§ 23 — Certification and Balance Sheet Elements

14 CFR § 23

• Title: Title 14: Aeronautics and Space
• Part: Part 241: Uniform System of Accounts and Reports for Large Certificated Air Carriers
• Source: eCFR (current through Mar 10, 2026)

Text

Section 23 Certification and Balance Sheet Elements

Schedule A—Certification

(a) The certification of the BTS Form 41 Report shall be signed by an elective corporate officer, executive, or director. Other persons may be authorized by the carrier to sign the certification provided a written authorization disclosing the individual's name and title is forwarded to the Department of Transportation. Since corrections or revisions of reported data are a part of the BTS Form 41 Report, all correspondence relating to such matters shall be signed only by the person(s) authorized to sign the certification.

(b) The certification of the Form 41 reports, embodied in Schedule A thereof, shall read as follows:

I, the undersigned (Title of officer in charge of accounts) ____ of the (Full name of the reporting company) ___ do certify that this report and all schedules, ADP-media submissions, Passenger Origin-Destination Survey submissions and supporting documents which are submitted herewith or have been submitted heretofore as parts of this report filed for the above indicated period have been prepared under my direction; that I have carefully examined them and declare that they correctly reflect the accounts and records of the company, and to the best of my knowledge and belief are a complete and accurate statement, after adjustments to reflect full accruals, of the operating revenues and expenses, income items, assets, liabilities, capital, retained earnings, and operating statistics for the periods reported in the several schedules, the Schedule T-100 ADP-media submissions, and the Passenger Origin-Destination Survey; that the various items herein reported were determined in accordance with the Uniform System of Accounts and Reports for Large Certificated Air Carriers prescribed by the Department of Transportation; and that the data contained herein are reported on a basis consistent with that of the preceding report except as specifically noted in the financial and statistical statements.

Schedule B-1 Balance Sheet

(a) This schedule shall be filed by all Group II and Group III air carriers and Group I air carriers that have annual operating revenues of $20 million or more.

(b) This schedule shall reflect the balances at the close of business on the last day of each calendar quarter for the overall or system operations of each air carrier in conformance with the provisions of sections 4, 5 and 6.

(c) Individual proprietors or partners shall report the aggregate capital contributed by the proprietor or partners in account 2890 Additional Capital Invested.

Schedule B-1.1—Balance Sheet

(a) This schedule shall be filed semiannually by Group I air carriers with annual operating revenues below $20 million.

(b) Each carrier shall insert in the space provided for “OAG Code” its carrier code as contained in the Official Airlines Guide (OAG). If the OAG does not contain a carrier code for the reporting carrier, a code will be provided by the Office of Airline Information upon request. This code will then be inserted in the space provided for “carrier code.”

(c) This schedule shall show the account balances at the close of business on June 30 or December 31, as applicable, of each semiannual reporting period.

(d) “Current Assets” shall include all resources that may reasonably be expected to be realized in cash or sold or consumed within one year. This group of assets is classified into three basic accounts:

(1) “Cash and Equivalents” shall include cash on hand and on deposit, U.S. Government securities, and other temporary cash investments.

(2) “Notes and Accounts Receivable-Net” shall include general traffic accounts receivable, government receivables, notes and receivables from associated companies, officers, employees and others, and a deduction for a reasonable allowance for bad debts.

(3) “Other Current Assets” shall contain all other current assets not provided for in the above classifications. This account shall include, but is not limited to, short-term prepayments, expendable spare parts, supplies and other inventories of flight equipment replacement parts that are usually replaced rather than repaired, and materials and supplies held in stock, such as fuel and oil, expendable tools, office supplies and food service supplies. Spare parts may be reduced by an allowance for obsolescence to provide for losses in value.

(e) “Property and Equipment” shall be segregated into that which is owned and that which is leased under capital leases. All property and equipment, with the deception of land, shall be reported net of accumulated depreciation or amortization.

(f) “Other Assets” shall included all assets not included in the above categories, such as long-term investments, long-term prepayments, long-term receivables, deferred charges, intangible assets, equipment purchase deposits, and construction work in progress.

