Sofema Aviation Services (SAS) www.sassofia.com considers roles and responsibilities related to the accomplishment of Maintenance Check Flights (MCF)
Introduction and Responsibility
A maintenance check flight (MCF) is conducted to validate changes and verify the airworthiness of an aircraft after it has undergone maintenance or repair work. MCF procedures are designed to ensure that the aircraft is safe to operate and meets all regulatory requirements.
Certain maintenance data issued by the design approval holder (e.g. aircraft maintenance manual (AMM)) require that a maintenance task be performed in flight as a necessary condition to complete the maintenance ordered.
- Within the aircraft limitations, the person authorised to certify the maintenance per M.A.801 should release the incomplete maintenance before this flight. GM M.A.301(i) describes the relations with the aircraft operator, which retains the responsibility for the MCF.
- After performing the flight and any additional maintenance necessary to complete the maintenance ordered, a certificate of release to service should be issued in accordance with M.A.801.
Note: Maintenance Check Flights (MCF) are performed under the control of the operator in coordination with the CAMO.
- The responsibility for ensuring that maintenance check flights are conducted safely and in compliance with regulations falls on the operator of the aircraft.
Note: MCF requirements from the subcontracted organisation or contracted maintenance organisation should be agreed upon by the operator/CAMO.
Maintenance check flight (MCF) procedures
The criteria for performing a MCF are normally included in the Continuing Airworthiness Management Exposition (CAME) (Ref also GM M.A.301(i).)
- M.A.301(i) Continuing airworthiness tasks (ED Decision 2020/002/R) – MAINTENANCE CHECK FLIGHTS (MCFs)
- (a) The definition of and operational requirements for MCFs are laid down in the Air Operations Regulation and are carried out under the control and responsibility of the aircraft operator.
o During the flight preparation, the flight and the post-flight activities as well as for the aircraft handover, the processes requiring the involvement of the maintenance organisations or their personnel should be agreed upon in advance with the operator.
o The operator should consult as necessary with the CAMO in charge of the airworthiness of the aircraft.
- (b) Depending on the aircraft defect and the status of the maintenance activity performed before the flight, different scenarios are possible and are described below:
o (1) The aircraft maintenance manual (AMM), or any other maintenance data issued by the design approval holder, requires that an MCF be performed before completion of the maintenance ordered. In this scenario, a certificate after incomplete maintenance, when in compliance with M.A.801(f) or 145.A.50(e), should be issued by the maintenance organisation and the aircraft can be flown for this purpose under its airworthiness certificate.
- Due to incomplete maintenance, for aircraft used in commercial air transport, it is advisable to open a new entry on the aircraft technical log system to identify the need for an MCF.
- This new entry should contain or refer to, as necessary, data relevant to perform the MCF, such as aircraft limitations and any potential effect on operational and emergency equipment due to incomplete maintenance, maintenance data reference and maintenance actions to be performed after the flight.
- After a successful MCF, the maintenance records should be completed, the remaining maintenance actions finalised and the aircraft released to service in accordance with the maintenance organisation’s approved procedures.
o (2) Based on its own experience and for reliability considerations and/or quality assurance, an operator or CAMO may wish to perform an MCF after the aircraft has undergone certain maintenance while maintenance data does not call for such a flight. Therefore, after the maintenance has been properly carried out, a certificate of release to service is issued and the aircraft airworthiness certificate remains valid for this flight.
o (3) After troubleshooting of a system on the ground, an MCF is proposed by the maintenance organisation as confirmation that the solution applied has restored the normal system operation.
- During the maintenance performed, the maintenance instructions are followed for the complete restoration of the system and therefore a certificate of release to service is issued before the flight.
- The airworthiness certificate is valid for the flight. An open entry requesting this flight may be recorded in the aircraft technical log.
o (4)An aircraft system has been found to fail, the dispatch of the aircraft is not possible in accordance with the maintenance data, and the satisfactory diagnosis of the cause of the fault can only be made in flight.
- The process for this troubleshooting is not described in the maintenance data and therefore scenario (1) does not apply.
- Since the aircraft cannot fly under its airworthiness certificate because it has not been released to service after maintenance, a permit to fly issued in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 748/2012 is required.
- After the flight and the corresponding maintenance work, the aircraft can be released to service and continue to operate under its original certificate of airworthiness.
o (c) For certain MCFs the data obtained or verified in flight will be necessary for assessment or consideration after the flight by the maintenance organisation prior to issuing the maintenance release.
- For this purpose, when the personnel of the maintenance organisation cannot perform these functions in flight, the maintenance organisation may rely on the crew performing the flight to complete this data or to make statements about in-flight verifications.
- In this case, the maintenance organisation should appoint the crew personnel to play such a role on their behalf and, before the flight, brief appointed crew personnel on the scope, functions and the detailed process to be followed, including required reporting information after the flight and reporting means, in support of the final release to service to be issued by the certifying staff.
Next Steps
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Tags:
Aircraft, Aircraft defects, Aircraft Maintenance, Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM), aviation, CAMO, Compliance, Continuing Airworthiness (CA), EASA, Maintenance Check Flight (MCF), Maintenance Data, SAS blogs
