飞行员操作飞行手册Pilot Operational Flying Manual

帅哥

introduction and the paperwork, so

you will probably never meet the

seller. A dealer, on the other hand,

will have bought the aircraft into

stock and will be the owner. There is

also the private advertiser, who is

just selling his own ship, or maybe a

bank or financial institution who are

repossession agents.

Once you let it be known that you're

after an aircraft of any description,

you will get every man and his dog

ringing you up with what they have

to offer. On the one hand, this could

save you a lot of work, but it could

also be a pain in the neck, so here's

another tip; get the registration

number of what they're trying to

sell—it could be the same machine

several times over. If they won't give

it to you, then treat them with the

appropriate suspicion. They will

have registered with the seller and

try and get a cut of the deal as an

"introduction fee". Nice work if you

can get it.

Like with a car, look beneath the

shiny paint. There's nothing wrong

with sprucing something up for sale,

it's common practice, but make a

thorough examination anyway. Do

not do what one buyer of my

acquaintance did—looked at a

helicopter and took it away to lunch,

leaving the engineer that he'd taken

along (at great expense) alone to

look at the books which were

written in German! Yes, he bought

the wrong aircraft; and deserved it! It

looked nice, though.

The problem now is finding a

trustworthy dealer, but could you do

your own purchasing? You've

already done most of the work by

establishing the tasks you need to

perform and what you can afford.

Yet another tip is, don't believe

brochures or salesmen. Take time to

talk to pilots and engineers who

actually work with the type of

machine you're after—you may find

that what you're looking at is OK

until the turbocharger goes, which

then takes at least three days to

repair because it's hidden behind the

engine which has to come out

completely. On the other hand,

another ship could have similar work

done in less than half a day and

doesn't go wrong in the first place

because the turbocharger is not in

such a stupid place. Similarly, a

particular helicopter could be

cheaper to run on paper, but its

shorter range on full tanks means

that you're paying out for landing

fees and dead flying more often,

thereby bringing the total operating

cost nearly equal to something more

comfortable with more endurance.

You need to take account of the data

for propeller, rotor or engine Times

Between Overhaul (TBO), the Mean

Times Between Failures (MTBF) on

avionics equipment, amongst other

things. Certainly, buy from a

company that can provide support,

particularly an engineering-based

Setting Up A Company 295

one, and have an independent survey

by a competent engineer.

Aircraft Valuation

帅哥

Actually, when it was built is largely

irrelevant; what counts is the time

remaining on its components, since

they must all be inspected and

replaced at specified times. Equally

important is documentation

supporting it—it can take longer to

verify paperwork than physically

survey the aircraft. In this respect, be

especially careful when buying from

the USA. There are many apparently

"cheap" aircraft available, mostly

confiscated from smugglers or drug

dealers—with no acceptable

documentation, their only value is

scrap. Also, the regulations for

privately owned or agricultural

aircraft are less stringent than in

Europe, and you may need

expensive engineering and/or major

components replaced before they

will get a C of A. So:

There is no such thing as a cheap

aircraft.

Especially, there is no such thing

as a cheap helicopter.

Which applies to maintenance as

well; if you save money one year,

expect to spend it the next.

Remember that as well as shipping

charges, you may have local taxes

and costs of dismantling, packing

and erecting when you get it to

wherever you are. Shipping is

normally All Charges Forward and you

will cover insurance.

Depreciation

Because inspection, overhaul and

replacement can ensure that a 10

year old aircraft can be as efficient as

a new machine, you can't apply this

in the same way as a car, or other

industrial machinery. However,

accountants like it, and it's useful for

calculating operating costs, so take

the purchase price and give it a onethird residual value, then write down

the difference over 10 years. Market

prices, though, may vary this. If you

have a new engine, or something

equally expensive, the machine’s

value could exceed the new cost.

Direct Operating Costs

All manufacturers publish estimates

of the cost of operating their

machines, in amounts per flying

hour, which naturally bear very little

relation to reality.

· Fuel & Oil. The shorter the

average sector length, the higher

the average fuel consumption.

Fuel flow for budgetary purposes

tends to be within 5% of max

cruise fuel flow for fixed wing

aircraft and 10% for helicopters.

For oil, only bother with

consumption; scheduled oil

changes come under

maintenance.

