Citationjet (C525/C526) - CJ I / II / III / IV
Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 100; Flight Crew Total 14000; Flight Crew Type 400
No Specific Anomaly Occurred All Types
General None Reported / Taken
Manuals
I recently read a FAA legal interpretation regarding the 'required' minimum crew compliment on the Cessna Model 525 series of airplanes.  The interpretation was written in [Month year] in response to several questions by [name removed]; so I will hereinafter refer to it as the '[name removed] interpretation.' The conclusions reached in the [name] interpretation are not widely known among CE525 pilots; so they are still being debated some ten years later. I am submitting this report to NASA ASRS because I believe the reasoning used to arrive at some of its conclusions is flawed and ought to be revisited.According to Type Certificate Data Sheet (TCDS) No. A1W1; the 'minimum crew requirement for all flight operations' in the CE525 is: (see NOTE 5 for cockpit equipment/arrangement restrictions): One pilot (in the left pilot seat) plus additional equipment as specified in the Kinds of Operations Equipment List (KOEL) contained in the Limitations Section of the FAA Approved AFM OR One pilot and one copilotNOTE 5: Approval for operation with a minimum crew of one pilot is based upon the cockpit equipment installation and arrangement evaluated during FAA certification testing. No significant changes may be made to the installed cockpit equipment or arrangement (EFIS; autopilot; avionics; etc.); except as permitted by the approved MMEL; without prior concurrence from the responsible Aircraft Certification Office.  The FAA approved Airplane Flight Manual for the CE525A adds some detail to the minimum crew requirement.MINIMUM CREWExcept where otherwise prescribed by applicable operating limitations;Minimum crew for all operations: 1 Pilot; provided:1. The pilot holds a CE525(S); single pilot; type rating.2. The airplane is equipped for single pilot operation in accordance with the Kinds of Operation Equipment List.3. The pilot occupies the left seat.Or1 Pilot and 1 Copilot; provided:1. The pilot in command holds a CE525(S) or CE525 (second in command required) type rating.According to the Kinds of Operation Equipment List (KOEL) in the CE525A Airplane Flight Manual; 'the following are required when the airplane is operated by a crew of one pilot; per applicable operating rules:'1. Operable FCS-3000 Autopilot.2. Headset with microphone (must be worn).3. FAA Approved Pilot's Abbreviated Checklist; Cessna PN 525ACLANP-04 and 525ACLEAP-04 or later approved revision.4. Provisions for the storage and retention of navigation charts; accessible to the pilot from the pilot station.Stripped down to its most basic language the minimum crew requirement reads as follows:A. One pilotORB. One pilot and one copilotThe conjunction 'or' is essential. Its usage here simply indicates a choice between two equally valid alternatives. One or the other. A or B. B or A. The order of each option is irrelevant. The [name] interpretation; however; requires us to take them in order. More to point; it makes option A controlling by creating a hierarchy of conditional alternatives. In other words; the [name] interpretation says that whenever the governing provisions of choice A have been met; if option A is true; then A controls and option B is automatically invalid. B is only a valid option when A is false.  Using the '[Name] Test' the minimum 'required' crew must always be '1 pilot' whenever the provisions in the Type Certificate Data Sheet (TCDS) for single pilot operation; option A; have been met. The [name] Test seeks to find the absolute minimum crew requirement based solely on the type rating held by the pilot in command although a plain reading of the text does not endorse such a finding. The plain; unambiguous; and quite simple language of the TCDS disproves this analysis. It clearly informs the reader that there are two equally valid ways to meet the minimum crew requirement. Moreover; it tells us that the two options are entirely independent of one another.Taking the first option; the airplane may be flown by one pilot; provided certain additional conditions have been satisfied. By taking the second option; the airplane may also be flown by a crew of two; one pilot and one copilot; but only if one additional condition is satisfied.Moreover; the [name] interpretation yields a result that is contrary to all that we are taught regarding aeronautical decision making (ADM); risk management; and resource management (SPRM/CRM). The mere fact that a given pilot holds a CE525(S); single pilot type rating; does not; and ought