EU-OPS General Requirements — Page 13, Lesson 26

I want to walk you through the EU-OPS General Requirements, starting with the rules that apply directly to every crew member, and then moving into the specific responsibilities that fall on the Commander. First, let's look at the alcohol and duty restrictions for crew members. There are three clear prohibitions. Number one: a crew member must not consume alcohol less than 8 hours prior to reporting for duty or prior to the commencement of standby duty. That's an eight-hour "bottle-to-throttle" rule — a minimum abstinence period before you even show up. Number two: you must not report for duty with a blood alcohol level exceeding 0.2 promille. "Promille" means parts per thousand, so that's 0.2 grams of alcohol per litre of blood — a very low threshold, effectively zero tolerance for any practical effect. Number three: you must not consume alcohol during flight time or when on standby. So the prohibition covers the entire duty period, not just the flight itself. Now, the Commander's responsibilities. The Commander's overall safety responsibility begins as soon as he or she arrives on board the aeroplane, and it continues until he or she leaves the aeroplane at the end of the flight. That covers everyone and everything on board — crew, passengers, and cargo — for the entire time the Commander is physically on the aircraft. But there's a more specific operational responsibility. The Commander is responsible for the operation and safety of the aeroplane from the moment the aeroplane is first ready to move for taxiing for take-off, until it finally comes to rest at the end of the flight and the primary propulsion units — that means the engines, excluding the APU, the Auxiliary Power Unit — are shut down. So the APU doesn't count as a primary propulsion unit for this definition; it's the main engines that matter. The Commander also has authority — not just responsibility, but authority — to give all commands deemed necessary for the purpose of ensuring the safety of the aeroplane and the persons and property carried. That's a very broad grant of command power. Additionally, the Commander has the authority to disembark — to off-load — any person or any part of cargo which, in his or her opinion, presents a potential hazard to the safety of the aeroplane. That's a subjective judgment call, but it's backed by regulation. The Commander must not allow any person to be carried in the aeroplane who appears to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs and who may endanger the safety of the aeroplane or its occupants. So there's a duty to refuse carriage to an intoxicated or impaired person if they pose a risk. Similarly, the Commander may refuse to carry any inadmissible passenger, deportee, or person in custody — these are potentially disruptive passengers — if the carriage poses a safety risk to the aeroplane or its occupants. The Commander is also responsible for passenger safety briefings. He or she must ensure that all passengers are briefed as to the location of emergency exits, and the location and operation of safety equipment. That's a standard pre-flight briefing requirement. On the procedural side, the Commander must ensure that all operational procedures and checklists are complied with in accordance with the requirements of the Operations Manual — the OM. That's the Commander's manual that contains the airline's approved procedures. There's a critical restriction on crew duties during critical phases of flight. The Commander must ensure that no crew member performs any duty during take-off, initial climb, final approach, and landing except those duties required for the safe operation of the aeroplane. So during those four phases — take-off, initial climb, final approach, and landing — only essential flight-related tasks are permitted; no extraneous activities. Regarding recorders, the Commander must ensure that neither the Flight Data Recorder — the FDR — nor the Cockpit Voice Recorder — the CVR — is switched off in flight. However, there is an exception: under certain circumstances, the CVR may be switched off after an incident or accident to ensure that the previously recorded information is retained and not overwritten. So after a significant event, you may stop the CVR to preserve the recording, but not during normal flight. The Commander also has the authority to decide whether or not to accept an aeroplane with unserviceabilities — that is, defects or inoperative items — that are allowed by the Minimum Equipment List, or MEL, or the Configuration Deviation List, the CDL. The MEL lists equipment that may be inoperative under certain conditions, and the CDL covers missing or damaged external parts like fairings or panels. The Commander makes the final call on whether to accept the aircraft in that condition. Finally, the Commander must ensure that the pre-flight inspection has been carried out. That's the walk-around and cockpit checks before every flight. So to summarise: the alcohol rules are strict and clear for all crew, and the Commander carries a very broad set of responsibilities — from the moment they step on board, through every phase of flight, to the moment they leave — covering safety, authority over persons and cargo, briefings, procedures, recorders, and aircraft acceptance decisions.