Certificate holder's duty to maintain operations specifications

This regulation requires certificate holders (airlines and commercial operators) to maintain their operations specifications—the FAA-approved document detailing what operations they're authorized to conduct and how.

The operator must keep a complete set of ops specs at their main base of operations. They must also include relevant portions in their company manuals, clearly marking these excerpts as ops specs and stating that compliance is mandatory. This ensures pilots and other personnel can easily reference the specific limitations and authorizations that apply to their operations.

Most importantly, the operator must keep all employees informed about the parts of the ops specs that affect their specific jobs. This means pilots need to know their aircraft authorizations and operational limitations, maintenance personnel need to know their requirements, and so on. The regulation ensures everyone working for the operator understands the rules governing their particular duties.

*This is a plain-English summary for study only. The official 14 CFR text on this page is controlling — always read the current regulation and consult a CFI.*