never; necessitate that he exercise the privilege. In the immortal words of Dirty Harry; 'A man's got to know his limitations.' For the pilot with the single pilot type rating; the [name] Test effectively denies him the ability to make legitimate judgments as to the wisdom of flying single pilot under a particular set of circumstances. Let us consider a scenario that involves a flight from the ZZZ airport to the ZZZ1 airport in a CJ3. I use this example because I have made this trip single pilot; once; during the day; when the weather at both airports was VMC. I will not do it again; nor would I recommend that it be done. The fact that we may fly the airplane single pilot doesn't mean we ought to and it cannot mean that we must. 14 CFR 91.3 reads in pertinent part that 'The pilot in command of an aircraft is directly responsible for; and is the final authority as to; the operation of that aircraft.' If; after evaluating its complexity; and performing a risk assessment associated with a particular flight; the pilot in command determines a copilot would be beneficial or is necessary in the interest of safety; then that ought to settle the matter. I am also persuaded that the TCDS unambiguously supports this approach in determining the minimum required crew compliment for any particular flight in the CE525. In plain English it tells me the airplane may be flown by a crew of 'one pilot and one copilot.' This is how I; a professional pilot; the person at the sharp end of the system who is responsible for the safe operation of the airplane and the lives of my passengers; interpret the minimum crew requirements of the CE525 TCDS. I suspect I am not alone in that regard. Finally; there is the important consideration of operational control of the aircraft; a subject which was not addressed by the [name] interpretation. Operational control; with respect to a flight; means the exercise of authority over initiating; conducting or terminating a flight. The owner or operator of the airplane; having operational control; has the authority to determine the crew compliment of any and all flights conducted under Part 91. Many of the well-informed owners require a crew of two for every flight to enhance the safety of their flight operations. Unknown to many of them; The [name] Test necessarily strips them of their authority to exercise operational control of their flight operations in the CE525 by unnecessarily downgrading their crew compliment to just one pilot. Although the [name] interpretation says there is nothing that would preclude assigning a copilot whenever the minimum 'required' crew is '1 pilot;' it goes on to say that the pilot is not a 'required pilot flight crewmember.' In other words; he is merely a passenger who is occupying a seat in the cockpit without regard to his credentials as a pilot. This; I think; is absurd. It goes on to say that this passenger may be able to log pilot in command time which only magnifies the level of absurdity. Conflating how things may be done during flight training; to allow a pilot to log pilot in command time; with how they are done by professional flight crews in business aviation is unhelpful; it is irrelevant to the question at hand; and really ought to be avoided. 14 CFR 61.55 prescribes the requirements that must be met by a person serving as SIC 'of an aircraft type certificated for more than one required pilot flight crewmember or in operations requiring a second-in-command pilot flight crewmember.' The CE525 is unambiguously type certificated for 'more than one required pilot flight crewmember' according to the plain language of the TCDS. The fact that it may be flown by only one pilot does not and cannot change this. Since two pilots are expressly required by the TCDS and the AFM as one of two equally valid alternatives to achieve the minimum crew requirement; then the ability of the copilot to log flight time as second in command is without question because he is undoubtedly a required crewmember under the 'one pilot and one copilot' alternative. A disconnect still exists between the FAA and the pilots; owners; and operators of these airplanes. The foregoing analysis bridges that gap without the need to alter or amend the TCDS or the regulations. The TCDS; as it is presently written; provides two equally valid and independent alternatives to achieve the minimum required crew for the CE525 series of airplanes. It has the added benefit of simplifying the answer to the question in that it does not compel the words of the TCDS to perform a feat which is beyond their power to achieve.
CE525C Captain disagrees with FAA interpretation of minimum crew complement for this aircraft.