NOTE: You should not confuse the current status listing of an AD or me thod of compliance with an AD record of accomplishment, which is a description of the work and who performed it and/or issued the approval for re turn to se rvice. They are two separate and distinct records.
f. Current Major Alterations of Each Airframe, Engine, Propeller, and Appliance.
A listing means a record that contains at least the following information:
(1) A listing identifying each major alteration, as well as the associated item that has been altered; and
(2) A description of, or reference to, the FAA-approved technical data that you used to make the major alteration.
NOTE: If you conduct operations under part 135, you must include in this listing all current major repairs, as well as major alterations, and you must include major repairs and major alterations to each rotor.
NOTE: The listing of the current major alterations refers to summary current status information. You must not confuse this with a major alteration report, which is a description of the work performed, a description of the FAA-approved technical data used to make the major alteration, and the identification of the individual who performed and/or issued the approval for re turn to se rvice. You must not confuse this listing with the requirement to submit a copy of each report of a major alteration to the FAA. There are two different requirements—one for a major alteration current status listing, and one for a report for each major alteration that you accomplish.
g. Airworthine ss Re le ase Form. All the records necessary to show that all requirements for the issuance of an Airworthiness Release Form have been met. These records support the use of an Airworthiness Release Form, which is not part of the aircraft maintenance logbook. While the regulatory requirement for these records does not provide a detailed list of these records, this requireme nt is generally accepted to mean:
(1) Detailed records of all scheduled maintenance that has not been superseded by work of equivalent scope and detail;
(2) Detailed records of the last overhaul for items that required an overhaul;
(3) Detailed records of all unscheduled maintenance that has not been superseded by work of equivalent scope and detail; and
(4) Copies of the Airworthiness Release Form covering the last 60 days of operation.
8-10. OTHER REQUIRED RECORDS AND REPORTS. The FAA regulatio ns require you to make other reports and records as discussed in this paragraph. You can use these records and reports to review your maintenance operations to determine the adequacy of the maintenance portion of your air carrier manual and the effectiveness of your CAMP. These records are one of Par 8-9 Page 31
the sources of informatio n for your Continuing Analysis and Surveillance System (CASS). The FAA also uses these reports in its continuo us oversight of your maintenance program activities.
a. Maintenance Log. Sections 121.701 and 135.65 require any person who takes action in response to a reported or observed failure or malfunction to make a record of that action in the maintenance log of the aircraft. These air carrier maintenance log entries correspond to the maintenance recording requirements of § 43.9(b). You also must ensure that each pilot in command (PIC) ensures that all mechanical irregularities occurring during flight time are entered in the maintenance log at the end of that particular flight time, consistent with §§ 121.563 and 135.65.
b. Airworthiness Release Form or Log Entry.
(1) Your Airworthiness Release Form or Log Entry required by § 121.709 or § 135.443 corresponds to the approval for return to service requirements of §§ 43.5, 43.7(e), 121.379(b), and 135.437(b). Furthermore, parts 121 and 135 require you to prepare either an Airworthiness Release Form or a log entry before you can operate your air carrier aircraft after you perform any maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations, whether you operate the aircraft in air transportation or not.
(2) Your approval for return to service certification and documentation required by § 121.709 or § 135.443 is a singular requirement, but you may execute it in one of two ways:
(a) You may complete an Airworthiness Release Form and give it to the PIC. If you use an Airworthiness Release Form, you must keep it separate and distinct from the aircraft log.
It is not included in the maintenance record requirements. The separate and distinct requirement corresponds to the requirements in §§ 121.380(a)(1) and 121.709(d). In modern day environments, you are most likely to use the log entry method to comply with § 121.709 or § 135.443. Other than form or format, there is no legal or technical difference between an Airworthiness Release Form and a log entry.
(b) If you make a log entry, you do not have to issue an Airworthiness Release Form. To avoid confusio n and to be consistent with the regulatio ns, you should not identify this entry in the aircraft log as an airworthiness release. We understand that few air carriers use a separate Airworthiness Release Form.
(3) Consistent with §§ 121.709(d) and 135.443(d), you may include a statement in your manual that the signature in the aircraft log of an authorized, appropriately certificated individual constitutes an approval for return to service under your air carrier maintenance program. Such an authorized signature constitutes the four air carrier approvals for return to service certifications without restating each one of the certifications. You must prepare your Airworthiness Release Form or log entry in accordance with procedures in your manual and must include the following four certificatio ns consistent with statutory consideratio ns for operations with the highest degree of safety in the public interest:
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(a) The work was performed in accordance with the requirements of your manual;
(b) All items required to be inspected were inspected by an authorized person who determined the work was satisfactorily completed;
(c) No known conditio n exists that would make the aircraft unairworthy; and
(d) So far as the work performed is concerned, the aircraft is in condition for safe operation.
