Glossary of Aviation Terms | Duty Time

Duty Time | Paramount Business Jets

Duty time is the portion of the day when a crew member is on duty in any capacity. The FAA limits the amount of time that is allowed on duty. No period of the scheduled reserve may exceed 14 hours in any 24-hour period. However, once a flight assignment is received, the time equal to the duty period assignment plus the amount of elapsed scheduled reserve may be extended to 20 hours. In cases where the duty period plus elapsed scheduled reserve exceeds 14 hours, the flight crew member must receive a rest period of at least 12 consecutive hours following the completion of the duty assignment. The FAA has rules for flight attendance duty and rests requirements. Those rules can be found under parts 121 and 135 operations.