Specialised Operations (aerial work)

The air operations regulation includes pan-European requirements for ‘specialised operations’ where an aircraft is used for specialised activities such as agriculture, construction, photography, surveying, observation and patrol, aerial advertisement. This covers the activities previously known in most countries as ‘aerial work’. The new regulations came into effect in most European states from April 2017.

For non-commercial operators of ‘other than complex’ aircraft the requirements are straightforward and not very different to the previous national rules. For ‘complex aircraft’ and for commercial operations it’s a different story.

• Has a maximum take-off mass of more than 5700kg or

• Has a certified maximum passenger seating configuration of more than 19 or

• Is certificated for a minimum crew of two pilots or

• Has one or more turbojet engine or

• Has two or more turbo-prop engines.

For helicopters:

• Has a maximum take-off mass of more than 3175kg or

• Has a certified maximum passenger seating configuration of more than 19 or

• is certificated for a minimum crew of two pilots.

The Basic Regulation defines commercial operations as "any operation of an aircraft, in return for remuneration or other valuable consideration, which is available to the public or, when not made available to the public, which is performed under a contract between the operator and a customer, where the latter [customer] has no control over the operator".

A simplified version of this is to ask if payment is being made for the flight. If it is, then its a commercial operation. If there is no payment for the specific flight then the operation might be non-commercial even if other payments are made, e.g. an an annual management charge.

If a corporation has a 'Flight Department' as an entity within the corporate structure then there might be a payment from one part of the corporation to the 'Flight Department'. In this case the operator ('Flight Department') is under the control of the customer (corporation) so this would not count as a commercial operation.

Operators of the complex aircraft and commercial specialised operators will need to comply with annex III to the regulation, known as ‘part-ORO’ and annex VIII, ‘part-SPO’. Part-ORO defines management system requirements and part-SPO describes the operating rules. If the operator needs any ‘specific approvals’, e.g. navigation approvals to operate in specific airspace or on particular routes, then this is covered in annex V, ‘part-SPA’. The rules apply regardless of whether the operation is ‘commercial’ or ‘non-commercial’.

The previous requirements for ‘aerial work’ were very different from one state to another so for some operators the new requirements will be a big change, less so for others. The major features of the new regulation for ‘specialised operations’ changes will be

• Introduction of a ‘management system’ (for a brief description requirements see ‘management system requirements’);

• The need for ‘nominated persons’ to be responsible for flight operations, crew training, ground operations and continuing airworthiness;

• The need for an operations manual and minimum equipment list;

• Additional flight crew training requirements including ground, flight and CRM training for all pilots and additional command, route and area training for pilot-in-command;

• New requirements for technical crew training;

• Several changes to operating rules, such as performance calculations and fuel policy.

'High Risk Commercial Specialised Operations' (HRCSO) are operations "carried out over an area where the safety of third parties on the ground is likely to be endangered in the event of an emergency or [...] due to it's specific nature and the local environment in which it is conducted, poses a high risk, in particular to third parties on the ground".

It's up to the Competent Authority of the State where the operation is conducted to decide if a particular operation is considered 'high risk'. Operations involving low-flying are likely to be considered 'high risk'. Some other examples are:

• Powerline or pipeline inspection flights;

• Pollution control (spraying);

• Agricultural flights ('crop-dusting');

• Helicopter slung-load operations ('HESLO');

• Reindeer herding.

Before conducting such flights a specialised operator must obtain 'authorisation' from the Competent Authority and must have a specific standard operating procedure (SOP) in the operations manual. The SOP has to be developed based on an assessment of the risks presented by the proposed operaiton.

If an operator having a 'principal place of business' in one State intends to conduct high risk commercial specialised operations in another State then authorisation will be required from the Competent Auhtorities of both States.

McKechnie Aviation can recommend a software solution to simplify the implementation of the management system requirements.

We can also provide training and consultancy to help you implement the regulations and make them work for your business or work with you to develop an operations manual. Please get in touch to start the conversation.