(g) “Current Liabilities” shall include all obligations, the liquidation of which is reasonably expected to require the use of existing resources within one year. This group of liabilities is classified into three basic accounts:

(1) “Notes and Accounts Payable” shall include any payments on long-term debt, short-term notes and accounts payable, and accrued expenses that are payable within one year.

(2) “Accrued Taxes” shall include tax liabilities, such as those imposed on income, property and payroll, which are reasonably expected to be liquidated within one year.

(3) “Other Current Liabilities” shall include all current liabilities which are not provided for elsewhere, such as air traffic liabilities for unused transportation sold (includes sales of transportation on both the reporting carrier and other carriers).

(h) “Long-Term Debt” shall include all obligations which are not reasonably expected to be liquidated within one year. Typical examples include bonds payable, long-term notes payable, lease obligations, and pension obligations.

(i) “Other Liabilities” shall include any debts or obligations which are not properly listed in the “Current Liabilities” or “Long-Term Debt” sections.

(j) “Deferred Credits” shall include all credit balances of a general clearing nature, including credits held in suspense pending receipt of further information necessary for final disposition. Included in this account are deferred income taxes and deferred investment tax credits.

(k) “Stockholder's Equity” shall be reported as follows:

(1) “Capital Stock” shall be segregated as between common and preferred. The number of shares outstanding, along with the par or stated value of the stock, shall be reported. In the case of no-par stock without stated value, the full consideration received shall be reported.

(2) “Other Paid-In Capital” shall include the difference between the price at which the capital stock is sold and the par or stated value of the stock.

(3) “Retained Earnings” shall represent the net income or loss from all operations of the corporate entity less dividends.

(4) “Treasury Stock” shall represent the cost of stock issued by the carrier and reacquired by it but not retired or cancelled.

(l) The statement of certification shall be signed by the carrier's chief accounting officer.

(m) All substantive matters that may materially influence interpretations or conclusions in regard to the financial condition or the earnings position of the air carrier which are not clearly identified in the body of the schedule or which represent information that cannot be expressed adequately in monetary terms shall be completely and clearly stated in a note attached to this schedule and cross-referenced to the affected account or accounts.

Schedule B-7 Airframe and Aircraft Engine Acquisitions and Retirements

(a) This schedule shall be filed by all Group II and Group III air carriers.

(b) Data applicable to acquisitions and data applicable to retirements shall be grouped and reported separately. The data reported within each group (acquisitions; retirements) shall be further subgrouped and reported as follows:

(1) Acquisitions: the indicated data shall be reported for each individual airframe, identified by type, model, and design of cabin as to use for passengers exclusively, cargo exclusively, or both passengers and cargo in combination. Data pertaining to aircraft engines shall be reported in aggregate for each type or model; however, leased aircraft engines shall be separately reported under captions entitled: Capital Leases—Aircraft Engines; and Operating Leases—Aircraft Engines. Airframe units leased from others for a period of more than 90 days shall be reported in a separate subsection of this schedule, captioned as follows: Capital Leases—Airframe Units; and Operating Leases—Airframe Units. In addition, a notation shall be made by license number of airframe units of the air carrier returned after lease to others for a period of more than 90 days. Airframe units obtained through interchange lease arrangements shall not be so reported.

(2) Retirements: The indicated data shall be reported for the sale or retirement of each airframe, each type of aircraft engine (stating the number of units retired) and, to the extent retired along with airframes and engines, in aggregates by accounts, operating property and equipment included in accounts 1607 and 1608 and nonoperating property and equipment included in accounts 1707 and 1708. Disposition of properties in accounts 1608 and 1708 not related to airframe and aircraft engine retirements shall be reported in a separate group for each account. Airframe units leased from others for a period of more than 90 days shall be reported, upon return to the lessor, in a separate subsection of this schedule and captioned as follows: Capital Leases—Airframe Units; and Operating Leases—Airframe Units. In addition, a notation shall be made by license number and name of lessee of airframe units leased to others for a period of more than 90 days; moreover, airframe units leased to others under sales-type or direct financing leases shall be separately captioned and reported on this schedule. Airframe units leased under interchange arrangements shall not be so reported. Aircraft engines leased from others for a period of more than 90 days shall be reported, upon return to the lessor, in a separate subsection of this schedule and captioned as follows: Capital Leases—Aircraft Engines; and Operating Leases—Aircraft Engines. In addition, a notation shall be made by model number, number of units, and name of lessee of aircraft engines leased to others for a period of more than 90 days; moreover, aircraft engines leased to others under sales-type or direct financing leases shall be separately captioned and reported on this schedule. Aircraft engines leased under interchange arrangements shall not be so reported.

