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I'm not an A&P/IA, so I could be wrong about what most IA's would do, faced with an invalid Airworthiness Certificate!

I would say that the Airworthiness Certificate is the most important single document on the aircraft, ahead of any other documentation, and is likely one of the first things checked on any annual inspection. I think very few IA's would be likely to inquire of the FAA about it's validity, though! If there is no Airworthiness Certificate, or it's validity is in question, how could anyone legally release an aircraft for flight? Would any of you IA's sign off an aircraft known to have an invalid Airworthiness Certificate, releasing it for flight at the owner's discretion? After all, it is the pilot who is ultimately responsible for determining airworthiness of the aircraft!

It's important that I say I do not believe that Chris or anyone else knowingly did anything wrong in signing off Chris's plane! This situation could just as easily have happened to me.

Just curious if someone knows this off hand...Is there a way to get a replacement certificate? I'm always paranoid about losing mine. It's so old...it's protected pretty well, but I think it could disintegrate if I looked at it the wrong way. And the sewn plastic it's in is very badly yellowed..getting harder to read.

I searched the FAA website and cannot find the specific regulation, but it is made clear that replacement Airworthiness Certificates can be obtained for lost, damaged, illegible, or stolen (?) Airworthiness Certificates. It appears this process begins with a call to your local FSDO to request the correct form, and may involve a visit by a DAR to verify aircraft type, model, and serial number.

It is possible replacement information is available on the Airworthiness Certificate itself. Mine aren't handy at the moment.

The pilot is the person responsible for determining the airworthiness of the aircraft each time he/she plans to fly.

Oh so true Carl!!
Airplane ownership makes each of us a detective! If we want to know the complete history of our aircraft, we have to dig it up. We may not always be happy with what we find, and sometimes should just let sleeping dogs lie! Ignorance is bliss?
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I must have run through my logbooks a dozen times before I noticed a small entry noting " left wingtip repaired " ??

I haven't seen a direct answer to the question yet so I'll give my two cents worth (as if all of you have been waiting on the edges of your seats for it, right? :-)

The A&P/IA will ultimately be held accountable if he/she signs off an aircraft that is clearly not mechanically fit to fly - especially if mechanical problems result in an accident or incident. However, the one thing that the FAA stresses during our annual IA Refresher seminars is that the mechanic's signature on an annual inspection certifies ONLY that the aircraft was airworthy AS OF THE DAY OF THE SIGNATURE. Any mechanical problem after that date does not automatically mean that the mechanic failed to do a proper inspection. But let's also be realistic here. If an IA signs off an annual on Friday and the plane sheds a wing on Monday due to extensive rust and age cracks in the wing attachment points, the FAA will likely hang the IA out to dry.

That said, the FAA holds the PILOT accountable for an aircraft's fitness to fly prior to each flight. Does this mean that the pilot has to borescope his cylinders prior to each flight to make sure something isn't about to come apart? Of course not. But it does mean that the pilot will be held accountable if the pilot elects to fly an aircraft with an obvious deficiency that likely developed since the last inspection. (And by "obvious" I mean something that would be plainly visible during a preflight; i.e. a caved-in leading edge due to a bird strike.)

And per a question brought up earlier: Is a paperwork inspection part of an annual? Yes. Will a paperwork problem keep an annual from being completed? Not necessarily because the IA is only determining the mechanical fitness of the aircraft for flight, not whether the address on the registration is correct or that the state taxes have been paid. (Nonetheless, the IA is obligated to bring any such paperwork deficiencies to the attention of the owner during the inspection.) However, if the logbooks contained a note that the airworthiness certificate has been revoked or there wasn't one in the airplane during the inspection, I, personally, wouldn't sign it off because I wouldn't want my signature in the logbook of a plane that had questionable legality issues! There is a saying among A&Ps and IAs that we should never put our name in a logbook that we wouldn't want to be shown projected on a screen in a courtroom.

And per another question above, it is a simple matter to take your old, tattered airworthiness certificate to the local FSDO to have an official replacement made. (The regs state that a photocopied certificate is not acceptable; therefore, only an official FAA replacement is legal.) The FAA is aware that these things are usually "displayed" down at our feet where they get brake fluid dripped on them, etc over the years so your FSDO should have no problem issuing you a replacement. Of course, this only applies to currently valid, if only tattered, certificates.

Oh, and by the way, any jerk can record a lien against your plane, house, car, etc at any time and it can be a bear to have it removed. Nonetheless, if challenged, that person will ultimately be required to justify the validity of their lien. Unfortunately, it may cost you some money in legal fees to have a bogus claim removed. (Much like identify theft – a sign of our times!)

Chris, I’m just outside of Houston. E-mail me at HLHartman@houston.rr.com . I can’t promise to fix your problem but maybe I can help.

Harvey Hartman
A&P-IA

Good morning, Harvey. I would like your help. I just read Part 91.409 regarding inspections, and Part 43, Appendix D, "Scope And Detail Of Items (As Applicable To The Particular Aircraft)To Be Included In Annual and 100-Hour Inspections". No where in Appendix D (which lists all the required componenets of an Annual/100 Hour Inspection) does it state or indicate that inspection of documents is included. Can you help us with the part of the Reg's that direct that activity? Perhaps our member who bought an aircraft with a Revoked AC can then have some Reg. authority to go after the IA who previously signed off on the annual. Mike.

In the very first post of this thread Chris stated:


So I don't think anyone that had signed off on any annual knowingly signed off an un-airworthy air plane.

Sandy, When I purchased my 150 2 years ago,the airworthy certificate was tattered and torn. I took it to my local fsdo and they issued me a new one. Took about 10-15 minutes and they did not ask for anything else. Just gave them the old one and they handed me a new one.

Michael,

I'm not at the hangar right now so I don't have access to my "library"; therefore, I am not in a position to cite reg and verse to you. Nonetheless, checking the paperwork (including a review of the logs) has always been a part of an annual inspection. Granted, the IA is more concerned with the mechanical integrity of the aircraft than the operational paperwork; however, he/she is also obligated to bring any discrepancies of such paperwork (i.e. an incorrect address on the registration) to the attention of the owner. Does this mean that we call the FAA to see if the airworthiness certificate on board has been revoked? No. We don't have that kind of time (and you don't want to spend that kind of money) for us to to go into an in-depth check on such things in an annual. If the logs don't contain an entry saying that the airworthiness certificate has been revoked, we take the owner's word that it is still valid. After all, it's in YOUR best interest that your paperwork is straight when a man in a suit walks up to you when you're fueling your plane.

So, does Chris have any recourse against the IAs who have signed off the annuals of his 150 for the past 20 years. No. Even if those IAs were aware that the airworthiness certificate had been revoked, the aircraft could still be annualed. The regs only require that the IA provide a list of discrepancies discovered during the annual to the owner. Chris's only recourse is with the previous owner if that previous owner did not disclose that there was a problem with the airworthiness certificate. (I'm assuming that Chris purchased the airplane with the implication that it was an airworthy airplane.)

Harvey