Acceptable Flight Safety Documents System
Acceptable Flight Safety Documents System
Acceptable Flight Safety Documents System
CIRCULAR
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1.1 PURPOSE
1.3 BACKGROUND
A. There are ICAO Standards that require The Botswana aviation regulations require that these standards
that flight safety documents in the form be met for the operations and maintenance policy/procedure
manuals, including –
of operations and maintenance manuals
Flight operations manual
providing and procedures to the personnel Cabin crew member manual
Flight Dispatch Manual
supporting commercial air transport Station (Ground) Operations Manual
operations and operators of large and turbine Flight Operations Training Programme Manual
Aircraft Type-Specific Operating Manuals
powered aircraft. Maintenance Control Manual
Maintenance Organization Procedures Manual
Maintenance Training Manual
B. The ICAO Standards specify the minimum
contents of those documents and provide
that the documents may be in volumes to
the overall manuals.
C. The ICAO Standards also require that these documents are developed using the
“flight safety documents” concept which requires that these documents are:
Easily accessed and searched by the user through table of content and
indexing
The contents of the manuals that have policy and procedures shared by more
than one technical specialty are integrated (“interfaced”) to ensure that they are
consistent and the procedures do not conflict.
1.4 APPLICABILITY
This advisory circular is applicable to:- Other operators should consider the guidance of this GAC
when developing their operations and maintenance manuals
Advisory Circulars (ACs) are intended to provide advice and guidance to illustrate a means, but not necessarily the only means, of complying with the
regulations, or to explain certain regulatory requirements by providing informative, interpretative and explanatory material.
Where a regulation contains the words “prescribed by the Authority,” the AC may be considered to prescribe a viable method of compliance, but status of
that “prescription” is always “guidance” (never regulation)
The following regulations are directly applicable to the guidance contained in this
advisory circular –
For further information on this topic, operators and individuals are invited to consult the
following publications-
1) Civil Aviation Regulations of Botswana This Advisory circular and copies of these regulations may be
AOC Certification obtained from the Flight Safety Directorate of CAAB
9) Minimum equipment list (MEL). A list which provides for the operation of
aircraft, subject to specified conditions, with particular equipment inoperative,
prepared by an operator in conformity with, or more restrictive than, the MMEL
established for the aircraft type.
B. The following abbreviations and acronyms are used in this advisory circular –
1) AC Advisory Circular
2) AOC Air Operator Certificate
3) AOM1 Aircraft Operating Manual, Part 1
4) AOM2 Aircraft Operating Manual, Part 2
5) AOM3 Aircraft Operating Manual, Part 3
6) CAAB Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana
7) CSM Crew Scheduling Manual
8) CCM Cabin Crew Manual
9) FCOM Flight Crew Operating Manual
10) FOM Flight Operations Manual
11) FOTM Flight Operations Training Manual
12) ICAO International Civil Aviation Organization
13) MCM Maintenance Control Manual
14) MEL Minimum Equipment List
15) MOE Maintenance Organization Exposition Manual
16) MOPM Maintenance Organization’s Procedures Manual
17) MTM Maintenance Training Manual
B. The guidelines are based not only upon scientific research, but also upon
current best industry practices, with an emphasis on a high degree of
operational relevance.
B. Since the availability of this guidance is As a result, documents within a company system also tend to
disjointed across a number of publications, it be disjointed with different authors applying different formats
and standards.
is difficult to apply the best practices as a whole.
Application also varies relative to the individual authors’ perceptions of a good
product.
C. Most organizations fail to apply guidelines across the entire process of operational
documents in the development of the flight safety documents system.
2.2.1 A flight safety documents system should be organized according to criteria which
ensure easy access to information required for flight and ground operations contained in
the various operational documents comprising the system and which facilitate
management of the distribution and revision of operational documents.
1) Time critical information, e.g. information that Time critical information should be placed
early and prominently in the flight safety
can jeopardize the safety of the operation if documents system.
not immediately available; System critical information, time sensitive
2) Time sensitive information, e.g. information that information and frequently used information
should be placed in cards and quick-reference
can affect the level of safety or delay the operation guides.
2.3 DESIGN
A flight safety documents system should ensure This standardization includes a consistent location of specific
types of information, consistent use of units of measurement
standardization across document types, including – and consistent use of codes.
A. A flight safety documents system should include a master index to locate , in a timely
manner, information included in more than one operational document.
A flight safety documents system should comply with the requirements of the operator’s
quality system, if applicable.
2.4.1 Validation
A. The flight safety documents system should be validated before deployment, under
realistic conditions.
B. Validation should involve the critical aspects of the information use, in order to verify
its effectiveness. Interactions among all groups that can occur during operations
should also be included in the validation process
2.4.2 Deployment
B. This monitoring should include a formal feedback system for obtaining input from
operational personnel.
2.4.3 Amendment
A. The operator’s information gathering, review, distribution and revision control system
should be adequate to process information and data obtained from all sources
relevant to the type of operation conducted, including, but not limited to the-
B. Manufacturers provide information for the The operator’s system should be capable of responding to this
operation of specific aircraft that emphasizes information in a timely manner and in co-ordination with the
Flight Safety Inspectorate of the CAAB.
the aircraft systems and procedures under
conditions that may not fully match the requirements
of operators.
The operator’s information gathering, review, distribution and revision control system
should be adequate to process information resulting from changes that originate within
the operator, including –
2) Changes in response to operating experience; Operators should ensure that crew co-ordination philosophy,
policies and procedures are specific to their operation.
A. Operators should have standardized methods As frequent changes diminish the importance of new or
for communicating new information to their modified procedures, it is desirable to minimize changes to the
flight safety documents system
personnel.
B. New information should be reviewed and validated considering its effects on the
entire flight safety documents system.
B. The tracking system should include a procedure to verify that operational personnel
have the most recent updates.
An operator’s flight safety documents system will be reviewed by the Flight Safety
Directorate –