FAA-OST RELEASES FINAL RULE ON PORTABLE OXYGEN CONCENTRATORS (POC)
June 30, 2016
On May 24, 2016 the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published a final rule on passenger-supplied Portable Oxygen Concentrators (POC) on board aircraft. Under the final rule, POC manufacturers must follow standards set forth to test and label POCs they intend to market for air travel. The final rule differs from the previous Notice of Proposed Rule Making released in 2014 in three aspects: (1) it replaces the proposed prescriptive requirement for radio frequency (RF) emissions evaluation with a performance-based standard that allows POC manufacturers to determine the means by which to assess whether a POC will radiate RF emissions that interfere with aircraft systems; (2) it modifies label requirements to include indication that the POC conforms with FAA acceptance criteria; and (3) it retains the Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) No. 106 prohibition against exit row seating for passengers using a POC and the SFAR No. 106 requirements pertaining to POC stowage. The final rule also amends the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) rules on the nondiscriminatory treatment of passengers with disabilities in air travel (Part 382) to reflect the changes to the POC rule and to ensure that all POCs meeting FAA’s safety requirements are accepted for air travel.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6665).