ICAO ANNEX 6 PART I PDF

FOREWORD

Historical background

Standards and Recommended Practices for the Operation of Aircraft — International Commercial Air Transport were first adopted by the Council on 10 December 1948 pursuant to the provisions of Article 37 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago, 1944) and designated as Annex 6 to the Convention. They became effective on 15 July 1949. The Standards and Recommended Practices were based on recommendations of the Operations Division at its first session in April 1946, which were further developed at the second session of the Division in February 1947.

Amendments to the Annex, which included additional Standards and Recommended Practices as well as modifications to existing Standards, and which were based on recommendations of the Operations Division at its third and fourth sessions in February–March 1949 and March–April 1951, were adopted by the Council on 5 December 1950 (Amendments 1–127), 4 December 1951 (Amendments 128–131), 28 November 1952 (Amendments 132 and 133), 2 December 1952 (Amendment 134), 20 October 1953 (Amendment 135), 23 February 1956 (Amendment 136), 8 May 1956 (Amendment 137) and 15 May 1956 (Amendment 138), and became effective on 1 June 1951, 1 May 1952, 1 April 1953, 1 May 1953, 1 March 1954, 1 July 1956, 1 September 1956 and 15 September 1956, respectively.

The Third Air Navigation Conference (Montréal, September–October 1956) made, among other things, a complete review of Chapter 5 of the Annex. As a result of those recommendations, their submission to all Contracting States, and their review by the Air Navigation Commission, a complete new text of Chapter 5 was adopted by the Council as Amendment 139 on 13 June 1957 and became effective on 1 October 1957.

Additionally, the Council adopted Amendment 140 on 13 June 1957, containing amendments to Chapter 6 covering the marking of break-in points on aircraft and the characteristics of navigation lights, to Chapter 8 respecting the qualification of persons to certify aircraft as airworthy, to Chapter 9 respecting the route and aerodrome qualification of pilots and to Chapter 10 respecting requirements for licensing of flight operations officers, which became effective on 1 October 1957. Subsequent to the issuance of the fifth edition, Amendment 141 (4.1.1 and 4.1.2) was adopted by the Council on 12 May 1958 and became applicable on 1 December 1958. On 8 December 1959 the Council adopted Amendment 142 relating to the provisions in Chapter 6 for the carriage of portable emergency radio transmitters. The Amendment became effective on 1 May 1960 and applicable on 1 August 1960. On 2 December 1960 the Council adopted Amendment 143 relating to the provisions in Chapter 4 for coordination of operational instructions involving a change in the air traffic control flight plan. The Amendment became effective on 1 April 1961 and applicable on 1 July 1961. On 24 March 1961 the Council adopted Amendment 144 relating to the establishment of limitations upon flight duty periods and provision of rest periods for flight crew members, and the Attachment to the Annex of guidance material on the establishment of flight time and flight duty period limitations and rest periods. The Amendment became effective on 1 August 1961 and applicable on 1 October 1961. The Council on 24 March 1961 approved Amendment 145 containing the Note under 6.2.2 a). On 13 December 1961 the Council adopted Amendments 146 and 147 and approved Amendment 148. These relate respectively to the modernizing of the specifications concerning the provision and use of oxygen supply systems, the installation of high intensity anti-collision lights on aeroplanes and to purely editorial changes respecting references to other documents. The Amendments became effective on 1 April 1962 and applicable on 1 July 1962. On 8 April 1963 the Council adopted Amendment 149. This Amendment related to the specification of the circumstances under which emergency and survival equipment shall be carried on long-range over-water flights. The Amendment became effective on 1 August 1963 and applicable on 1 November 1963.

As a result of the adoption of Amendment 150, a sixth edition of the Annex was published. This was necessitated by the extensive nature of the Amendment which followed recommendations of the Fourth Air Navigation Conference (Montréal, November–December 1965) for extensive revision of the Annex, chiefly with the aim of bringing it up to date to meet the operational needs of high performance turbo-jet aeroplanes. Furthermore, on the recommendation of the Conference, the applicability of the Annex is now limited to “aeroplanes” engaged in scheduled and non-scheduled international air transport operations. Previously this limitation applied only to non-scheduled international air transport operations. Amendment 150 was adopted by the Council on 14 December 1966, became effective on 14 April 1967 and applicable on 24 August 1967.

The Council, on 8 November 1967, adopted Amendment 151 which redefined “Aircraft” as a result of adoption by Council of Amendment 2 to Annex 7 to the Convention and amended 5.2.7.2.2 to cater for three-engined aeroplanes. The Amendment became effective on 8 March 1968 and applicable on 22 August 1968.

Amendment 152 was adopted by the Council on 23 January 1969. Besides revising certain paragraphs in Chapters 4, 7 and 8 to give them more precision, the Amendment also adds a provision in Chapter 4 which prohibits, when passengers are being carried, the in-flight simulation of emergency situations affecting the flight characteristics of the aeroplane. The opportunity presented by this Amendment was also taken to introduce changes to the Annex as a consequence of the adoption by the Council of a companion document — International Standards and Recommended Practices — Operation of Aircraft — Annex 6, Part II — International General Aviation. These changes consisted of designating this document, previously known as Annex 6, “Annex 6, Part I, First Edition”. Amendment 152 became effective on 23 May 1969 and applicable on 18 September 1969.

Consequent to the adoption of Annex 6, Part III, International Operations — Helicopters, an amendment to the title was introduced to indicate that Annex 6, Part I was applicable only to aeroplanes.

Table A shows the origin of subsequent amendments together with a list of the principal subjects involved and the dates on which the Annex and the amendments were adopted by the Council, when they became effective and when they became applicable.

Applicability

The present edition of Annex 6, Part I, contains Standards and Recommended Practices adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization as the minimum Standards applicable to the operation of aeroplanes by operators authorized to conduct international commercial air transport operations. These international commercial air transport operations include scheduled international air services and non-scheduled international air transport operations for remuneration or hire.

In conjunction, these two types of operations include all international air transport operations conducted for remuneration or hire by aeroplanes. The distinction between them lies in the fact that scheduled international air services are especially provided for in the Convention in contradistinction to international air transport operations in general, of which non-scheduled international air transport operations for remuneration or hire were considered most urgently to require the establishment of International Standards and Recommended Practices. It is no longer considered necessary to differentiate in the Standards and Recommended Practices between scheduled international air services and non-scheduled international air transport operations.

The purpose of Annex 6, Part I, is to contribute to the safety of international air navigation by providing criteria of safe operating practice and to contribute to the efficiency and regularity of international air navigation by encouraging States to facilitate the passage over their territories of aeroplanes in international commercial air transport belonging to other States that operate in conformity with such Standards.