(4) The Airworthiness Release Form or log entry must be signed by an appropriately certificated individual who is authorized by you to make the Airworthiness Release Form or log entry on your behalf.
NOTE: The Airworthine ss Release Form or log entry must be accomplished by an authorized mechanic or repairman on your behalf under your part 121 or 135 certificate authorizations. This is consistent with the requirements and authorizations of § 43.7(e), 121.379(b), or 135.437(b), and § 121.709(b)(3) or 135.443(b)(3).
NOTE: Consistent with regulations, no individual may issue an Airworthine ss Re le ase Form or make a maintenance log entry unless you have authorized them.
(5) Your maintenance manual should include detailed procedures for accomplishing the Airworthiness Release Form or log entry after you accomplish any maintenance on your aircraft.
Your procedures should include processes designed to ensure that you do not operate your aircraft after any maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alteration is accomplished, unless you complete the Airworthiness Release Form or maintenance log entry.
(6) Your maintenance manual should include detailed procedures for qualifying and authorizing each individ ual that you use to accomplish your § 121.709 or 135.443 Airworthiness Release Form or log entry. These procedures should include a positive, readily available means for you to document and transmit the authorizatio n to the individ ual, includ ing the scope and limitations of their authorization.
c. Service Difficulty Reports (SDR). You are required to make SDRs by §§ 121.703 and 135.415. While analysis of these reports can help your CASS identify deficie nc ies within your maintenance program, these reports are also our primary means of gathering information for our Service Difficulty Reporting Subsystem (SDRS).
d. Mechanical Interruption Reports. We require you, under §§ 121.705 and 135.417, to make mechanical interruption reports. These reports document those instances when there is an interruptio n to one of your flights, unscheduled change of aircraft en route, or unscheduled stop or diversion from a route caused by known or suspected mechanical difficulties that are not required to be reported under the SDR reporting requirements of § 121.703. You are also required to report the number of engines that you removed prematurely because of malfunction, failure, or defect, listed by make, model, and the aircraft type in which it was installed. If you Par 8-10 Page 33
operate aircraft with propellers, you must report the number of propeller featherings in flight, listed by type of propeller, and engine and aircraft on which it was installed. You do not need to report propeller featherings for training, demonstration, or flight check purposes. This is a prime indicator of deficiencies in the effectiveness of your maintenance program. Moreover, Root Cause Analys is (RCA) of these events is one of your most useful means of oversight of the level of effective ne ss of your maintenance program.
8-11. REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTS OF MAJOR ALTERATIONS AND MAJOR REPAIRS.
a. Part 121 Major Repair and Major Alteration Reports. If you conduct operations under part 121, § 121.707 requires you to make a report of each major alteration and major repair. You must submit the major alteration report to us, and you must make the major repair report available to us for inspection. This falls under § 119.59 requirements. In addition, because you are an air carrier, you do not have to use FAA Form 337, Major Repair and Alteration (Airframe, Powerplant, Propeller, or Appliance), to report a major alteration or major repair that you or an MP accomplished.
b. Part 135 Major Repair and Major Alteration Reports. If you conduct operations under part 135, there is no requirement that requires you to submit reports of major alterations or major repairs. However, while a report is not required, the records of aircraft maintenance or alteration are required and you must make them available to us when we ask for them.
NOTE: You should not confuse these alteration and repair reports with the current status listing of major alterations required under part 121 or the current status listing of major repairs and alterations required under part 135.
8-12. REQUIREMENTS FOR HISTORICAL OR SOURCE RECORDS. You do not have to keep historical or source records to prove that your required records, such as current status records that you must make, keep, and make available to the FAA, are true and accurate.
Inherent with the requirements and objectives of your air carrier maintenance program, you must have a system to prepare, store, and retain your required maintenance records; you must monitor that system under your CASS to ensure that you are following your procedures and that they are effective. This ensures that your required records are true and accurate. Records such as the in-service history of life-limited parts (traceability back to birth) or the record of accomplishment of an AD do not need to be kept indefinitely. However, remember there are severe crimina l penalties for falsifying or failing to make or keep air carrier records. Consistent with FAA regulations, unless there is evidence to the contrary, an aircraft maintenance record produced by your maintenance recordkeeping system should be acceptable by itself, without other historic a l or source records. The important consideration here is that you have a sound and properly working recordkeeping system. You may wish to archive certain source documentation records that you used to introduce parts or components into your maintenance system. These records may include documents such as the manufacturer’s invoice for new parts, export certificates of airworthiness, documentation of a major repair or alteration, or other similar information that may be useful in the future. You may also have business reasons to maintain historical records, but you can keep historical records of your own choice, not because there are regulatory Par 8-10 Page 34
requirements that require you to keep various historical records. The only records that we can legally require to you to make, retain, and produce for our review are those records that we have clearly outlined in 14 CFR.
