Explanatory Statement
Civil Aviation Regulations 1988
Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998
Authorisation of persons to carry out maintenance on certain amateur‑built, kit-built and light sport aircraft with a special certificate of airworthiness
Appointment of authorised persons to issue maintenance releases for certain amateur‑built, kit-built and light sport aircraft with a special certificate of airworthiness
Legislation
Section 98 of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 (the Act) empowers the Governor-General to make regulations for the Act and in the interests of the safety of air navigation.
Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 (CAR 1988)
Under regulation 6 of CAR 1988, CASA may, in writing, appoint persons included in a class of persons to be authorised persons for the purpose of a provision of the regulations in which the expression “authorised person” occurs. An appointment may be made subject to conditions specified in the instrument of appointment.
Under regulation 33B of CAR 1988, CASA may, in writing and in accordance with the Civil Aviation Orders (the CAOs), issue authorities to carry out maintenance on aircraft. Under regulation 33D of CAR 1988, CASA may grant an application for an aircraft welding authority to carry out manual welding of a specified type, and on a specified parent metal group.
Regulation 42ZC of CAR 1988 describes in detail who may perform maintenance on an Australian aircraft in Australian territory. Subregulation 42ZC(4) addresses who may carry out maintenance on a Class B aircraft, which includes a person authorised by CASA for that purpose under subregulation 42ZC(6).
Regulation 43 of CAR 1988 states that maintenance releases in respect of Australian aircraft shall be issued only by authorised persons.
Regulation 47 of CAR 1988 states that an authorised person engaged in the maintenance of an aircraft in respect of which a maintenance release is in force may, in specified circumstances, enter an endorsement on a maintenance release stating that the aircraft is unairworthy. The effect of such an endorsement is that the maintenance release ceases to be in force.
Where a maintenance release has an endorsement under regulation 47 stating that an aircraft is unairworthy, an authorised person may, under regulation 48 of CAR 1988, make a further endorsement on the maintenance release which cancels the first endorsement.
Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998)
Regulation 21.190 of CASR 1998 states that an applicant is entitled to a special certificate of airworthiness for an aircraft in the amateur‑built category if, amongst other criteria, CASA or an authorised person has given an Amateur Built Aircraft Acceptance (ABAA) for the aircraft.
Regulation 21.195A requires CASA or an authorised person to issue an experimental certificate to an applicant for the certificate if specified criteria are met, including that the applicant is eligible, under regulation 21.192, to apply for the certificate. Regulation 21.192 of CASR 1998 states that an aircraft registration holder, or the owner of an aircraft that is registered with a sport aviation body, is eligible to apply for an experimental certificate for 1 or more of the purposes mentioned in regulation 21.191.
Regulation 21.191 of CASR 1998 sets out the purposes for which an experimental certificate may be issued.
Under paragraph 21.191(g), an experimental certificate may be issued for the purpose of operating an amateur‑built aircraft: that is, an aircraft the major portion of which has been fabricated and assembled by a person who undertook the construction project solely for the person’s own education or recreation.
Under paragraph 21.191(h), an experimental certificate may be issued for the purpose of operating a kit‑built aircraft: that is, an aircraft in the primary category that meets specified criteria and that was assembled by a person from a kit manufactured by the holder of a production certificate for that kit, without the supervision and quality control of the production certificate holder.
Under paragraph 21.191(j), an experimental certificate may be issued for the purpose of operating a light sport aircraft that has been assembled from a kit and meets other specified criteria.
Part 66 of CASR 1998 deals with aircraft engineer licences and ratings for the performance of maintenance certification for maintenance carried out on aircraft, and issuing certificates of release to service for aircraft in relation to maintenance carried out on aircraft.
Background
CASA issued an instrument of authorisation and appointment for maintenance of certain amateur‑built and kit‑built aircraft (CASA 146/11), which ceased to have effect at the end of 28 February 2013. Under regulation 42ZC of CAR 1988, that instrument authorised people who contributed to the fabrication and assembly of amateur‑built aircraft or the assembly of kit‑built aircraft, and holders of aircraft engineer licences in specified categories, to carry out maintenance on the aircraft. It also appointed them, under regulations 43, 47 and 48 of CAR 1988 to issue maintenance releases and to enter endorsements on maintenance releases for aircraft on which they had carried out maintenance.
The authorisations and appointments were subject to a number of conditions, including the satisfactory completion of a course of training.
Instrument
Several aspects of the instrument are different from CASA 146/11. The aircraft covered by the instrument have been extended to include aircraft mentioned in paragraph 21.191(j) of CASR 1998, that is, light sport aircraft assembled from a kit.
The instrument allows maintenance by a person who is the sole owner of an aircraft and has fabricated or assembled an essentially similar aircraft. Holders of an aircraft engineer licence, and holders of a maintenance authority for manned balloons, are not required to complete the course that other owner-builders are required to complete.
The instrument does not cover welded repairs unless the person performed the original welding on the aircraft or an essentially similar aircraft or holds a welding authority. The instrument also does not apply to maintenance of aircraft instruments and equipment specifically required by the regulations or CAOs for operations under the IFR, nor maintenance specified in an airworthiness directive relating to those instruments and equipment, except by a holder of an aircraft engineer licence in category B2.
Legislative Instruments Act
Paragraph 98(5A)(a) of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (the LIA) states that the regulations may empower CASA to issue instruments in relation to matters affecting the maintenance of aircraft. Subsection 98(5AA) of the Act states that an instrument issued under paragraph (5A)(a) is a legislative instrument if it applies to a class of persons or a class of aircraft. This instrument applies to a class of persons and class of aircraft and so is a legislative instrument. As a legislative instrument, it is subject to tabling and disallowance in the Parliament under sections 38 and 42 of the LIA.
Consultation
Consultation under section 17 of the LIA has been undertaken with the Sports Aviation Association of Australia (SAAA), the association that represents and partially administers the owners and operators of these types of aircraft, about the changes from CASA 146/11. SAAA has requested or agreed to those changes. No further consultation has been conducted or is considered appropriate.
Compatibility with human rights and freedoms
A Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is at Attachment 1.
Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR)
The instrument is of beneficial, not adverse, effect to the operators of the aircraft. OBPR does not require preparation of a Regulation Impact Statement in this case because a preliminary assessment of business compliance costs in the context of the nature of the instrument indicates that it will have only a nil to low impact on business.
Commencement and making
The instrument commences on the day of registration and expires at the end of February 2016 as if it had been repealed by another instrument.
The instrument has been made by a delegate of CASA relying on the power of delegation under subregulation 11.260(1) of CASR 1998.
[Instrument number CASA 33/13]
Attachment 1
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Authorisation of persons to carry out maintenance on certain amateur‑built, kit‑built and light sport aircraft with a special certificate of airworthiness
Appointment of authorised persons to issue maintenance releases for certain amateur‑built, kit-built and light sport aircraft with a special certificate of airworthiness
This legislative instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the legislative instrument
The legislative instrument allows people who have contributed to the fabrication and assembly of certain amateur‑built, kit‑built and light sport aircraft to conduct maintenance on those aircraft and to issue maintenance releases for those aircraft.
The primary purpose of the legislative instrument is to allow builders of these aircraft who have the appropriate levels of experience and training to maintain them and issue maintenance releases for them.
The authorisation and appointment are subject to conditions imposed by CASA in the interests of the safety of air navigation.
Human rights implications
This legislative instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.
Conclusion
This legislative instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.
Civil Aviation Safety Authority