Advisory Circulars 101

What is an advisory circular?

Have you ever seen “FAA compliant” in one of our product descriptions and wondered what that meant? The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is charged with the safety of the aviation field; in fact, its mission is to “provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world”. This responsibility is a huge undertaking, and, understandably, comes with many rules and regulations that those working in the aviation industry must follow. These regulations, while comprehensive, are often long and full of technical jargon that might not be easily or quickly interpreted. This is where advisory circulars (AC) come in!?

While not explanations of most regulations specifically, an AC is a publication offered by the FAA to “inform the aviation public in a systematic way of non-regulatory material”. They do, however, frequently reference or clarify regulations, and can be as short as simply referencing a regulation, or longer and detail how to transition from one regulation to another, etc, so a more accurate description might be that they are published to guide compliance with various aspects of any given regulation.?

These advisory circulars are published in series according to the topic and are searchable on the FAA website. While not technically binding, they often give enough detail to be considered as such and they (circulars) usually describe actions or offer advice that the FAA expects to be implemented or followed… thus inferring that they should be!

full PDF of example here

Why does the FAA publish advisory circulars?

The FAA issues advisory circulars for many reasons: standardization, resolving misunderstandings, and helping the industry and FAA effectively implement a regulation among them. Because humans run the industry, there are many ways to interpret regulations and many ways to implement a specific operation… This can lead to confusion and differences in opinion on what a regulation might actually be. An advisory circular can offer specific guidelines for the aviation industry when the regulations or requirements might otherwise come across as vague or confusing, thus giving guidance for all on how to comply with the regulation in question.

Advisory circulars – keeping airports safe

While the aviation public in general can access and receive ACs, they are most commonly distributed to pilots, mechanics, airport managers, and manufacturers (OTW is part of that category!). The subjects generally include flight schools, aircraft, airports, pilots, operations, or maintenance, so distributing necessary information (in an easy-to-understand format) to those in such sectors is incredibly important. Not every AC applies to every sector, so the intended audience is specified in each circular!??

The AC referenced above is found in the “Airports” category, and, even more specifically, refers to airport regulations when any given airport is under construction. Thanks to an easy-to-understand AC, our low-profile barricades are carefully designed to meet this certification!?

OTW is an expert in safety in both the construction and aviation industries, and we manufacture excellent safety products that comply with relevant FAA regulations and advisory circulars. We are proud to be a part of keeping airports safe… and compliant!