AAAE CERTIFIED MEMBER (CM)
DESIGNATION TRAINING
MANUAL: COMPLETE 200 Q&AS
AAAE Certified Member (CM) Designation Training & Study
Guide (Questions 1–50)
1. Under the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airport
categorization system, what defines a Commercial Service
Airport?
A. An airport that hosts at least 500 annual general aviation
operations.
B. A public-use airport that enplanes at least 2,500
passengers annually and receives scheduled passenger
service.
C. An airport with a runway length exceeding 10,000 feet and an
operating air traffic control tower.
D. Any military airfield that permits limited civilian cargo
operations.
Rationale: To be classified as a Commercial Service airport under
the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS), an
airport must be public-use, receive scheduled passenger service,
and log at least 2,500 annual enplanements.
2. Within the NPIAS framework, how many annual enplanements
must a commercial service airport achieve to be designated as a
Primary Airport?
A. 2,500
B. 10,000
C. 100,000
D. 1,000,000
Rationale: Primary airports are a subset of commercial service
airports that enplane 10,000 or more passengers per calendar
year, making them eligible for specific federal entitlement funding
categories.
,3. Commercial service primary hubs are categorized by the
percentage of total national enplanements they handle. What
constitutes a Large Hub?
A. An airport enplaning at least 0.25% but less than 1.0% of all
domestic passengers.
B. A primary airport that enplanes 1.0% or more of the
total annual U.S. passenger enplanements.
C. An airport that processes more than 500,000 metric tons of
international air cargo.
D. Any airport serving as a primary international gateway with
more than two parallel runways.
Rationale: The FAA defines a Large Hub as a primary airport
that accounts for 1.0% or more of the total nationwide passenger
enplanements in the United States.
4. Which type of airport ownership structure is characterized by a
legally independent, public corporate entity governed by an
appointed board, designed to isolate airport operations from local
political cycles?
A. Municipal Government Ownership.
B. Port Authority Ownership.
C. Airport Authority Ownership.
D. Private Equity Consortia Ownership.
Rationale: Airport Authorities are single-purpose, legally
independent public entities created by state or local legislation.
They are managed by an appointed board, allowing the airport to
operate more like a business and insulating it from municipal
political shifts.
5. What is the fundamental legal limitation placed on an airport
sponsor that accepts federal Airport Improvement Program
(AIP) grants regarding the use of airport-generated revenue?
A. Revenue can be diverted to fund local municipal school districts
if the airport reports a net profit.
B. All airport-generated revenue must be expended for
the capital or operating costs of the airport, the local
airport system, or facilities directly related to air
transportation.
C. Up to 25% of parking revenue can be legally transferred to the
city’s general fund to build public parks.
D. Airport revenue must be used exclusively to subsidize ticket
, prices for low-income local travelers.
Rationale: Federal Grant Assurance 25 (Revenue Diversion)
strictly mandates that all revenues generated by a public-use
airport must remain within the airport system to ensure it
remains self-sustaining.
6. Public-use airports accepting federal grants must comply with
specific rules known as Grant Assurances. What is the primary
purpose of Grant Assurance 22, Economic
Nondiscrimination?
A. It forces the airport to charge identical landing fees to
commercial airlines and small flight schools.
B. It requires the airport sponsor to make the airport
available for public use on fair and reasonable terms
without unjust discrimination.
C. It mandates that the airport hire a minimum percentage of local,
minority-owned contractors for construction.
D. It prevents the airport from charging fuel taxes on corporate jet
operators.
Rationale: Grant Assurance 22 requires the airport sponsor to
provide reasonable, non-discriminatory access to all qualified
aeronautical users, blocking exclusive rights and monopolistic
practices.
7. Under Grant Assurance 23, Exclusive Rights, when is an airport
sponsor legally permitted to serve as the sole provider of an
aeronautical service, such as aircraft fueling?
A. Never; exclusive rights are prohibited under all circumstances
without exception.
B. Only if the airport sponsor elects to provide the service
itself using its own personnel and equipment, known as
proprietary exclusivity.
