Aviation Empowerment Act

The Aviation Empowerment Act clarifies that private pilots sharing flight costs with passengers (like splitting fuel expenses) are not considered commercial carriers, easing regulatory burdens for small-scale flight-sharing. It defines "personal operators" as private pilots using small aircraft (8 seats or fewer) with a private pilot certificate, ensuring their operations don’t require commercial airline certifications. The bill mandates the Transportation Secretary to update regulations within 60 days to explicitly exempt these flight-sharing arrangements from commercial aviation rules. This directly affects private pilots and passengers involved in cost-sharing flights, simplifying participation in informal air travel without new regulatory hurdles.