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CHAPTER 9. CONTRACT MAINTENANCE
9-1. CONTRACT MAINTENANCE. In the past, many nonregulatory words and terms have been used in the aviation industry to describe a person who performs maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations for an air carrier, such as outsource, contract, emergency, vendor, oncall, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facilities. The term contract maintenance means any maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations accomplished by a certificate holder’s mainte nance provider. However, the certificate holder always retains primary responsibility for any contract maintenance accomplished by a maintenance provider.
a. Maintenance Provider (MP). Title 14 CFR part 121, § 121.368(a)(1) and part 135, § 135.426(a)(1) define a maintenance provider as any person who performs maintenance, preventive maintenance, or an alteration for a certificate holder other than a person who is trained by and employed directly by that certificate holder.
b. Covered Work. Sections 121.368(a)(2) and 135.426(a)(2) define covered work as any of the following:
(1) Essential maintenance that could result in a failure, malfunction, or defect endangering the safe operation of an aircraft if not performed properly or if improper parts or materials are used;
(2) Regularly schedule maintenance; or
(3) A required inspection item on an aircraft.
NOTE: Essential maintenance is for the Required Inspection Item (RII) of on-wing maintenance. “On-wing maintenance” is to mean the entire aircraft.
In addition, covered work includes both essential maintenance and RIIs, both of which include nonscheduled maintenance. Additionally, other requirements that address both covered work and all other contract maintenance, such as the requirements for air carriers to develop policies, procedures, methods, and instructions for accomplishing all contracted maintenance, necessarily include both scheduled and nonscheduled work.
c. Directly in Charge. Sections 121.368(a)(3) and 135.426(a)(3) define directly in charge as having responsibility for covered work performed by a maintenance provider. A representative of the certificate holder directly in charge of covered work does not need to physically observe and direct each maintenance provider constantly, but must be available for consultatio n on matters requiring instructio n or decision.
NOTE: The term available for consultation may be broadly interpreted.
This allows the air carrier flexibility to use numerous information technology me thods – such as high resolution photographs, text messaging, and the Internet – to acquire the information necessary to make decisions and provide instructions.
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d. Contract Maintenance Requirements. Sections 121.368 and 135.426 require:
(1) Each certificate holder must be directly in charge of all covered work done for it by a maintenance provider.
(2) Each maintenance provider must perform all covered work in accordance with the certificate holder’s maintenance manual.
(3) No maintenance provider may perform covered work unless that work is carried out under the supervision and control of the certificate holder.
(4) Each certificate holder who contracts for maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations must develop and implement policies, procedures, methods, and instructions for the accomplishment of all contracted maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations. These policies, procedures, methods, and instructions must provide for the maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations to be performed in accordance with the certificate holder’s maintenance program and maintenance manual.
(5) Each certificate holder who contracts for maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations must ensure that its system for the continuing analysis and surveillance of the mainte nance, preventive maintenance, and alterations carried out by the maintenance provider, as required by §§ 121.373(a) and 135.431(a), contains procedures for oversight of all contracted work.
(6) The policies, procedures, methods, and instructions required by paragraphs 9-1d(4) and 9-1d(5) must be acceptable to the FAA and included in the certificate holder’s maintenance manual, as required by §§ 121.369(b)(10) and 135.427(b)(10).
(7) Each certificate holder who contracts for maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations must provide to its FAA certificate-ho ld i ng district office (CHDO) a list of maintenance providers in a format acceptable to the FAA. This list must include the name and physical (street) address, or addresses, where each maintenance provider performs work for the certificate holder, and a description of the type of maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alteration that is to be performed at each location. The list must be updated with any changes, including additions or deletions, and the updated list provided to the FAA in a format acceptable to the FAA by the last day of each calendar month.
(a) When submitting the maintenance provider list (MPL) required by §§ 121.368(h) and 135.426(h) to the FAA, there are two MPL templates available to air carriers which are acceptable to the FAA: MPL Template-Excel and MPL Template-XML. Both templates can be downloaded from the Flight Standards Service Aircraft Maintenance Divis io n (AFS-300) Web site under the AFS-300 Job Aids section. Two additional MPL informational files are available on the Web site:
1. MPL Import – This document defines field names, descriptions, field length, and other informatio n required to understand the required structure of both of the supported formats.
