Frequently asked questions

Increased recurring extended rest by changing base: can 72 hours also be considered days off?

    CS FTL.1.200 (b)
    Regulations do not prevent the recurrent extended rest period of 72 hours per base change from also being considered for the minimum number of days off.

In the case of pilots in Temporary Employment Regulation (ERTE) status: is it possible to schedule a flight after leaving the ERTE situation and without taking into account the minimum rest before signing?

    No non-compliance is considered as long as the operator has communicated the schedule to the crew members in sufficient time to enable them to plan their rest (ORO.FTL.110a).

    If the crew member is aware of the schedule of their flights (flight activity) or of any other task assigned by the operator (activity, imaginary, bookings...) at least 14 days in advance, they can plan their pre-activity rest.

    Please note that:

    • Before a flight duty period there must be a rest period (based on 12 hours). ORO.FTL.235 (a)
    • the definition of rest period is: “uninterrupted and defined period of time during which the crew member is relieved of any service, the provision of imaginary at the airport, and the reservation”. ORO.FTL.105 (21)
    • The definition of service (or activity) is “any task performed by a crew member for the operator, including flight duty, administrative work, giving or receiving training and verification, positioning, and some elements of the imaginary” ORO.FTL.105 (10)
If, as a commercial pilot, I am close to the limits of activity laid down in the current regulations, I notify the company of this fact and the company, in breach of the regulations, continues to programme me knowing that I will pass from activity.

    Point CAT.GEN.MPA.100 (b)(4) on crew responsibilities provides that the crew member “shall respect all flight and service time limitations (FTL) and rest requirements applicable to their activities”.

If I am an operator, how will I be informed of the discrepancies found in the Rampa SAFA/SACA Inspectorate?

    The operator or contact person will receive notification via email about the opening of the file. The subsequent management of the file requires registration in the database created and maintained for this purpose by EASA.

    The SAFA/SACA files are communicated from the EASA database, in accordance with the requirement set out in Commission Regulation (EU) No 965/2012, ARO.RAMP.145.

Which operators are further inspected?

    The objectives are determined using a simple algorithm that takes into account the company’s situation from different sources of information and its number of operations during the preceding period. Moreover, since it is a programme coordinated by EASA, in the case of non-Spanish operators, account is also taken of the number of operations in other territories and the possibility of being inspected by different states.

Which operators are inspected, only Spanish Operators?

    Any aircraft taking off or landing at a Spanish airport/airfield, regardless of nationality, aircraft type or type of operation, may be inspected by AESA, directly or through public bodies or state-owned commercial companies, which have the status of their own instrumental means and technical service of the General State Administration and its bodies and bodies governed by public law, which are entrusted with carrying out the physical actions of the aeronautical inspection of a technical or specialised nature, in accordance with Article 3. Scope of the Aeronautical Inspection Regulation (RIA), Royal Decree 98/2009.

    The difference between one type or another of ramp inspection lies in the type of regulation that applies to the inspection. Therefore, in the case of aircraft of an operator or private individual registered in the Spanish Register of Registration or not registered but carrying out a commercial activity, an SANA inspection is carried out with its applicable regulations (see question 2). For aircraft of non-EU operators or individuals, i.e. third countries outside the EU, it will be an SAFA inspection and for aircraft belonging to Community operators/particulars with non-Spanish registration will be an SACA inspection. In the case of SANA inspections, you can consult the applicable regulations in the corresponding FAQ.

Who is informed of the outcome of the inspection?

    Ramp inspection results are recorded by the Inspection Test Inspection Team (POI). The usual practice is that the Commander/Pilot of the newly inspected aircraft command, or the representative of the designated carrier, be informed of the results in the event that the flight crew has been allowed to leave the aircraft, giving him a copy of the POI.

    Subsequently, with the upload of the file in the centralised EASA database, the operator or the inspected individual will be formally informed of the conduct of the inspection and of the results of the inspection.

    In addition, the results of categories 2 and 3 are communicated to the Aeronautical Authority responsible for the safety oversight of the aircraft or its Operator for information and to the Operator, with the request that it take appropriate measures to avoid recurrence.

    In order to achieve the objectives of the EU Rampa Inspection Programme in the best possible way, close cooperation with the Aviation Authorities of all States whose operators and aircraft have been subject to ramp inspections is essential. As part of their responsibility for the safety oversight of their national operators in accordance with relevant international safety standards, these Aviation Authorities are requested to ensure the proper implementation of corrective measures in order to address reported discrepancies.

How Commander/Pilot to Command can I refuse to conduct the Inspectorate?

    The operator/individual is obliged to cooperate and facilitate the inspection tasks, and in particular for the Rampa Inspectorate, in accordance with the European regulations laid down in Article ORO.GEN.140 of Regulation (EU) No 965/2012.

    Therefore, in general, the inspection may not be refused except in exceptional circumstances or for reasons which are sufficiently justified and justified by the inspected person and which the inspectors consider and consider as such.

    In the absence of such causes, this shall be deemed to be an obstruction of the inspection work, in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 965/2012, ORO.GEN.140, Regulation (EU) No 452/2014, as developed in EASA’s Rampa Inspection Manual (RIM), Chapter 5, in the SAFA/SACA Inspections cases, with the corresponding consequences for the inspected person.

How can an Operator manage its SAFA/SACA files with AESA?

    All management is done telematically through the EASA database. The operator or owner of the aircraft must be registered in the system and contact persons will be established who will receive the notifications in their email to access the management of their files, as explained and reflected in question 19.

How are discrepancies and findings detected during the Rampa inspection categorised?

    Non-compliances detected during a ramp inspection are called findings or findings. The absolute number of inspection findings represents an important result of the inspection process that provides valuable information about the aircraft concerned or its responsible operator. On the other hand, this should be carefully taken into account in relation to the “severity” of the findings. To that end, three categories of findings or findings have been defined as indicated in Regulation (EU) No 965/2012, ARO.RAMP.130:

    finding “Category 1”: it is referred to as minor finding, and includes any non-compliance with applicable requirements or the terms of a certificate that does not have a significant impact on safety;
    B) Finding “Category 2”: is a significant finding, covering any non-compliance with applicable requirements or the terms of a certificate that has a significant impact on safety, and (
    c) Finding “Category 3”: a major finding, in this case any significant non-compliance with the applicable requirements or the terms of a certificate that has a significant impact on safety.

    The terms “minor”, “significant” and “greater” refer to the level of influence on security. The main purpose of the categorisation of findings is to classify compliance with a standard and the severity of non-compliance with this standard.

    Inspections and categories of findings are recorded in EASA’s centralised database for SAFA and SACA inspections.

    When considering the findings established during a ramp inspection, Category 2 (significant) and Category 3 (important) findings require the greatest attention when it comes to the need for rectification.