· Scheduled Maintenance (normal

inspection cycles, divided by the

hours between them). This is

sometimes the second largest

direct operating cost after fuel

and varies with the flying. Much

depends on the cycles incurred

by an airframe or engine rather

than the hours flown. Wear and

tear is felt primarily on takeoffs

and landings, when engines run

at high power settings and

landing-gear and flaps are cycled.

帅哥

Some jet engines (particularly

helicopter ones) are therefore

restricted to the number of start

296 Operational Flying

cycles in addition to flying hours,

because of the enormous spread

of temperatures incurred in the

start sequence. Thus, if your

aircraft does relatively short trips

your maintenance costs per hour

will increase as a result. Whether

maintenance is major or minor

usually depends on the cost of

the item, and the cut-off point is

usually left to Company

discretion. For avionics, 4% of

retail price should reserved for

maintenance (assuming 400

hours per year). Add ½% for

every 200 additional hours flown,

or subtract if need be.

· Unscheduled Maintenance, like snags

and defects, special inspections

required by manufactures and

authorities.

· Aircraft Overhaul—removing,

overhauling, and replacing

components at proper intervals,

divided by the interval hours.

· Engine Overhaul—as above.

· Lifed Items—replacing when time

expired, divided by Life Hours.

· Engine Lifed Items—as above.

· Labour Rates.

· Fuel costs.

Fixed Costs

These cost the same per year

regardless of the work, so the more

you do, the less per hour they

become.

· Purchase/debt servicing, described

more fully elsewhere. The figures

for your annual budget would be

the amount of the purchase price

paid in the current financial year,

whether borrowed or not.

· Trade in/Resale. This (hopefully)

is a plus item, just resale income

for aircraft offered in partexchange for your new one.

However, the real value of this

will be degraded by inflation.

· Depreciation

· Hull Insurance—covers accidental

damage to the aircraft, providing

for repair or replacement at the

insurer’s option. If the policy is

agreed or stated value, the insurers

must pay a predetermined

amount in case of total loss and

cannot offer a substitute or

replacement hull. This is normal,

if the hull value is reasonable.

Otherwise, you will get the

market value. There is usually no

legal requirement for hull

insurance (but there will be for

liability; see below), but whoever

finances your purchase will likely

insist on it.

The cost is expressed as a

percentage of aircraft value, and

varies according to:

· Aircraft type

· Company claims record

· Type of operations

· Area of operations

· Market competition.

· Liability Insurance—The Insurers

agree to indemnify and defend

帅哥

you in respect of against claims

made you by third parties and

arising out of bodily injury or

property damage caused by the

aircraft, or articles falling from it.

Setting Up A Company 297

· Passenger and Passenger Baggage

Legal Liability—Covers claims

made against you by passengers

for accidents resulting in death

or injury as well as lost or

damaged baggage—the policy

cover is geared to the Warsaw

System limits of liability (the

Warsaw Convention dates from

1929 and limits the carrier’s

liability). The actual liability

depends on the countries of

departure and destination and

whether or not they are

signatories to the Convention, or

one or more of the various

amending Conventions or

Protocols that have been

introduced since 1929.

Cost varies according to:

· Aircraft type

· Number of crew and

passengers

· Area of operations

· Company claims record

· Amount of insurance cover

· Market competition

In UK, as in some other

European countries, Air

Transport Operators are now

required to adopt a limit of SDR

(Special Drawing Rights) 100,000

in respect of any one person. In

return for the benefit of limited

liability, the onus of proof of

negligence is transferred from

the injured party to the airline,

who must prove that there was

no negligence if a claim is to be

avoided. To benefit from this,

certain requirements must be

observed by the carrier. As far as

insurance is concerned, the most

important of these is the

Passenger Ticket, which must

conform to a laid down standard

and be issued correctly to each

passenger.

The Carrier’s liability in respect

of Passenger Baggage is also

covered by the Warsaw System.

Liability is calculated by weight.

Insurers normally impose

deductibles in respect of baggage

losses which effectively excludes

coverage for losses falling within

the limit. The insurance will

therefore only pay for and

defend claims which are likely to

exceed the limit of liability. It is

therefore necessary for the

Carrier to have a system for

dealing with these small claims.

· Other Insurance, which may

include:

· Cargo Legal Liability—An

airline carrying cargo of any

description has a legal liability

to the consignor for damage

to the goods in transit, which

liability is also subject to the

Warsaw convention; the limit

is calculated by weight alone.

· War and Allied Perils, which

帅哥

includes riot, malicious

damage and hijacking

(excluded by Hull and

Liability Policies).

