You dont actually need an AOC for anything other than ad hoc charter . If someone wants to do a number of hours charter they can always just lease your aircraft and do it much simpler and cheaper privately !! The UK system is so restrictive and expensive that owners think they can only use their aircraft for themselves or rent out to operators at very low rates . They may just want to get say 25 hours a year to help with cost of insurance and that doesnt work with AOC,s . All they need to do is find a few people who would like to charter , do a lease agreement with them for X hours and give them a list of approved pilots . Job done . The crazy part is that they can then legally do much more with the helicopter then the operator can do such as night flying , no floats etc etc which personally i wouldnt have thought was enhancing safety !! The fixed wing boys have done this for years now very happily and that is why they seem to thrive . If there was such a thing as an AOC Light which would work for single machine operators wanting to do a few hours a year we would all join . If its going to cost £20k a year and a raft more paperwork then its pretty obvious its not going to work !!
Paco . So you are saying that i can take say three pax , all with cameras , and fly them around with no AOC or other permit ? The problem is that you will then get into an argument about who was necessary for the flight . If you just do a lease you get over all of that and know that you are acting legally . I am not aware that anyone has ever been prosecuted for leasing , unless they havent bothered draw up a lease agreement or are providing their own pilot within the price . The CAA also want the aircraft maintained to the same level as an AOC machine . ( at least that was the case when i last asked them about 10 years ago ...)
Last edited by nigelh; 16th Dec 2017 at 11:16.