CASA EX06/13 - Exemption - for cabin crew member to use passenger seat

Overview

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) were enacted to ensure the safety of air navigation in Australia. The problem this regulation was introduced to address is the requirement for cabin crew members to be seated in compliant seats while the aircraft is operating. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is the body responsible for enforcing these regulations. The policy objective of this particular instrument is to provide an exemption from the stringent seat compliance standards for cabin crew members when a permissible unserviceability exists, no compliant alternative is available, and a fully functional passenger seat is used instead. This exemption allows for the preservation of an acceptable level of safety while accommodating operational challenges. This legislative instrument, introduced under the authority of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, exempts operators with non-compliant cabin crew seats from the standards outlined in regulation 90.125 of the CASR 1998. The exemption is applicable to a class of operators and has been determined to be a legislative instrument, subject to tabling and disallowance in the Parliament. The exemption is compatible with human rights and freedoms as it does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms. The exemption is in effect until 31 January 2015, providing a temporary solution for operators facing challenges in complying with the strict seat standards.

Scope and Application

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) establish the standards for cabin crew seats and related equipment under regulation 90.125, which applies to registered operators of aircraft falling under Subpart 90.B of CASR 1998, excluding balloons, airships, sailplanes, powered sailplanes, and certain specially certificated aircraft. These operators must ensure that cabin crew seats and related equipment meet the specified standards set out in the Part 90 Manual of Standards (MOS Part 90). Failure to comply with these standards constitutes a strict liability offence. However, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) can grant exemptions under subregulation 11.160 of CASR 1998, which must be published on the internet and are valid for up to three years, provided the exemption does not compromise an acceptable level of safety. The exemption applies to operators who cannot provide a compliant cabin crew seat because it is subject to a permissible unserviceability, no alternative compliant seat is available, and a fully functional passenger seat is provided instead. The exemption is a legislative instrument under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 and does not affect human rights, as confirmed by the Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights.

Key Provisions

The primary provisions of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) relevant to this exemption concern the standards for cabin crew seats and related equipment. Specifically, subregulations 90.125(1) and (2) of CASR 1998 require that a seat or any related equipment provided for a cabin crew member must meet the standards set out in the Part 90 Manual of Standards (MOS Part 90). Failure to comply with these standards while operating an aircraft constitutes a strict liability offence. These regulations apply to aircraft covered by Subpart 90.B of CASR 1998, which excludes balloons, airships, sailplanes, powered sailplanes, and aircraft with certain special certificates of airworthiness, experimental certificates, special flight permits, and provisional certificates of airworthiness. The exemption granted under subregulation 11.160(1) of CASR 1998 allows certain operators to deviate from the compliance requirements of subregulations 90.125(1) and (2) when specific conditions are met. These conditions include situations where the cabin crew seat or related equipment does not meet the MOS Part 90 standards, is subject to a permissible unserviceability (PUS), no alternative compliant seat is available, and the cabin crew member is seated in a fully functional passenger seat. The exemption is granted to preserve an acceptable level of safety, as mandated by subregulation 11.170(3) of CASR 1998. CASA may impose conditions on the exemption if necessary for the safety of air navigation, and failure to comply with these conditions is an offence under regulation 11.210. Under this exemption, operators must ensure that cabin crew members seated in passenger seats are provided with a suitable front or back-facing seat. Additionally, the exemption is subject to the conditions that it must be published on the internet under subregulation 11.225 and that it ceases on the specified date or 3 years after its commencement if no date is specified, as per subregulation 11.230(1). The exemption is also subject to tabling and disallowance in the Parliament under sections 38 and 42 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (LIA). The exemption applies to a class of operators and is, therefore, considered a legislative instrument. Furthermore, a Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights confirms that the exemption 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. The consequences for non-compliance with the conditions of this exemption are significant. Firstly, failure to comply with a condition of an exemption is an offence under regulation 11.210 of CASR 1998. The maximum penalties for such offences are not explicitly stated in the document, but penalties for aviation-related offences can generally include fines and imprisonment. For example, under CASR 1998, an operator who commits a strict liability offence for not providing a compliant cabin crew seat can face penalties including fines up to $275,000 for a corporation and imprisonment for up to 5 years. It is important for operators to adhere strictly to the conditions of the exemption to avoid these severe penalties.