C. If a private Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) pays a premium fee to
secure a 50-year monopolistic contract.
D. If the airport enplanes fewer than 100,000 passengers per
calendar year.
Rationale: While an airport cannot grant an exclusive right to
any private entity, the sponsor can choose to be the sole provider
of a service (such as fueling or maintenance) using its own
municipal or authority staff.
, 8. Which federal regulation governs the formal certification and
operational safety standards of airports serving scheduled air
carrier operations with aircraft configured for more than 9
passenger seats?
A. 14 CFR Part 139
B. 14 CFR Part 150
C. 49 CFR Part 1542
D. 14 CFR Part 77
Rationale: 14 CFR Part 139 dictates the administrative,
operational, safety, and maintenance criteria that commercial
service airports must fulfill to maintain an Airport Operating
Certificate (AOC).
9. Under 14 CFR Part 139, what operational document must a
certified airport maintain and enforce to outline exact safety
compliance procedures and emergency response protocols?
A. The Airport Master Plan Layout.
B. The Airport Certification Manual (ACM).
C. The Transportation Security Amended Program (ASP).
D. The Strategic Business Plan Manifest.
Rationale: The ACM is a legally binding document approved by
the FAA that describes how a specific Part 139 airport complies
with federal safety regulations, acting as the day-to-day
operational rulebook.
10. What are the four distinct phases of the Airport Master
Plan process?
A. Pre-design, Schematic, Construction Documents, and Closeout.
B. Pre-planning, Existing Conditions & Forecasting,
Facility Requirements & Alternatives, and the Airport
Layout Plan (ALP).
C. Marketing, Leasing, Financing, and Operational Evaluation.
D. Categorical Exclusion, Environmental Assessment, Finding of
No Significant Impact, and Record of Decision.
Rationale: A standard Master Plan systematically moves from
scoping/pre-planning through data gathering/forecasting,
defining structural deficiencies/alternatives, and culminates in a
formalized ALP.
11. What is the Airport Layout Plan (ALP), and what is its legal
significance for an airport sponsor?
A. A non-binding artistic rendering of future terminal concepts
DESIGNATION TRAINING
MANUAL: COMPLETE 200 Q&AS
AAAE Certified Member (CM) Designation Training & Study
Guide (Questions 1–50)
1. Under the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airport
categorization system, what defines a Commercial Service
Airport?
A. An airport that hosts at least 500 annual general aviation
operations.
B. A public-use airport that enplanes at least 2,500
passengers annually and receives scheduled passenger
service.
C. An airport with a runway length exceeding 10,000 feet and an
operating air traffic control tower.
D. Any military airfield that permits limited civilian cargo
operations.
Rationale: To be classified as a Commercial Service airport under
the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS), an
airport must be public-use, receive scheduled passenger service,
and log at least 2,500 annual enplanements.
2. Within the NPIAS framework, how many annual enplanements
must a commercial service airport achieve to be designated as a
Primary Airport?
A. 2,500
B. 10,000
C. 100,000
D. 1,000,000
Rationale: Primary airports are a subset of commercial service
airports that enplane 10,000 or more passengers per calendar
year, making them eligible for specific federal entitlement funding
categories.
,3. Commercial service primary hubs are categorized by the
percentage of total national enplanements they handle. What
constitutes a Large Hub?
A. An airport enplaning at least 0.25% but less than 1.0% of all
domestic passengers.
B. A primary airport that enplanes 1.0% or more of the
total annual U.S. passenger enplanements.
C. An airport that processes more than 500,000 metric tons of
international air cargo.
D. Any airport serving as a primary international gateway with
more than two parallel runways.
Rationale: The FAA defines a Large Hub as a primary airport
that accounts for 1.0% or more of the total nationwide passenger
enplanements in the United States.
4. Which type of airport ownership structure is characterized by a
legally independent, public corporate entity governed by an
appointed board, designed to isolate airport operations from local
political cycles?
A. Municipal Government Ownership.
B. Port Authority Ownership.
C. Airport Authority Ownership.
D. Private Equity Consortia Ownership.
Rationale: Airport Authorities are single-purpose, legally
independent public entities created by state or local legislation.
