On 23 February 2011, the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA)
released a Notice of Proposed Amendment (No. 2 of 2011) in relation
to the regulations concerning foreign air operators within the
United Arab Emirates (UAE). The replaces the Notice on the same
topic, issued in February 2010.
The amendments rely upon Article 1 of the Chicago Convention which
sets out that contracting states shall have complete sovereignty
over the airspace above its territory. As such, a foreign air
operator must comply with the Civil Aviation Law and Regulations of
the UAE when operating within its territory.
The proposed amendment to the regulations insist that a foreign air
operator operating into and out of UAE certified aerodromes, will
not only have to comply with the terms and conditions of its
State's Air Operator Certificate (AOC), but shall also have to
obtain a Foreign Air Operator Certificate (FAOC) issued by the GCAA
with conditions and limitations as may be applicable.
The proposed changes to the regulations conform with the
International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) "Manual of
Procedures for Operations, Inspections, Certification and Continued
Surveillance" of Air Operators (DOC 8335) which was developed
in order to allow signatory States to address specific safety
concerns of foreign aircraft operating within their territory and
take any necessary action. The above mentioned manual was developed
as part of the ICAO's strategy to address safety concerns
resulting from operators obtaining flags of convenience from States
with inadequate safety oversight.
The proposed amendment to the UAE regulations 1 also
give the GCAA the authority to board foreign aircraft within the
UAE at any time, without notice, for the purpose of inspecting the
aircraft, its documents and manuals (as provided in the Safety
Assessment of Foreign Aircraft (SAFA) program) to ensure compliance
with the regulations, ICAO Annexes and minimum insurance
requirements.
The GCAA shall only recognize documentation (such as AOCs,
licenses, certificates etc.) from other Contracting States.
Differences filed by contracting states, that do not conform to UAE
law, regulation, operational directives or instructions issued by
the GCAA, will not be accepted. Non contracting States may still
submit an application for a FAOC which will be determined by the
GCAA on a case-by-case basis, presumably upon ensuring its
compatibility with UAE laws, regulations and directives. When
evaluating the applications for a FAOC, the GCAA will, in the case
of negative findings or deficiencies, discuss these with the State
of the Operator seeking resolution prior to granting approval of a
FAOC. In cases of significant negative findings or deficiencies, a
FAOC will be denied.
An FAOC will be valid for two years unless suspended or revoked, or
the Operations Specifications issued by the operator's State
are suspended or revoked. The FCAA can be renewed or amended
provided that the operator meets all of the safety and regulatory
requirements applicable. The GCAA may revoke or suspend the FAOC or
take lesser enforcement action based upon the findings of a SAFA
inspection/investigation.
The proposed regulations also specify that specific permission is
required for the GCAA prior to issuing a FAOC where the operator
proposes to partake in aerial work (such as sightseeing flights,
aerial photography, air shows amongst other non-standard transport
operations), and special operations (such as reduced vertical
separation minimum, performance based navigation, extended range
operations by aero planes with two turbine engines, carriage of
dangerous goods and low visibility takeoff and Category II and
Category III operations).
The draft regulations make it incumbent upon all foreign air
operators to possess a copy of the Aeronautical Information
Publication of the UAE and subscribe to the revision service of the
Aeronautical Information Publication. The nationality and
registration of the aircraft must be displayed in a prominent
position near the main entrance and all foreign operators must
ensure that they have an Aircraft Operator Security Program (AOSP)
which is accepted by the GCAA and carried in the flight deck
library, prior to commencement of operations in the UAE. All
personnel with responsibility for the aircraft must be familiar and
compliant with the requirements of the UAE National Civil Aviation
Security Program. Training programs must also be in place to deal
with actions of unlawful interference and for cabin crew to provide
pre-flight security checks to ensure weapons, explosives or other
dangerous devices are not concealed in the cabin. Commercial air
transport aircraft must have reinforced doors which are capable of
being locked from the flight deck in order to prevent unauthorised
access.
In keeping with the GCAA's broader aviation regulations, the
proposed regulations also state that foreign air operators shall
not carry military weapons or munitions into or out of the UAE or
within the airspace of the UAE, unless prior approval has been
granted by the GCAA and the UAE military/national security
authorities, in such cases detailed declarations of cargo need to
be provided.
The foreign air operator must establish that it has procedures for
reporting incidents and accidents to the GCAA. It must also comply
with the UAE's regulations in respect of reporting requirements
of incidents and accidents occurring within the territory of the
UAE, which includes (where the aircraft has a flight recorder) the
preservation of original recorded data of flight recorders for a
period of sixty days unless otherwise directed by the investigation
authority of the UAE.
Along with the proposed regulation "CAR-OPS 4" the GCAA
has also released Notice of Proposed Amendment No.1 of 2011 on 2
January 2011, proposing to amend CAR Part X to come into line with
ICAO requirements regarding "Safety Management System
Manual" (Doc. 9859). This proposed re-issue of Part X
clarifies the Organisations' 2 Safety Management
System (SMS), providing more detailed guidelines for SMS
application and acceptance, record keeping guidelines and other
minor editorial/structural changes.
The new proposed regulations are a step closer to ensuring that all
operators operating within the UAE territory comply with minimum
safety requirements recognized internationally and comply with the
UAE Civil Aviation Law, UAE regulations (including CAR-OPS 4) and
all operational directives and instructions promulgated by the
GCAA. The proposed regulations provide the GCAA with the authority
to carry out checks on foreign aircraft within its territory, to
ensure suitable safety measures have been implemented in compliance
with the regulations. However, the specifics of the procedures that
will be followed by the GCAA and relevant authorities to enforce
these regulations, and the procedures that will be followed in the
event of a dispute, are yet to be seen.
Footnotes
1 The proposed regulations are to be found under Part IV of the Operational Regulations and will be named "CAR-OPS 4: Commercial and Non Commercial Air Transport Operations by Foreign Air Operators in the United Arab Emirates"
2 "Organisation" means any organisation certified to provide aviation related services.
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