Waiver Program for certain foreign visitors to the US. You can apply to become a Signatory Carrier with the CBP and bring foreign passengers directly into the country using ESTA approvals vs full visas.

For a RVSM LOA or the ADS-B RVSM exemption, you must be monitored by NAARMO when flying in the RVSM flight levels. Much easier to do in the ADS-B era. Just fly in RVSM domestic airspace and you'll be monitored.

You can check to see the results online.

RVSM authorizations

Public ADS-B Performance Report. A free FAA check that your ADS-B Out is actually performing. You want a clean report before you treat the RVSM exemption as done.

RVSM authorizations

A way to keep the owner’s name off the public FAA aircraft registry look-up via the FAA CARES program. It is not the same as ADS-B privacy (LADD / PIA), and it does not make the airplane untrackable.

Acquisition is where this usually gets decided. Acquisition · Incognito Mode

A self-help noise certificate builder based on FAA AC 91-86 so you can produce the summary document international ops expect. You'll need to look up noise values in the AFM or STCs to complete.

Noise certificate · Downloads

Because the work is managing the department — paper, vendors, authorizations, trips — not taking the keys.

I help you manage yours. I do not take operational control.

The North Atlantic operations manual everyone actually uses. Procedures, contingencies, the stuff that is different from a US IFR day. Read the current version before the first crossing.

NAT operations

The oceanic ATC agencies on the east and west sides of the North Atlantic. You will talk to them (voice or CPDLC), get an oceanic clearance, and cross on the track or random route they give you.

The NAT articles walk the procedures.

You need a way to write down what is broken and what you did about it. International ramp checks like a paper or digital log. I keep a simple template on Downloads.

The documents that should be on the airplane: Airworthiness, Registration, Radio station license (when required), Operating limitations / AFM, and Weight and balance.

International adds extras (decal, noise certificate, journey log). Start with ARROW, then read Aircraft documentation.

Europe’s planned electronic travel authorization for visa-exempt visitors. Not the same as ESTA (that is the US system), and not a visa.

Rules and start dates have moved. Rollout has been bumpy, your handler will have the latest information.

A reserved time to arrive or depart at a constrained airport or airway. Not the same as PPR, and not the same as a handling request. Miss the slot and you may be put at the back of the line. Sometimes your handler can refile a new slot without much delay.

Handlers file a lot of these in Europe. Build slack.

Tracks are the organized daily routes across the Atlantic. A random route is your own set of waypoints, still in the system, still cleared, still with the same comm/nav/surveillance rules for that airspace.

North Atlantic overview

FSDO is the local FAA Flight Standards District Office. A POI works at a FSDO and is your Principal Operations Inspector — the person who signs off your LOA package and conducts inspections.

Part 91 LOAs

The MMEL is the FAA master list for the type. A D095 lets you adopt that. A MEL (D195) is customized to your serial number and how you actually fly.

Turbines use one of those to defer inoperative equipment. The MMEL sitting on a website is not your MEL until it is authorized to you.

Inoperative equipment

Emergency Response Plan. Who you call, who talks to the family, the media, the insurer, and the FAA when the day goes badly. It can live inside an SMS or as a thin standalone.