They are managed by an appointed board, allowing the airport to
operate more like a business and insulating it from municipal
political shifts.
5. What is the fundamental legal limitation placed on an airport
sponsor that accepts federal Airport Improvement Program
(AIP) grants regarding the use of airport-generated revenue?
A. Revenue can be diverted to fund local municipal school districts
if the airport reports a net profit.
B. All airport-generated revenue must be expended for
the capital or operating costs of the airport, the local
airport system, or facilities directly related to air
transportation.
C. Up to 25% of parking revenue can be legally transferred to the
city’s general fund to build public parks.
D. Airport revenue must be used exclusively to subsidize ticket
, prices for low-income local travelers.
Rationale: Federal Grant Assurance 25 (Revenue Diversion)
strictly mandates that all revenues generated by a public-use
airport must remain within the airport system to ensure it
remains self-sustaining.
6. Public-use airports accepting federal grants must comply with
specific rules known as Grant Assurances. What is the primary
purpose of Grant Assurance 22, Economic
Nondiscrimination?
A. It forces the airport to charge identical landing fees to
commercial airlines and small flight schools.
B. It requires the airport sponsor to make the airport
available for public use on fair and reasonable terms
without unjust discrimination.
C. It mandates that the airport hire a minimum percentage of local,
minority-owned contractors for construction.
D. It prevents the airport from charging fuel taxes on corporate jet
operators.
Rationale: Grant Assurance 22 requires the airport sponsor to
provide reasonable, non-discriminatory access to all qualified
aeronautical users, blocking exclusive rights and monopolistic
practices.
7. Under Grant Assurance 23, Exclusive Rights, when is an airport
sponsor legally permitted to serve as the sole provider of an
aeronautical service, such as aircraft fueling?
A. Never; exclusive rights are prohibited under all circumstances
without exception.
B. Only if the airport sponsor elects to provide the service
itself using its own personnel and equipment, known as
proprietary exclusivity.
C. If a private Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) pays a premium fee to
secure a 50-year monopolistic contract.
D. If the airport enplanes fewer than 100,000 passengers per
calendar year.
Rationale: While an airport cannot grant an exclusive right to
any private entity, the sponsor can choose to be the sole provider
of a service (such as fueling or maintenance) using its own
municipal or authority staff.
, 8. Which federal regulation governs the formal certification and
operational safety standards of airports serving scheduled air
carrier operations with aircraft configured for more than 9
passenger seats?
A. 14 CFR Part 139
B. 14 CFR Part 150
C. 49 CFR Part 1542
D. 14 CFR Part 77
Rationale: 14 CFR Part 139 dictates the administrative,
operational, safety, and maintenance criteria that commercial
service airports must fulfill to maintain an Airport Operating
Certificate (AOC).
9. Under 14 CFR Part 139, what operational document must a
certified airport maintain and enforce to outline exact safety
compliance procedures and emergency response protocols?
A. The Airport Master Plan Layout.
B. The Airport Certification Manual (ACM).
C. The Transportation Security Amended Program (ASP).
D. The Strategic Business Plan Manifest.
Rationale: The ACM is a legally binding document approved by
the FAA that describes how a specific Part 139 airport complies
with federal safety regulations, acting as the day-to-day
operational rulebook.
10. What are the four distinct phases of the Airport Master
Plan process?
A. Pre-design, Schematic, Construction Documents, and Closeout.
B. Pre-planning, Existing Conditions & Forecasting,
Facility Requirements & Alternatives, and the Airport
Layout Plan (ALP).
C. Marketing, Leasing, Financing, and Operational Evaluation.
D. Categorical Exclusion, Environmental Assessment, Finding of
No Significant Impact, and Record of Decision.
Rationale: A standard Master Plan systematically moves from
scoping/pre-planning through data gathering/forecasting,
defining structural deficiencies/alternatives, and culminates in a
formalized ALP.
11. What is the Airport Layout Plan (ALP), and what is its legal
significance for an airport sponsor?
A. A non-binding artistic rendering of future terminal concepts