· Deductible—a compulsory

"Deductible" or "Excess" is

standard, and agreed by

Insurers worldwide, ranging

from $25,000 for a small

turboprop to $1,000,000 for a

747. This can also be insured

against.

298 Operational Flying

· Aero Engine Breakdown—for

repairs following an electrical

or mechanical failure in the

engine. Most operators

include scheduled and

unscheduled engine

maintenance in their

operating costs, which can be

reduced or eliminated with

this type of insurance (does

not cover ingestion or

external impact damage

normally covered under the

Hull or Deductible Policy).

· Loss of Use/Delay Insurance—

for strikes, riots or industrial

action, adverse weather

conditions, crew incapacity,

accidental damage,

mechanical breakdown, type

grounding by manufacturer

or government agencies and

political risks.

· Total Loss Only—completely

separate to Hull All Risks,

designed to pay an agreed

amount on top of the Hull

Agreed value in the event of

a Total Loss of an aircraft.

· This aspect is often

overlooked, but when you're

leasing, the owner gets all the

money if something happens,

and you've got to fork out to

get another.

· Spares—spare parts holdings

and engines can be insured

while in store or in transit.

· Breach of Warranty. Under the

terms of lease or finance, it's

common for the Lessor or

finance house to seek to

protect their asset, over

which they have no

operational control, by way

of Breach of Warranty

Insurance which must be

purchased by the operators.

This insurance indemnifies

the owner to the extent of his

financial interest in the event

of a breach of insurance

conditions resulting in the

denial of a claim.

Coverage is arranged as an

extension to Hull insurance.

Note: Policies above are

known as contracts of indemnity,

meaning the insurer must

restore your position as

before the loss. Watch out

for clauses that void your

coverage if rules are broken.

· Salaries. If you're an owner-pilot,

you coul ignore this, but you may

have management, operations,

mechanics and pilots to pay.

帅哥

· Storage. Outdoor storage is less

expensive than hangarage, but

storms and damage do happen,

as do vandals. The average

annual costs of hangarage to be

allowed should be roughly one

per cent of the equipped price of

the new cost of your aircraft.

· Training, such as anti-terrorist

training.

· Services. Manuals, trade

subscriptions, airways manuals

and maps. Association

Memberships.

· Tax. Best left to the experts, this,

but there are ways of obtaining

an asset on a mortgage offsetting

Corporation Tax.

Setting Up A Company 299

A corporate machine will average

200-300 hours per year, so the total

of Fixed Costs divided by that will

give you an amount per hour.

Incidental Costs

Hotels, taxis, landing, hangarage,

handling, tips, oxygen, uniforms,

cleaning, office costs (computers,

telephone, fax) and freelancers. 25%

of the sum of Direct Operating

Costs, Fixed Costs and Crew Costs

is normally added on top as a

contribution to running the business.

The total will give the Cost Per

Flying Hour. Divide that by seats

available to get the Cost Per Seat.

Further dividing Seat Cost by the

speed will give you the Cost per

Seat/Mile.

Obtaining An AOC

Now if you still think you'll be some

sort of success, you will need your

Air Operator's Certificate, which is

required by all operators engaged in

Commercial Air Transport (but

watch for crop spraying, where a

similar scheme is in force). It's

applied for on a form together with

a CLM (Cheque for Lots of Money)

made payable to the CAA, which

will cover all types you wish to

include initially. However,

subsequent additions will cost the

same again, so if you know you'll be

adding a new machine later, it makes

sense to try and include it from the

start. Unfortunately, this will cause

its own trouble in the form of

additions to the Ops Manual and

further training costs, as pilots must

be qualified on the new type as well.

Beware of having too many types in

different performance groups.

You can only hold one AOC in one

State, and your office and aircraft

must also be registered there.

The application form itself is quite

easy to fill out. If the Operator is an

incorporated body, you will need to

know the directors' names, addresses

and nationalities, and, if not, the

same information with regard to the

partners. If there is a trading name

separate from the Company name,

that will need to be given as well.

This bit is quite important, because

the AOC is issued to the parent

organisation trading as whatever they

care to call themselves. The CAA

will want to know exactly which

trading names are to be adopted.

Otherwise, the only other thing that

帅哥

may need a bit of research is the

Maintenance Schedule reference for

each aircraft that you propose to use.

This will be found in the aircraft log

book, and will look something like

CAA/LAMS/FW/1978 Issue 2, for

an aircraft below 2730 kg (check

with maintenance, it's easier).

