EXEMPTION FROM SUBSECTION 605.85(1) OF THE CANADIAN AVIATION REGULATIONS

Pursuant to subsection 5.9(2) of the Aeronautics Act, and after taking into account that the exemption is in the public interest and is not likely to adversely affect aviation safety, I hereby exempt Canadian air operators and their authorized personnel from the requirements of subsection 605.85(1) of the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs), pertaining only to the signing of the maintenance release pursuant to section 571.10, subject to the following conditions.

Subsection 605.85(1) of the CARs states “Subject to subsections (2) and (3), no person shall conduct a take-off in an aircraft, or permit a take-off to be conducted in an aircraft that is in the legal custody and control of the person, where that aircraft has undergone maintenance, unless the maintenance has been certified by the signing of a maintenance release pursuant to section 571.10.”

PURPOSE

The purpose of this exemption is to allow Canadian air operators and their authorized personnel to carry out and record, without requiring a maintenance release, the Torque Event (TE) inspection task of the main rotor blades as elementary work described in MD Helicopters  Inc. (MDHI) Basic Handbook of Maintenance Instructions CSP-HMI-2 section 62-10-00 referenced in the following documents:

  1. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2005-21-02;
  2. MDHI. Basic Handbook of Maintenance Instructions - Servicing and Maintenance Manual CSP-HMI-2, Section 04-00-00; and
  3. Helicopter Technology Corporation (HTC) Maintenance Manual HTCM-001Chapter 4.

APPLICATION

This exemption applies to Canadian air operators and authorized personnel when carrying out Torque Event (TE) inspection task of main rotor blades as elementary work on the following MD Helicopters Inc. models:

  1. 369D/E/F/FF;
  2. 500N; and
  3. 600N.

CONDITIONS

This exemption is subject to the following conditions:

  1. The air operator Maintenance Control Manual (MCM) shall contain policies and procedures that ensure quality training is carried out.  The training shall emphasize the risks of not doing the Torque Event (TE) inspections correctly and include a method for feedback from the trainees on their perception of their competence.
  2. The training shall include practical exercises using visual and physical aids such as photographs, to detect specific defects. The training shall also include regulatory training related to the performance and recording of maintenance and elementary work, as referenced in sections 571.02 and 571.03 of the CARs.
  3. The air operator MCM shall specify the prior qualifications (e.g. unlicensed aircraft maintenance technician or helicopter pilot) for personnel who will be authorized to carry out the TE inspection, and the procedures for the issuance or cancellation of authorization documents. A list of authorized air operator personnel shall be incorporated by reference in the MCM.
  4. Trainees shall demonstrate their competency in using visual aids and conducting the TE inspection correctly prior to being authorized to perform the inspection on their own. At the completion of training, records shall be kept as per the requirement set out in section 706.13 of the CARs.
  5. An air operator shall not authorize a person to carry out and record a TE inspection unless conditions 1 to 4 have been met.
  6. Where an appropriately rated and authorized Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) is unavailable to complete the TE inspection task and sign a maintenance release, the TE inspection task shall only be completed by a person authorized by the air operator as set out in the MCM.
  7. An appropriately rated and authorized AME shall complete the TE inspection during the most frequent inspection contained in the air operator’s aircraft maintenance schedule approved in accordance with section 605.86 of the CARs.
  8. Main rotor blade painting as recommended in MDHI CSP-HMI-2 section 20-30-00 shall be complied with during the first scheduled inspection described in condition 7 of this exemption.
  9. Defects found during any TE inspection shall be reported in accordance with Part 5 subpart 21 Division IX - Service Difficulty Reporting (SDR) of the CARs.
  10. Prior to exercising the privileges of this exemption, the air operator shall so inform the Minister in writing by sending a notification to the nearest Transport Canada Centre.
  11. A copy of this exemption shall be carried on board the helicopter upon which an inspection task of the main rotor blades has been carried out.

VALIDITY

This exemption remains in effect until the earliest of the following:

  1. February 11, 2021 at 23:59 (EST);
  2. the date on which any condition set out in this exemption is breached; or
  3. the date on which this exemption is cancelled in writing by the Minister where he is of the opinion that it is no longer in the public interest or is likely to adversely affect aviation safety.

DATED at Ottawa, Ontario, this 15th day of February, 2016 on behalf of the Minister of Transport.

“Original signed by”

Aaron McCrorie
Director General, Aviation Safety Regulatory Framework
Civil Aviation

Date de modification :