Regulation Text
(a) No program manager or any other person may permit a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane on a program flight to take off that airplane at a weight that (allowing for normal consumption of fuel and oil in flight to the destination or alternate airport) the weight of the airplane on arrival would exceed the landing weight in the Airplane Flight Manual for the elevation of the destination or alternate airport and the ambient temperature expected at the time of landing.
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, no program manager or any other person may permit a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane on a program flight to take off that airplane unless its weight on arrival, allowing for normal consumption of fuel and oil in flight (in accordance with the landing distance in the Airplane Flight Manual for the elevation of the destination airport and the wind conditions expected there at the time of landing), would allow a full stop landing at the intended destination airport within 60 percent of the effective length of each runway described below from a point 50 feet above the intersection of the obstruction clearance plane and the runway. For the purpose of determining the allowable landing weight at the destination airport, the following is assumed:
(1) The airplane is landed on the most favorable runway and in the most favorable direction, in still air.
(2) The airplane is landed on the most suitable runway considering the probable wind velocity and direction and the ground handling characteristics of that airplane, and considering other conditions such as landing aids and terrain.
(c) A program manager or other person flying a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane on a program flight may permit that airplane to take off at a weight in excess of that allowed by paragraph (b) of this section if all of the following conditions exist:
(1) The operation is conducted in accordance with an approved Destination Airport Analysis in that person's program operating manual that contains the elements listed in § 91.1025(o).
(2) The airplane's weight on arrival, allowing for normal consumption of fuel and oil in flight (in accordance with the landing distance in the Airplane Flight Manual for the elevation of the destination airport and the wind conditions expected there at the time of landing), would allow a full stop landing at the intended destination airport within 80 percent of the effective length of each runway described below from a point 50 feet above the intersection of the obstruction clearance plane and the runway. For the purpose of determining the allowable landing weight at the destination airport, the following is assumed:
(i) The airplane is landed on the most favorable runway and in the most favorable direction, in still air.
(ii) The airplane is landed on the most suitable runway considering the probable wind velocity and direction and the ground handling characteristics of that airplane, and considering other conditions such as landing aids and terrain.
(3) The operation is authorized by management specifications.
(d) No program manager or other person may select an airport as an alternate airport for a turbine engine powered large transport category airplane unless (based on the assumptions in paragraph (b) of this section) that airplane, at the weight expected at the time of arrival, can be brought to a full stop landing within 80 percent of the effective length of the runway from a point 50 feet above the intersection of the obstruction clearance plane and the runway.
(e) Unless, based on a showing of actual operating landing techniques on wet runways, a shorter landing distance (but never less than that required by paragraph (b) or (c) of this section) has been approved for a specific type and model airplane and included in the Airplane Flight Manual, no person may take off a turbojet airplane when the appropriate weather reports or forecasts, or any combination of them, indicate that the runways at the destination or alternate airport may be wet or slippery at the estimated time of arrival unless the effective runway length at the destination airport is at least 115 percent of the runway length required under paragraph (b) or (c) of this section.
Research Notes
Section 91.1037 — Large transport category airplanes: Turbine engine powered; Limitations; Destination and alternate airports — establishes specific runway and operational performance requirements for large transport airplanes operating in fractional programs.
Runway requirements: The flight must be planned and conducted so that the aircraft can land at the destination (or alternate) within 60% of the runway length available, considering altitude, temperature, wind, and runway condition. This is the famous '60% runway rule' for transport airplane operations.
Wet runway considerations: If the runway is forecast to be wet at arrival, the landing distance must include the wet-runway factor (typically 115% of dry landing distance per the AFM).
Why this matters: The runway rule is designed to provide adequate margin for landing performance variability. It captures the operational reality that landing distances published in the AFM are achieved by test pilots in optimal conditions — real-world variability requires margin.
Reference: Part 121 § 121.195 on dispatch limits (parallel rule); AFM Section 5 for specific aircraft landing distances.
Amendment History
Amendment History Coming Soon
Every time this regulation changes, we'll record it here — the date, what was amended, and a plain-English summary of what shifted.