The application form and the fee

should be sent to the Flight

Operations Inspectorate at the CAA

in Gatport Airwick at least six weeks

before operations are planned to

commence. Together with all that,

you will need a copy of your

proposed Operations Manual.........

The Operations Manual (again)

Although you don't have to send the

Ops Manual with the application

form, things will happen

considerably quicker if you do,

because the CAA reserve themselves

a minimum of six weeks to read it. If

it's ready when you apply, some

parts of the aforementioned form

300 Operational Flying

need not be filled in; you can just

refer them to the Manual.

Production of the Operations

Manual, which is your way of

indicating to the CAA how you

intend to operate, is (to use the

CAA's words) 'an onerous task'. The

quick way is to buy one ready made

(from me, if you have my phone

number), but there is a pitfall in that,

just because a manual has been

approved once, there is no guarantee

it will be so again (and that goes for

the contents of this book, although

the relevant parts have been in an

Ops Manual at some stage or other).

This is because each company is

assigned a different Inspector who

will have risen through the Industry

in his own way, having different

experiences to fall back on. His job

is to advise you in the light of that

experience (more than being a

'policeman', although that is another

function) and assist in the formation

of the Company. What one

Inspector thinks is OK is not

necessarily what another will accept

(they use that word rather than

"approve", as the latter has legal

implications). A typical Inspector

will have several companies under

his wing, and will therefore have to

guard against giving away

confidential information (the CAA

must not be seen to give commercial

advantage). He will normally be the

only routine contact a company will

have with the CAA, and his main

function when you're up and

running is to inspect, report and

make recommendations on your

performance. On routine visits to

the Company, he is empowered to

examine any documents or records

which must be kept (by law),

discussing and resolving any

problems that may have arisen

during your operations. Your AOC

is reviewed annually by the Flight

Operations Inspectorate on the basis

of his reports and is non-expiring,

provided that the annual charges are

paid up to date (based on the

throughput of traffic that a

Company has) and you keep your

帅哥

nose clean.

Only specific parts of the Manual are

actually 'approved', namely certain

documentation (such as the Tech

Log) and the Flight Time and Duty

Hours Limitations Schemes. All the

rest is an indication to the Authority

of how your Company intends to

operate, which naturally varies

according to circumstances, and they

grant or withhold an AOC taking

due note of the contents. Despite

the apparent flexibility, however,

there are definite indications as to

what is and isn't allowed, most of it

in JAR Ops 1 or 3 and the ANO.

The CAA requires a copy of your

Ops Manual for its own records and

for instant reference in case of

queries. As it is the primary

indication (to them) of your

operating standards, it makes sense

to produce the Manual in the best

possible way. This is psychological—

if the Flight Ops Department see a

well-presented manual on the

shelves, then they're likely to be

more convinced that the rest of the

Company is likewise (well, wouldn't

you?). So you are doing yourself

down if you skimp on the Ops

Manual, no matter how boring it

may be to produce it, but that's been

discussed already.

Setting Up A Company 301

Back To The AOC

Having submitted the application

form and the manual, you sit and

wait for the CAA to respond, during

which time the Chief Inspector

allocates whichever one he thinks

will suit you. Your Inspector then

reads everything and produces a long

list of things that need comment.

They're quite efficient, so any delays

are usually down to you, but they

still have to fit you in around their

other duties. For instance, there's no

system of handovers—if your

Inspector goes on leave for 3 weeks,

there's no procedure for another to

take over. The same goes when your

man is detached to the outback

somewhere. In some cases, the grant

of an AOC may take as much as five

months through no fault of yours.

It's no good delivering a finished

Manual as fast as you can if there's

nobody in the office to read it!

There is naturally a conflict of

interests here, in that an aircraft

owner is forking out money while an

aircraft is sitting idle, so obviously

he's keen to get on. He's also paying

you for what he thinks is idleness

(generally, if you're not flying, you're

thought not to be working, which

you and I know is wrong). Your job

here is to (tactfully) slow him down

and speed the CAA up, but they've

been there well before you have and

know the problems. Also, they do

like an empty desk, so the sooner

they get you off the ground, the

quicker they can relax.

While the Manual is being read you

can get your pilots checked out by

your Training Captains and the

system streamlined for the proving

ride. For setting out the office, etc.,

see Running Things later.