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2. MPL Informat io n – This document provides informatio n and instructio ns about contractors used by 14 CFR parts 121, 135, 121/135, and 145 in two formats; these formats are Excel and XML.
(b) Once completed, the MPL must be submitted to the air carrier’s FAA CHDO by the last day of each calendar month. The AFS-300 Web site can be found at http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/avs/offices/afs/afs300/.
NOTE: The MPL does not include subcontractors used by the MP. The air carrie r should accept the MP’s subcontractors at the forefront of the contractual agreement and ensure that procedures exist to notify the air carrie r of any future changes.
9-2. RESPONSIBILITY FOR MAINTENANCE PERFORMED BY OTHERS. Consistent with part 121, § 121.1(b), part 135, § 135.1(a)(2), and others, when you use an MP to accomplis h all or part of the maintenance activities on your airplane or its component parts, that MP becomes part of your maintenance organization and falls under your control. Additionally, §§ 121.363 and 135.413 make it clear that you remain primarily responsible for all of the maintenance performed by that MP on your aircraft. You must determine that the MP has the capability to do your work on your behalf, direct their work, and determine that their work was done satisfactorily according to your manual and your standards. Because all work on your aircraft must be performed in accordance with your maintenance manual and your maintenance program, you must also provide the MP with appropriate materia l from your mainte na nce manual for that work. You must ensure that the MP follows the procedures in your manual that you have provided (see subparagraph 3-2c). You should accomplish this through work-in-progress audits while the MP is actually accomplishing the work. Your manual system should accommodate work performed for you by each MP. The policy and procedures portion of your maintenance manual should assign clear authority and responsibilities and outline procedures for your personnel to administer, control, and direct all contract maintenance. You should arrange the technical material that you provide for the use and guidance of the MP. You should have a written contract with anyone performing contract maintenance for you on a continuing basis. This will help ensure that your responsibilities are addressed. In the case of major operations, such as engine, propeller, or airframe overhaul, the contract should include a specification for the work. You should include or reference that specification in your manual system.
9-3. UNSCHEDULED CONTRACT MAINTENANCE PERFORMED AWAY FROM REGULAR FACILITIES. Sometimes, you will need maintena nce performed on your aircraft while it is away from your regular maintenance facilities. You also may need maintenance services on short notice. Your maintenance manual should include procedures for obtaining these services under these unanticipated conditions. You should never use the term “emergency maintenance” to describe short notice, unscheduled maintenance, as such terms imply to your employees and your MPs that the FAA’s regulatio ns and your procedures do not have to be followed. “Emergency” means that a serious situation has occurred unexpectedly, involves a peril to life or property, and demands immediate action. An out-of-commission aircraft parked on an airport ramp could hardly constitute a peril to life or property. You should outline the procedural steps that you will take to control and direct the unscheduled maintenance Par 9-1 Page 39
accomplished by your MP. Unscheduled, short notice requirements for maintenance do not void your responsibility to determine that your MP has the organizatio n, adequate facilities and equipment, competent personnel, and appropriate portions of your manual for the work that needs to be done. These determina t io ns must be made before any MP starts to work on your aircraft. These procedures and method of determination should be in your manual.
9-4. AIRWORTHINESS RELEASE OR AIRCRAFT LOG ENTRY REQUIRED BY §§ 121.709 AND 135.443. For the purposes of contract maintenance, it is important to note that §§ 121.709(b)(3) and 135.443(b)(3) outline specific requirements for the persons authorized to sign an airworthiness release or aircraft log entry. As defined in part 1, § 1.1, a person is an individual, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, joint stock association, or government entity. Thus, a repair station, as a company, qualifies as a person defined in § 1.1 and can prepare, or cause to be prepared, an airworthiness release or an appropriate entry in the aircraft log. Such a release or aircraft log entry is limited to the work the repair station is rated to perform and actually performs on an aircraft for certificate holders operating under 14 CFR parts 121, 125, and 135. However, in preparing the airworthiness release or aircraft log entry, the person or, in this instance, the part 145 certificated repair station (CRS), must comply with the procedures set forth in the part 121 or 135 certificate holder’s manual for preparing the airworthiness release or aircraft log entry. Because there is no reference to “person” in §§ 121.709(b) or 135.443(b), the “certificate holder” refers not to the repair station, but the part 121 or 135 certificate holder for whom the repair station is performing maintenance. This provision corresponds to the part 121 and 135 certificate holder’s duty under §§ 121.367 and 135.425 to ensure that not only are competent personnel performing maintenance on their fleets, but that each aircraft released to service is airworthy.
