A QUIZ ABOUT AUSTRALIA's NEW FLIGHT MANUAL REQUIREMENTS

 QUESTION

 Imagine you rent a Cessna 172, VH-ABW, from a flying school on 20^th August 2000.  It does not have a Flight Manual.  You demand that the school give you the aircraft's Flight Manual. 

The flying school manager says "That stuff has all been changed, mate.  You don't need Flight Manuals for 172s any more.  All you need is placards, and all our 172s have the required placards.".

You go out flying, and when you land CASA ramp-checks you.  CASA then says you have breached CAR 139(1)(e) by not carrying a Flight Manual in the aircraft, and cancels your Private Pilot License under CAR 269(1)(a).

Unfortunately, the information that the manager of the Flying School gave you was wrong - but ignorance of the law is no excuse so you lose your license!  Under the new rules, some 172s do not need a Flight Manual provided they are placarded, but other 172s need a Flight Manual regardless of placarding.

What document(s) should you have checked to find out that the 172 you rented was one of those which requires a Flight Manual? You do not have access to the Internet, you can only check the physical documents available to you at a country airport at 9:00am on Sunday morning 20th August 2000.

 ANSWER

First correct answer sent to quiz@airsafety.com.au goes straight to the top of the class.  All persons submitting any answers at all, correct or incorrect, shall be entitled to use the letters "P.F.M., Lic. Prot." after their names (Professor of Flight Manuals,  Protector of Licenses).

I do not think there is ANY WAY you can ensure that you are legal just by checking documents.  You just have to rely on hangar gossip - but your license is at stake!

THIS IS AN "OPEN BOOK" QUIZ

Note that this quiz is "open book" and "open phone".  You may refer to any book or other document, and you may call any other person for assistance - for example you may call your local CASA office on 13 1757.  But remember that 20th August 2000 is a Sunday.  And you must end up with a document you can wave around later on.

 BACKGROUND

Until 16^th August 1999 every Australian aircraft had to have a unique Flight Manual, and it had to be aboard the aircraft for every private flight.  A person who rented an aircraft simply needed to check that the Flight Manual for VH-ABW was aboard VH-ABW before take-off, and the regulation was complied with.

After 16^th August 2000, some aircraft require a Flight Manual but others do not.  If the aircraft you are going to fly has a Flight Manual in it which has a CASA approval page for that specific aircraft, you are OK.

But if it does not have one, you have to determine if that particular aircraft requires a Flight Manual or not.  In the case of many types of aircraft, such as the Cessna 172, certain serial numbers DO require a flight manual and other serial numbers do not.  There is no single document to which you can refer to find out whether VH-ABW has to have a Flight Manual or not!

Most Australian pilots want to comply with all the rules.  Our rules are difficult enough to understand as it is.  The Flight Manual rule used to be very simple - and on 17^th August 2000 it suddenly becomes very difficult.

See www.airsafety.com.au/caap5411.htm for further information.