Use of Sling equipment in Europe EASA
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Use of Sling equipment in Europe EASA
Hi guys,
hope someone can help me with this......
We operate the H125. Our work is more than 90% HESLO. The Helicopter is equipped with the Onboard Cargo Swing. The longlines we use are the Barry DLL-100-4500Z (Dyneema Synthetic Fiber) and the Onboard Talon 3K remote hook.
My questions:
1 - Is this configuration acceptable to EASA?
2 - Where do I find EASA manufacturing standards requirement for sling equipment such as longlines, remote hooks, cargo nets slings etc.?
I was trying to find some info on that but was quickly lost in Cyberspace about trying to find anything specific. So if any of you fellow ppruners know something with links to EASA documentation I will forever be greatfull for thew help
Cheers and happy new year to all,
B
hope someone can help me with this......
We operate the H125. Our work is more than 90% HESLO. The Helicopter is equipped with the Onboard Cargo Swing. The longlines we use are the Barry DLL-100-4500Z (Dyneema Synthetic Fiber) and the Onboard Talon 3K remote hook.
My questions:
1 - Is this configuration acceptable to EASA?
2 - Where do I find EASA manufacturing standards requirement for sling equipment such as longlines, remote hooks, cargo nets slings etc.?
I was trying to find some info on that but was quickly lost in Cyberspace about trying to find anything specific. So if any of you fellow ppruners know something with links to EASA documentation I will forever be greatfull for thew help
Cheers and happy new year to all,
B
Strictly speaking the longline and remote hook are actually part of the under slung load ! EASA is only excited down to the belly hook after that they are not interested. Having said that On Board systems stuff is mostly EASA approved and I m sure Barry longline are as well.
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Thanks huey and hughes,
looking at the document 'Consolidated AMC & GM to Annex VIII (Part SPO) Page 177 (c) 3 it reads "All additional equipment used, e.g. ropes, cables, mechanical hooks, swivel hooks, nets, buckets, chainsaws, baskets, containers, should be manufactured according to applicable rules or recognised standards. The operator should be responsible for maintaining the serviceability of this equipment."
Where would I find the applicable rules or recognized Standards?
looking at the document 'Consolidated AMC & GM to Annex VIII (Part SPO) Page 177 (c) 3 it reads "All additional equipment used, e.g. ropes, cables, mechanical hooks, swivel hooks, nets, buckets, chainsaws, baskets, containers, should be manufactured according to applicable rules or recognised standards. The operator should be responsible for maintaining the serviceability of this equipment."
Where would I find the applicable rules or recognized Standards?
We have the same issue in Australia under the CASA regs, they don't specify standards for anything after the hook. However there are very clearly defined standards for lifting equipment manufacture, maintenance & inspection defined by the Australian standards & government workplace health & safety regulations so we comply with that.
Another can of worms to consider is the rigging qualifications of the pilot. I have a crane ticket & therefore I am qualified to rig a load, but there are no regs in Australia regarding pilots being trained on rigging. Ground/ship based crane drivers must learn how to rig a load prior to getting a ticket, gravity defying crane drivers don't. We're trying to stay ahead of the curve & get qualified for rigging loads before it's legislated or worst case scenario a lawyer points it out during a court case after an incident.
Another can of worms to consider is the rigging qualifications of the pilot. I have a crane ticket & therefore I am qualified to rig a load, but there are no regs in Australia regarding pilots being trained on rigging. Ground/ship based crane drivers must learn how to rig a load prior to getting a ticket, gravity defying crane drivers don't. We're trying to stay ahead of the curve & get qualified for rigging loads before it's legislated or worst case scenario a lawyer points it out during a court case after an incident.
Heliduck
Just the same here in UK. we have lifting regs over here which covers anything that is involved in lifting. The regs are very specific in some areas such as lifting slings and chains shackles that they must be certified and inspected. However quite often there is no inspection regime for slings e.g. there should be no damage, nicks signs of wear, that is pretty loose in some respects!