(c) All dates shall indicate the day, the month and the year; shall be provided on a unit basis for airframes only, and, shall be reported for each aircraft engine group by date of transaction.

(d) Column 1, “Year of First Delivery—Airframe,” shall reflect, for each reported airframe, the year that the airframe was first delivered by its manufacturer.

(e) Column 2, “Airframe Manufacturer's Serial Number,” shall reflect the serial number assigned to each reported airframe by its manufacturer.

(f) Column 4, “Acquisitions or Retirements,” shall be used to indicate, for each item entered, whether it represents an acquisition or retirement. This shall be indicated by inserting in Column 4 an “A” for acquisition or an “R” for retirement.

(g) Column 8, “Maximum Seating Capacity,” shall reflect the number of passenger seats installed in each airframe acquired. When airframes are designed for multiple adjustable seating configurations, the maximum number of seats for which designed shall be reported. When the seating configuration of airframes is modified subsequent to original acquisition, the revised passenger capacity of each airfame shall be reported in the quarter in which modified and referenced to identify original capacity reported.

(h) Column 9, “Cost,” shall reflect the book cost of reported airframe and aircraft engine acquisitions and retirements.

(i) Column 10, “Amortization/Depreciated Cost,” shall reflect the book cost, less amortization or depreciation expense, for airframes and aircraft engines that have been retired.

(j) Column 11, “Realization,” shall reflect the proceeds from the disposition of airframes and aircraft engines, including any insurance proceeds.

(k) Column 12, “Acquired From/Disposition,” shall reflect: (1) for acquisitions: the name of the person or organization from which airframes and aircraft engines are acquired and (2) for dispositions (retirements): the name of the person or organization to which airframes and aircraft engines are sold or a notation as to the nature of the retirement and the account to which any depreciated cost has been charged, if not sold. Items included in accounts 1607, 1608, 1707, and 1708, sold as a part of an airframe or aircraft sales transaction, shall also be identified by the name of the buyer. Other sales of items included in these accounts shall be reported in a separate group in aggregate for each property account affected.

Schedule B-12—Statement of Cash Flows

(a) This Schedule shall be filed quarterly by all Group II and Group III air carriers and Group I air carriers that have annual operating revenues of $20 million or more.

(b) This schedule shall be filed for the overall or system operations of the air carrier.

(c) The statement of cash flows shall separately disclose the amount of net cash provided or used during the reporting period from the carrier's operating activities, investing activities and financing activities. The effect on cash and cash equivalents of the total amount of net cash provided or used during the quarter from each of the above activities shall be clearly disclosed so as to reconcile beginning and ending cash and cash equivalents.

(d) Carriers may use either the direct or indirect method of reporting cash flows. Under either method, the reporting of cash flows from investing and financing activities will remain the same. However, the reporting of cash flows from operating activities does differ between the two methods.

(e) For carriers electing to use the direct method, cash flows from operating activities are reported as gross amounts of the principal components of cash receipts and cash payments from operating activities, such as cash received from passengers and shippers, cash paid to suppliers, and cash paid to employees. Each carrier using the direct method shall provide as part of its statement of cash flows, a separate schedule that reconciles net income (as reported on Schedule P-1.2 in Account 9899) to cash flow from operating activities.

(f) For carriers electing to use the indirect method, cash flows from operating activities shall reflect net income (as reported on Schedule P-1.2 in Account 9899) along with the adjustments necessary to reconcile net income (Account 9899) to net cash for the period (Net Cash Provided or Used By Operating Activities).

