Push the boundaries long enough and the laws of probablility will eventually get you. Remember, you have one chance only.
Then again the CATS and CARS are to a large extent designed for an airline environment, not a contract environment. I am sure that if everyone followed them to the T no contract aircraft would every fly.
My criteria is - is it safe?? You can be legal and unsafe, and you can be technically illegal but perfectly safe. A correctly rated 200 hr com can legally fly an instrument approach at Nelspruit in a complex light twin, packed with passengers, down to minima. Legal - yes. Safe - no.
GPS approach into a strip in the desert - legal - no. Safe - yes (no terrain)
For instance some minor category C MEL item fails (doesn't affect flight safety). You got 10 days to fix it or aircraft grounded. In many cases the spare will sit in customs for a month - what do you do - ground the aircraft, or just not write the item in the folio?
Flight and duty periods are also largely designed for an airline environment. For instance we work on a 5 week rotation - don't really need the day off once a week since there is b. all to do out here anyway - not like you are going to go and hang out with your mates at the beach. Bear in mind that on some days we might only fly an hour or two at most. Surely the CAA should grant dispensations based on the operators particular operating environment?
Last edited by Woof etc; 25th Jan 2006 at 09:58.