Eventually you will get a standard

帅哥

letter from the Approvals Section of

the Airworthiness Division

requesting proposed Technical Log

and Deferred Defect forms (don't

forget the instructions). They will

also need to see the Maintenance

Schedule for the nominated aircraft

and the contract between your

Company and the Maintenance

Contractor. The Maintenance

Schedule is produced separately for

each machine by the Maintenance

Contractor (several aircraft can share

the same schedule).

Also appearing through the post will

be the books mentioned earlier, so

you can write your Ops Manual. The

ANO will also be needed, but you

don't get that free.

Your Inspector meanwhile will visit

your proposed offices to ensure that

they meet certain requirements (such

as the Chief Pilot having his own

office and being able to see the

aircraft operate, the numbers of

clerical staff and machinery relative

to Management). They not be on an

airport, but being away from one

does cause problems, certainly for

keeping track of fuel states (so you

can calculate your payload instantly

if you get a quick charter).

Hopefully by then he will have

produced some proposed

amendments to the Manual, but it

could actually be read through for

the first time in front of you just

before lunch on the first visit. When

he is happy with that, and your

offices, he will want a proving ride

(with a line pilot) on your aircraft.

The ride itself is not a check of the

pilot's ability, at least not in the sense

of a Base or Proficiency Check, but

302 Operational Flying

more a check of the Company

procedures, which is why it should

be done with a line pilot, to see if the

system works. It's meant to be a

simulation of a complete line

operation and will be about an hour

or so long. The Inspector will

pretend to be a passenger and will

expect to be weighed, briefed and

otherwise treated exactly as per the

Operations Manual. Almost the first

thing he will make a beeline for on

arrival at the office is the ANO to

see if it's up to date! The same goes

for maps and other documents. You

don't have to have full copies of the

Air Pilot or NOTAMs, provided you

can prove you have adequate access

to any flight planning information

you may need, including weather.

After the ride, assuming all is well,

the AOC should be granted in due

course, possibly after a few more

changes to the Manual. The issue of

the Certificate signifies only that you

are considered 'competent to secure

the safe operation' of your aircraft—

it doesn't relieve you from any other

legal responsibilities that you may

have, whatever they are.

Once you have your certificate, your

Inspector will pop round within a

month and thereafter about every six

months or so to ensure the

continued competence of the

Company, including any outstations

or agents that you may employ.

帅哥

It's worth checking if you need an

Air Transport Licence as well.

Running Things

Aircraft must achieve high utilisation

for maximum cost-effectiveness—an

aircraft on the ground is not earning

money. While corporate flight

departments do not make a profit as

such, the comments here apply

equally to them, as efficiency still

helps the bottom line. Also, if you

are operating an aircraft by yourself

and have no Commercial Air

Transport experience to fall back on,

you ought to realise that a good

office environment back at base is

very important to the overall

operation. The following pages will

give you some idea of what's

required to run things properly, with

a little information on the corporate

scene that should be read as well

because it's all relevant (and it saves

me typing it twice).

The various functions to be filled

include planning, day-to-day

operation and administration. The

bigger the company, the larger the

departments handling these will be.

You may find you need none of

these, but it’s still worth knowing

what they get up to. Planning covers

everything from long term

management decisions through

scheduling flights, minimising dead

flying and taking care of

maintenance, although some of this

could be regarded as day-to-day

operations. Administration is the only

part likely to be really separate, but

even here there is likely to be a lot of

blurring between departments as

staff wear several hats.

In practice, you will find all the

above activities (with the exception

of Top Management matters) more

than adequately looked after by the

Operations Department in the

average small company, and this is

what we will mainly be dealing with

in this chapter.

Setting Up A Company 303

The Operations Department

Operations is in immediate control

of all day-to-day business, the focal

point of its activities being the Ops

room where, depending on the

extent of your activities, will be

found the Operations Staff,

secretaries and the rest (if they can

all fit in).

The role of the Ops Room

(including staff) is to ensure that the

right aircraft is in the right place at

the right time and that everyone

concerned is aware of what is

happening, being pre-warned of any

problems which may be expected. If

this cannot be achieved for any

reason, Operations must initiate

remedial action and minimise

inconvenience to passengers, who

are (after all) the source of the

Company's income.

One of the ways Operations keep

track of events is with Movements

Boards (boards are quite useful, and

you will find that several will be

required for AOC operations,

including Pilot Qualifications,

NOTAMs, and everything else you

may think of). These boards should