(g) Regardless of the method used, the statement of cash flows shall reflect the amount of net cash flow provided or used by operating activities during the reporting period.

(h) The balance of “Cash and Cash Equivalents,” at the beginning and ending of the quarterly period covered by the report, should equal the sum of Accounts 1010, “Cash,” and 1100, “Short-term Investments,” as reported on the immediately preceding and current quarterly Schedule B-1, “Balance Sheet.” If the sum of these two accounts does not equal the total “Cash and Cash Equivalents” reported on the statement of cash flows, then a footnote explaining the difference shall be provided as part of the statement of cash flows.

(i) Carriers shall submit Schedule B-12 in a format specified in accounting and reporting directives issued by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics' Director of Airline Information.

Schedule B-43—Inventory of Airframes and Aircraft Engines

(a) This schedule shall be filed by all Group I, Group II and Group III air carriers.

(b) The indicated data shall be reported for each individual airframe, identified by type, model and design of cabin (main deck) as to use for passengers exclusively, cargo exclusively, or both passengers and cargo in combination. Type and model refers to aircraft models such as B-707-100, B-707-200, DC-10-40, Beech-18, Piper PA-32, etc. Aircraft type designations are prescribed in Accounting and Reporting Directive No. 178, “List of Aircraft Type Numeric Codes.” Copies of this directive and subsequent updates to the list of aircraft type codes are available from the Department's Office of Airline Information. Airframes that are authorized for operation over water under FAA regulation FAR 121 shall be so indicated by asterisk.

(c) Data pertaining to aircraft engines shall be reported on a group basis by type of engine and by type of aircraft to which related.

(d) Data in this schedule shall be grouped and subtotaled as data pertaining to airframes and data pertaining to aircraft engines. Data pertaining to nonoperating airframes and aircraft engines shall be reported in a group below the data for operating equipment. Data pertaining to airframes and aircraft engines obtained under operating and capital leases shall be reported, by type of lease, in a separately captioned grouping below nonoperating airframes and aircraft engines and subgrouped within those groups according to operating and nonoperating equipment.

(e) Column 1, “Year of First Delivery—Airframe,” shall reflect, for each reported airframe, the year that the airframe was first delivered by its manufacturer.

(f) Column 2, “Airframe Manufacturer's Serial Number,” shall reflect the serial number assigned to each reported airframe by its manufacturer.

(g) Data pertaining to airframes and aircraft engines obtained under operating leases shall be listed in Columns 1 through 9; the cost of improvements to equipment under operating leases shall be reported in Columns 10 through 12.

(h) Column 9, “Available Capacity (Weight),” shall reflect, for each reported aircraft type, the available capacity (stated in pounds) that is used in computing the available ton-miles reported on Schedules T-100, T-1, and T-2.

(i) Column 10, “Acquired Cost or Capitalized Value,” shall include (1) the acquisition cost of owned airframes and aircraft engines; (2) the total capitalized cost of obtaining airframes and engines under capital leases; and (3) the cost of improvements to airframes and engines obtained under operating leases.

(j) Column 11, “Allowance for Depreciation or Amortization,” shall include (1) the accumulations of all provisions for losses due to use and obsolescence that are applicable to owned airframes and aircraft engines, (2) the amount of amortization recorded for amortizing the value of airframes and engines obtained under capital leases, and (3) the amount of amortization recorded for amortizing the value of improvements to airframes and aircraft engines obtained under operating leases.

(k) Column 12, “Depreciated Cost or Amortized Value,” shall be calculated as either (1) Acquired Cost (Column 10) less the Allowance for Depreciation (Column 11) or (2) Capitalized Value (Column 10) less Amortization (Column 11).

(l) Column 13, “Estimated Residual Value,” shall state, in dollars, the residual value assigned to owned and capital-leased airframes and aircraft engines, including any overhaul value not subject to depreciation.

(m) Column 14, “Estimated Depreciable or Amortizable Life (Months),” shall state the estimated depreciable or amortizable life from the date of acquisition of each airframe and each group of aircraft engines.

[ER-755, 37 FR 19726, Sept. 21, 1972] Editorial Note:For Federal Register citations affecting part 241, section 23, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.