Airplane evacuation capability

This regulation ensures that emergency evacuation equipment is ready before flight operations begin. If your aircraft has automatically deployable evacuation equipment (like emergency slides that deploy automatically when doors open), that equipment must be armed and ready before the aircraft moves on the ground, takes off, or lands with passengers aboard.

Additionally, whenever passengers are on board before the aircraft starts moving, at least one floor-level exit must be available for people to get out—either through normal boarding doors or emergency exits. This means you can't have all floor-level exits blocked or inoperative while passengers are boarding.

The practical impact: Flight crews must arm evacuation slides before taxi and ensure at least one usable floor-level exit remains available during the entire boarding process. This ensures passengers always have a way out if an emergency occurs, even before the flight begins.

*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.*