a. Log Entry or Airworthiness Release Form. You must designate each individ ual authorized to execute the log entry or Airworthiness Release Form for you by name and occupationa l title. The individ ua l making the log entry or Airworthiness Release Form acts as your authorized agent. He or she certifies that the maintenance was accomplished according to your maintenance manual and maintenance program procedures, and that no known condition exists that would make the aircraft unairworthy. This arrangement does not reduce the responsibility of maintenance personnel to accomplish maintenance functio ns or tasks in accordance with your manual.
b. Proce dure s for Log Entry or Airworthine ss Re le ase Form. Consistent with §§ 121.709(b)(1) and 135.443(b)(1), you must include in your maintenance manual the procedures for making an aircraft Airworthiness Release Form or log entry. Our regulatio ns require you to make a log entry or complete an Airworthiness Release Form before you can operate your aircraft for any reason after you have accomplished any maintenance. You are required to make a log entry or an Airworthiness Release Form. Other than form or format, there is no legal or technical difference between an Airworthiness Release Form and a log entry.
9-5. EVALUATING NEW MAINTENANCE PROVIDERS. Before you can use an MP for the first time, you must determine that the MP candidate complies with pertinent requirements of part 121 subpart L or part 135 subpart J. In most cases, you would conduct an onsite audit. You must demonstrate, through this audit or by some other means, that the MP has an adequate organization, adequate facilities and equipment, competent personnel, and is capable of Par 9-3 Page 40
performing the work consistent with the requirements of your program. You should use a risk assessment process to determine whether to accomplish an onsite audit or not. Your risk assessment should take into account what happens (the failure effect) when the aircraft part or aircraft system that the MP works on fails. If the failure effect is safety, your procedures should mandate an initial onsite audit along with recurrent onsite audits, as well as the posting of a resident employee at the MP’s facilit y, who is assigned audit and oversight duties.
NOTE: Since the failure effect of parts and systems that come under essential maintenance concerns safety, the air carrie r shouldhave robust policies and procedures to qualify, supervise, and control these MPs, which should include onsite audits.
9-6. CONTINUING MAINTENANCE PROVIDER OVERSIGHT. Ensuring that each one of your MPs is in continuo us compliance is a major functio n of your CASS. You should use your risk-based process for establishing a schedule for auditing and inspecting each of your MPs.
Inherent with a risk-based process, you may determine that some of your MPs do not require an onsite audit. Consistent with the “performance” wording of § 121.373 or § 135.431, the audits that you accomplish should be primarily work-in-progress audits that serve to determine that your MPs are followin g your manual. The audits should be accomplished by trained auditors, and the results analyzed by trained analysts. The results of the analysis should permit you to determine each MP’s continuing compliance with part 121 subpart L or part 135 subpart J, as appropriate, and your maintenance program.
9-7. USING A CERTIFICATED REPAIR STATION (CRS) AS ONE OF YOUR MAINTENANCE PROVIDERS.
a. Arrangements for Maintenance. If you decide to exercise your authority under § 121.379 or § 135.437 to make arrangements with other persons to accomplish contract maintenance for you as provided in your manual, you may choose to make these arrangements with an FAA CRS, but these rules do not require you to do so. The scope of your authorization to make arrangements for maintenance is very broad; you can make arrangements for maintenance with any person as that term is defined in 14 CFR part 1, § 1.1, as long as that MP accomplishes your maintenance in accordance with your manual and maintenance program. Although the § 1.1 term “person” include s a CRS, it also includes anyone who does not hold an FAA certification.
b. Part 145 MP. The air carrier regulatory and maintenance program requirements that you would use to qualify an MP that holds a current part 145 repair station certificate are exactly the same as those that you would use for an MP who does not hold a current part 145 repair station certificate; there is no difference. Consistent with § 119.1(c), § 121.1(b), or § 135.1(a)(2), each person, whether certificated or not, that is employed or used by you for any maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alteration of your aircraft is required to comply with the part 121 requirements and your maintenance program requirements, not 14 CFR part 65 or 145 requireme nt s (see paragraph 8-3). Further, your § 121.379(b) or § 135.437(b) authorization to approve your aircraft for return to service after maintenance extends to the work accomplished under your § 121.379(a) or § 135.437(a) authorization to make arrangements with other persons for maintenance.
Par 9-5 Page 41 and (42)