Now let’s move to first aid kits — Page 78, Lesson 120

Let’s start with the door requirements for compartments not normally occupied by passengers. If such a compartment has its own emergency exit, then the door that leads from the passenger cabin into that area must be openable — you need to be able to get through it. If, during an emergency, passengers or crew have to pass through that doorway to reach the exit, then that door — or even a curtain — must have a way to be secured in the open position. And those doors or curtains must have a sign attached that says the doorway must be secured open for take-off and landing. That’s a procedural requirement: before every take-off and landing, that door gets locked open so the path is clear. The crew also need a means of unlocking any door that passengers can lock from the inside — specifically, toilet doors. So there has to be a way for the crew to override the passenger lock in an emergency. Now let’s move to first aid kits. Under EU-OPS, every aeroplane must carry accessible and adequate medical supplies — that means first aid kits — and the number of kits must be commensurate with the number of passengers the aeroplane is authorised to carry. The kits have to be inspected regularly and replenished as necessary. So it’s not a one-time fit-and-forget item; it’s an ongoing maintenance obligation. On top of that, both Annex 6 to the Chicago Convention and EU-OPS require the carriage of an emergency medical kit. This is a separate, more advanced kit intended for use by doctors or other qualified persons to treat in-flight medical emergencies. The trigger for carrying it is: the aeroplane is authorised to carry more than 30 passengers, and the flight is 60 minutes or more from qualified medical assistance. So if you’re flying a 40-seat aircraft on a 45-minute leg that stays close to airports with medical help, you don’t need it. But if that same aircraft flies a route that’s an hour or more away from medical assistance, you do. The emergency medical kit must be dust and moisture proof — so it’s sealed against contamination. And it must be carried under security conditions, preferably on the flight deck. That means it’s kept secure, not in an open cabin bin, and ideally up front with the pilots. Finally, here’s the table from Figure 1.1 that tells you how many basic first aid kits you need based on passenger count: - For 0 to 99 passengers: 1 kit - For 100 to 199 passengers: 2 kits - For 200 to 299 passengers: 3 kits - For 300 or more passengers: 4 kits So the first aid kit count scales with passenger numbers, while the emergency medical kit is triggered by a combination of passenger capacity and distance from medical help.