Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

4 Answers

(Regulations) Owner Oil Change stupid question.

Asked by: 3539 views FAA Regulations

Its commonly "known" that aircraft owners are allowed to change their own oil. FAR 43.3 makes it clear that owners can perform "preventative maintenance", and just in case you aren't sure what is included under that umbrella, Appendix A contains a specific list of preventative maintenance tasks the owner may perform. An "oil change" seems to be absent from this list. there is a line which states that fuel and oil strainers and filters may be changed, but am I missing something, or is there not a SPECIFIC regulation that clearly states that ENGINE OIL itself may be changed by an aircraft owner?

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

4 Answers

  1. Best Answer


    Mark Kolber on Aug 06, 2019

    Combine items 6 and 23 on the list.

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. Thomas Vaillencourt on Aug 06, 2019

    Thank you Mark! You are exactly the person I would have liked to answer this question! In retrospect that makes sense, I just figured that (6) was reserved for lubrication on the airframe such as aileron or flap hinges or control horns or push-tubes, rigging pulleys etc. I assumed operating fluids or engine oil would have its own mention. Thank you again!

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  3. KDS on Aug 06, 2019

    Not part of your question, but just a reminder to check FAR 43.9(a).

    You would be amazed how many owner maintained aircraft haven’t had an oil change in years if the logbook is to be believed.

    +2 Votes Thumb up 2 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  4. Mark Kolber on Aug 07, 2019

    The other thing to remember about preventative maintenance is that the Appendix is not exclusive despite language in the Appendix to the contrary. The Chief Counsel has said “As with the other paragraphs of Appendix A (i.e., on major repairs and major alterations), the lists are better viewed as examples of the tasks in each category-they cannot be considered all- inclusive.”
    https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/agc/practice_areas/regulations/interpretations/Data/interps/2009/Coleal%20-%20(2009)%20Legal%20Interpretation.pdf

    I don’t think it’s particularly helpful at the edges because it’s so vague, but when puts the list together it would be hard to come to the conclusion an oil change is not covered.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.