Operator Supervision and Certification

Rules for the Certification of an Air Operator

Commercial Air Transportation (CAT) can only be undertaken by an approved air operator and in accordance with the certificate issued by the Authority of the state. This certificate is known as an Air Operator Certificate (AOC). The AOC will be issued by the Authority of the state in which the operation has its principal place of business. In the case of British Airways, this would the CAA of the UK as the principal place of business of BA is London.

Applicant Requirements

An applicant for an AOC:

•Must not already hold an AOC issued by another Authority unless specifically approved by the Authorities concerned.

•Must register the aeroplanes to be used in the operation in the state where the AOC will be issued. Under certain circumstances (with mutual agreement of the Authorities concerned) aeroplanes registered in another state may be used. The aeroplanes used by SAS are registered variously in Norway, Sweden or Denmark.

•Must satisfy the Authority of the state issuing the AOC that the operator is able to conduct safe operations.

The applicant operator must also satisfy the Authority that the organization of the operation and the management structure of the company are both suitable and properly matched to the scale (size) and scope (types of operations) of the undertaking. The operator is also required to show the approving Authority that procedures for the supervision of operations have been defined.

Aeroplane Maintenance

The operator must ensure that the aeroplanes used in the operation are airworthy and are maintained in accordance with the manufacturers (approved) maintenance programme. If the operator elects to carry out the maintenance ‘in-house’, the operator must be approved in accordance with EASA part 145 for the approval of maintenance operations. The operator may, however, elect to have the aeroplanes maintained by a third party organization in which case, the operator is required to ensure that the maintenance organization employed is EASA part 145 approved. Where the organization carries out maintenance, the operator is required to ensure that access to the aeroplanes and the maintenance organization is granted as required, and that access is also granted to any third party maintenance organization employed by the operator.

Variation, Revocation or Suspension of an AOC

At the discretion of the Authority, an AOC may be varied, revoked or suspended if the Authority ceases to be satisfied that the operator can continue to operate safe operations. In order to be satisfied, the Authority carries out periodic audits of the operation which will include inspection and assessment of the operator’s own internal audit system, and inspection of the financial records of the operation. For continuation of the approval, the primary responsibility of the operator is to ensure that the conditions of issue of the AOC are complied with, and any limitations or restrictions imposed by the Authority (which must be stated on the certificate) are also respected.

Operator Supervision and Certification 3

Certification and Supervision Operator 3

Key Post Holders within the Operation

With regard to the issue and maintenance of the AOC the most important person in the operation is the ‘Accountable Manager.’ Effectively, this person, nominated by the operator and acceptable to the Authority, is responsible to the Authority for compliance with all the requirements of the Authority for the AOC. Specifically, the Accountable Manager is responsible for ensuring that all the operations and maintenance activities can be financed and carried out to the standard required by the Authority.

Other post holders appointed by the operator, required and acceptable to the Authority are:

•Flight Operations manager.

•Maintenance System manager.

•Crew Training manager.

•Ground Operations manager.

A single person may hold one or more of the above posts (if acceptable to the Authority), however, for operators with 21 or more full time employees a minimum of two persons are required to fill the four positions. For operators with less than 20 full time employees one or more of the above posts may be filled by the Accountable Manager, if this arrangement is acceptable to the Authority.

Main Operating Base

The Authority will require full operational support facilities to be established and maintained at the main operating base, appropriate to the area and type of operations conducted. For example, the main operating base of British Airways is London Heathrow but due to the extensive nature of the operation, many company/operation activities are by necessity, duplicated at other aerodromes around the world.

Aeroplanes

The aeroplanes used by an operator must have a standard certificate of airworthiness (CofA) issued in accordance with ICAO Annex 8 by a JAA member state. A CofA issued by a JAA member state other than the state of the operator will be accepted if issued in accordance with CS-21 (Certification).

Other Considerations

In addition to the above, before the granting or variation of an AOC the operator will be required to satisfy the Authority that:

•The organization/operation can be established and maintained to an acceptable (to the Authority) standard.

•A quality system (as defined in CS-OPS 1.035) is established and maintained.

•The defined training programme(s) are complied with.

•The aircraft maintenance requirements are complied with.