[Denny of Oakland]

In aviation we often use the term “airworthy”, but I wonder how many aviator’s really know the meaning? There is a new AC 43-18 out as of March 2006 and it defines airworthy as follows:

Airworthy. The term "airworthy" is not defined in Title 49 of the United States Code (49 U.S.C.), or in 14 CFR; however, a clear understanding of its meaning is essential in making an airworthiness determination. Furthermore, the definition of airworthy applies to type-certificated products (aircraft, aircraft engine, or propeller), and parts thereof. Title 49 U.S.C. section 44704(c) and 14 CFR section 21.183(a), (b), and (c) state that the two conditions that must be met for issuance of an airworthiness certificate are:

(1) The product must conform to its type certificate (TC). A product conforms to its TC when its configuration and the components installed are as described in the drawings, specifications, and other data that are part of the TC, which includes any Supplemental Type Certificates (STC), Airworthiness Directives (AD), and field approved alterations incorporated into the product; and
(2) The aircraft (product) must be in a condition for safe operation.

NOTE
If one or more of these conditions are not satisfied, the product would be considered not to be airworthy.

Denny of Oakland