Bitmox in your case you will find The Barry Longline has a certification ( normally 7 times working limit ) with an inspection regime as does the 5 year overhaul for an on board systems hook. I would suggest that Swiss law will have like UK its own lifting regs. Would suggest as we do we run spreadsheets showing when things were, purchased, inspected, how often used,binned etc etc. That way it proves you are running a safety management system for your equipment. In that way if some thing goes wrong or fails then you have had taken all reasonable precautions
Just the same here in UK. we have lifting regs over here which covers anything that is involved in lifting. The regs are very specific in some areas such as lifting slings and chains shackles that they must be certified and inspected. However quite often there is no inspection regime for slings e.g. there should be no damage, nicks signs of wear, that is pretty loose in some respects!
Bitmox in your case you will find The Barry Longline has a certification ( normally 7 times working limit ) with an inspection regime as does the 5 year overhaul for an on board systems hook. I would suggest that Swiss law will have like UK its own lifting regs. Would suggest as we do we run spreadsheets showing when things were, purchased, inspected, how often used,binned etc etc. That way it proves you are running a safety management system for your equipment. In that way if some thing goes wrong or fails then you have had taken all reasonable precautions
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Get a crane riggers ticket to satisfy H&S, and then forget 90% of what they tell you about actually rigging loads....
And never let a "crane rigger" strop up your load, as there is a really good chance it will come off / fly apart / etc while you are flying.
If they insist just ask them how often they are working in 100 km/hr winds? Not many crane operators are happy to b working in wind, but that is where our load lives!!
Also be careful with what rigging you by. Barry I think, have put an age on their ropes, from date of manufacture! So you buy a couple of brand new longlines, one goes in the cupboard, the other one gets used once a month and is looked after really well, but after a couple of years you have to throw them both out!!
Another guy buys one and uses it everyday in the dust and grime and can use it the same length of time if it passes "visual inspection"...
And never let a "crane rigger" strop up your load, as there is a really good chance it will come off / fly apart / etc while you are flying.
If they insist just ask them how often they are working in 100 km/hr winds? Not many crane operators are happy to b working in wind, but that is where our load lives!!
Also be careful with what rigging you by. Barry I think, have put an age on their ropes, from date of manufacture! So you buy a couple of brand new longlines, one goes in the cupboard, the other one gets used once a month and is looked after really well, but after a couple of years you have to throw them both out!!
Another guy buys one and uses it everyday in the dust and grime and can use it the same length of time if it passes "visual inspection"...
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All of our ground personnel are certified to rig loads. We always have a Crew of one Pilot and two flightaid that are full time employed by the Heli Company we work for. So rigging is not the issue.
As for our sling equipment, obviously we take good care of our equipment and meet and sometimes exceed the Mfg. crtieria. By exceeding I mean that for example our remote hooks are overhauled every 2 and not 5 years (Onboard Talon 3K) and they accumulate around 800 hrs. in two years (1000 hrs. Limit).
Our biggest issue so far is the HEC System we want to use. A double hook System does not work for us since we do it very rarely and when needed it has to be ready in a few minutes. We were looking at the ARS Heli briddle which seems a nice and simple design that can be installed in just a few minutes without an engineer having to sign off and release the Heli for Service (we do not have a full time engineer). Looking at the EASA CM No.:CM-CS-005 Issue 01......well lets just say its very frustrating that EASA will only consider simplified Systems (max. 2 persons) if it has been manufactured in accordance with a EN Standard under EU directive89/686/EEC
As for our sling equipment, obviously we take good care of our equipment and meet and sometimes exceed the Mfg. crtieria. By exceeding I mean that for example our remote hooks are overhauled every 2 and not 5 years (Onboard Talon 3K) and they accumulate around 800 hrs. in two years (1000 hrs. Limit).
Our biggest issue so far is the HEC System we want to use. A double hook System does not work for us since we do it very rarely and when needed it has to be ready in a few minutes. We were looking at the ARS Heli briddle which seems a nice and simple design that can be installed in just a few minutes without an engineer having to sign off and release the Heli for Service (we do not have a full time engineer). Looking at the EASA CM No.:CM-CS-005 Issue 01......well lets just say its very frustrating that EASA will only consider simplified Systems (max. 2 persons) if it has been manufactured in accordance with a EN Standard under EU directive89/686/EEC
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Underslinging
In a Company that I worked for, a Maintenance Programme was in place for all sling gear. If there is no Manufacturer's programme or requirements, then a visual inspection before use and an annual, specialist inspection was regarded as the minimum requirement. The specialist that we used was Lloyds British Testing.
This satisfied UKCAA requirements and hence EASA.
This satisfied UKCAA requirements and hence EASA.
