4 Civil aviation safety
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| Draft Regulation amending Regulation (EU) No. 965/2012 laying down technical requirements and administrative procedures related to air operations pursuant to Regulation (EC) No. 216/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council
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| Legal base | Article 100(2) TFEU; co-decision; QMV
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| Document originated | —
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| Deposited in Parliament | —
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| Department | Transport
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| Basis of consideration | EM of 13 June 2013
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| Previous Committee Report | None
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| Discussion in Council | Not known
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| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | Not cleared; Opinion of the Transport Committee requested under Standing Order No. 143(11)
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Background
4.1 Regulation (EC) No 216/2008 concerned civil aviation safety,
partly in the context of the Chicago Convention (the 1944 Convention
on International Civil Aviation and its annexes). It established
the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to assist the Commission
in the development and implementation of legislative and non-legislative
safety measures.
The proposal
4.2 In his Explanatory Memorandum the Minister of State, Department
for Transport (Mr Simon Burns), alerts us to the probability that
the Commission will issue shortly a legislative proposal setting
flight and duty time limitation (FTL) requirements for the crew
of aeroplanes involved in commercial air transport. The limits
are a safety measure designed to protect crew from levels of fatigue
which would affect their ability to carry out their duties safely.
Separate legislation already sets limits on working time for social
reasons.
4.3 The Commission's proposal will be based on an
Opinion published by the EASA in October 2012[8]
and will take the form of an amendment to Commission Regulation
965/2012 which established safety standards for air operations.
The EASA first consulted on draft FTL requirements in December
2010 and a second round of consultation was undertaken in January
2012, on the basis of comment received. It received an extensive
response to the consultations.
4.4 The EASA published an updated impact assessment
with its Opinion, which concluded that the proposed Regulation
would introduce significant safety improvements over the current
EU legislation, have a limited economic impact on EU operators,
provide a positive social impact and a positive impact on regulatory
harmonisation and coordination at EU level.[9]
4.5 FTLs are designed to ensure that airline crews
do not become fatigued to the extent that it affects their ability
to undertake their duties safely. Fatigue is cumulative and can
be affected by a number of considerations including:
- duty start and finish time;
- length of duty periods;
- amount of rest between duties;
- cumulative (for example, weekly, monthly) duty
time;
- time zone crossings; and
- acclimatisation to local time zone.
4.6 The Commission proposal will contain detailed
limits to address these issues. The Minister notes that:
- these limits need to provide
sufficient flexibility to take account of different types of operations
(for example, short haul, multi-sector, long haul), unforeseen
delays and so on;
- the proposals will also place an obligation on
airlines to manage crew duties to ensure that they are not affected
by unsafe levels of fatigue;
- the overall effectiveness of any FTL scheme depends
on how the whole package of measures interacts to prevent fatigue;
and
- any set of FTL rules therefore needs to be considered
as a whole package, rather than a set of individual isolated requirements.
4.7 It is expected that the Commission will issue
its legislative proposal in late June and that it will be subject
to a vote for its adoption at the meeting of the EASA Committee
scheduled for 10-12 July.
The Government's view
4.8 The Minister says that:
- FTL requirements have already
been established at EU level in Annex III to Council Regulation
(EEC) No 3922/91;
- these, however, were not comprehensive and Member
States were allowed to maintain existing FTL provisions if these
were more stringent;
- as a result the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
has continued to apply its existing FTL guidance;
- the proposals set out in the EASA Opinion are
comprehensive;
- Regulation (EC) No 216/2008, which revokes Annex
III to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3922/91 once the Commission
Regulation comes into force, does not give scope for Member States
to maintain separate requirements.
4.9 The Minister continues that:
- the CAA has been closely involved
in discussions on the EASA proposals and has welcomed the content
of the Opinion;
- in its view, the package of proposals set out
in the Opinion contains a number of welcome provisions that will
deliver a significant improvement in safety across the EU as a
whole;
- in particular, they establish outcome based rules
for airlines, which will require active management of fatigue
rather than reliance on compliance with set limits;
- the CAA considers that, as a whole, the package
provides a similar level of safety to the rules set by other leading
aviation regulators, such as the US Federal Aviation Administration,
and will not lead to any diminution in safety in the UK;
- it is satisfied that there is no scientific evidence
to suggest that any of the limits established in the Opinion are
unsafe; and
- the Government has discussed this matter in detail
with the CAA on a number of occasions and is satisfied that its
assessment is correct.
4.10 The Minister then tells us that:
- organisations representing
pilots have focused on reviewing each specific limit proposed
by the EASA, rather than concentrating on the overall effect of
the proposals;
- as some limits are slightly less restrictive
than current CAA guidance, they have campaigned against the EASA's
proposals;
- they are pushing for the UK to maintain its current
FTL regime if the EASA proposal is adopted;
- this is not possible as Regulation (EC) No 216/2008
does not give scope for Member States to maintain separate standards;
- it would also be unnecessary as the measures
set out in the EASA Opinion are comprehensive and provide an adequate
level of safety; and
- it would also be opposed by UK airlines, which
want a level playing field for competition in the EU single aviation
market.
4.11 On the financial implications the Minister says
that:
- the proposals will have some
one-off financial implications for airlines which will need to
adjust their procedures and systems to reflect the new requirements;
- some of the requirements may add to airlines'
costs while others should help reduce costs — overall there
should be no significant increase in airlines' operating costs;
and
- UK airlines will benefit from being able to compete
on equal terms with other EU airlines.
4.12 The Minister says that:
- given the advice from the CAA,
the UK's independent aviation safety regulator, the Government
supports the proposals set out in the EASA's Opinion; and
- it expects, therefore, that it will be able to
support a legislative proposal from the Commission unless, which
it believes is unlikely, it deviates significantly from the Opinion.
Conclusion
4.13 We are grateful to the Minister for drawing
this likely proposal to our attention. We note, however, that
this matter has been the subject of a Transport Committee report[10]
and a Westminster Hall debate.[11]
So before considering the proposal again we should welcome an
Opinion, in terms of Standing Order No. 143(11), on it from the
Transport Committee. Meanwhile the proposal remains under scrutiny.
8 See http://www.easa.europa.eu/agency-measures/docs/opinions/2012/04/EN%20to%20Opinion%2004-2012.pdf. Back
9
See http://www.easa.europa.eu/agency-measures/docs/opinions/2012/04/Appendix%201%20to%20Opinion%2004-2012%20(RIA).pdf. Back
10
First Report from the Transport Committee, 2012-13, Flight
time limitations, HC 164 and Fifth Special Report from the
Transport Committee, 2012-13, Flight time limitations: Government
Response to the Committee's First Report of Session 2012-13,
HC 558. Back
11
HC Deb, 22 November 2012,
cols. 231WH-248WH. Back
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