FAA Revises Order 8000.95, Incorporates Changes to DME Qualifications and Responsibilities

The FAA’s Designee Management Policy is housed in Order 8000.95. Specific requirements for designated mechanic examiners (DME)—contained in the Order’s Volume 5, Chapter 2—used to mandate that DME applicants exercise the privileges of a mechanic certificate for five years in accordance with part 65 or when employed by a repair station, air carrier, or part 147 school. Revision C mandates the same five years’ experience, but allows the candidate to mix and match experience to meet the requirement.
 
For example, a certificated mechanic with three years’ experience at a part 145 repair station and two years’ experience at a part 121 air carrier would qualify as a designee under revision C, where previously that candidate would not have been eligible.
 
The change, while subtle, will hopefully present new opportunity for stakeholders seeking to increase local testing capacity.
 
The Order also revised the DME limitations section, striking a provision that prohibited a designee from testing an applicant “outside the authorized geographic area without specific approval.” The revision also removed language requiring authorization from a local office to administer a test not listed on the designees Certificate and Letter of Authority (CLOA), a document issued by the agency.
 
While ATEC applauds the edit, there is no positive net effect if local offices will not agree to add additional locations to a DME’s CLOA, since mechanic examiners are still prohibited from testing at a location if it is not listed on their CLOA.
 
ATEC recommends that a future revision remove specific test locations from the CLOA entirely, putting full responsibility on the DME (with FAA oversight) to ensure required equipment is present no matter the testing location. This approach would align with DPE oversight, as set forth in the Order and Notice 8900.485.
 
That recommendation accompanied several others recently submitted by the council, including suggestions to:

• Alter language to provide flexibility in the event a DME applicant has a short gap in recent experience (most often a few months while transitioning from one job to another);
• Revise language to refer to tie knowledge and skill requirements to those set forth in the mechanic ACS (as opposed to specifically calling out reciprocating and turbine engine experience);
• Consider moving back to the 2-to-1 DME to applicant testing ratio.

 
Members are encouraged to submit additional feedback and suggestions to council Leadership.