Section 121.651

14 CFR Ch. I (1-1-19 Edition)

day and night operations may be reduced to 1-2 mile, if all turns after takeoff and prior to landing, and all flight
beyond one mile from the airport
boundary can be accomplished above or
outside the area of local surface visibility restriction.
(c) The weather minimums in this
section do not apply to the VFR operation of fixed-wing aircraft at any of
the locations where the special weather
minimums of Section 91.157 of this chapter are
not applicable (See part 91, appendix D,
section 3 of this chapter). The basic
VFR weather minimums of Section 91.155 of
this chapter apply at those locations.
[Doc. No. 6258, 29 FR 19222, Dec. 31, 1964, as
amended by Amdt. 121-39, 33 FR 4097, Mar. 2,
1968; Amdt. 121-206, 54 FR 34331, Aug. 18, 1989;
Amdt. 121-226, 56 FR 65663, Dec. 17, 1991]

Section 121.651 Takeoff and landing weather
minimums: IFR: All certificate holders.
(a) Notwithstanding any clearance
from ATC, no pilot may begin a takeoff
in an airplane under IFR when the
weather conditions reported by the
U.S. National Weather Service, a
source approved by that Service, or a
source approved by the Administrator,
are less than those specified in - 
(1) The certificate holder-s operations
specifications; or
(2) Parts 91 and 97 of this chapter, if
the certificate holder-s operations
specifications do not specify takeoff
minimums for the airport.
(b) Except as provided in paragraphs
(d) and (e) of this section, no pilot may
continue an approach past the final approach fix, or where a final approach
fix is not used, begin the final approach
segment of an instrument approach
procedure - 
(1) At any airport, unless the U.S.
National Weather Service, a source approved by that Service, or a source approved by the Administrator, issues a
weather report for that airport; and
(2) At airports within the United
States and its territories or at U.S.
military airports, unless the latest
weather report for that airport issued
by the U.S. National Weather Service,
a source approved by that Service, or a
source approved by the Administrator,
reports the visibility to be equal to or
more than the visibility minimums

prescribed for that procedure. For the
purpose of this section, the term  - U.S.
military airports -  means airports in
foreign countries where flight operations are under the control of U.S.
military authority.
(c) A pilot who has begun the final
approach segment of an instrument approach procedure in accordance with
paragraph (b) of this section, and after
that receives a later weather report indicating below-minimum conditions,
may continue the approach to DA/DH
or MDA. Upon reaching DA/DH or at
MDA, and at any time before the
missed approach point, the pilot may
continue the approach below DA/DH or
MDA if either the requirements of
Section 91.176 of this chapter, or the following
requirements are met:
(1) The aircraft is continuously in a
position from which a descent to a
landing on the intended runway can be
made at a normal rate of descent using
normal maneuvers, and where that descent rate will allow touchdown to
occur within the touchdown zone of the
runway of intended landing;
(2) The flight visibility is not less
than the visibility prescribed in the
standard instrument approach procedure being used;
(3) Except for Category II or Category III approaches where any necessary visual reference requirements
are specified by authorization of the
Administrator, at least one of the following visual references for the intended runway is distinctly visible and
identifiable to the pilot:
(i) The approach light system, except
that the pilot may not descend below
100 feet above the touchdown zone elevation using the approach lights as a
reference unless the red terminating
bars or the red side row bars are also
distinctly visible and identifiable.
(ii) The threshold.
(iii) The threshold markings.
(iv) The threshold lights.
(v) The runway end identifier lights.
(vi) The visual approach slope indicator.
(vii) The touchdown zone or touchdown zone markings.
(viii) The touchdown zone lights.
(ix) The runway or runway markings.
(x) The runway lights; and

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