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operational Control...
delegated with operational control before
the flight is permitted to depart. Priester
uses this process regardless of whether it
is conducting operations under Part 135 or
Part 91.
To be issued an air carrier certificate,
the FAA must approve the policies and
procedures used by an operator, and in
turn the FAA trusts that those policies
and procedures will be followed. In recent
years, there have been several high profile
examples of air carriers caught trying to
abuse this trust by sharing or transferring

(continued from page 3)

operational control to third parties. This
is inconsistent with the exercise of operational control directly by the air carrier and
contrary to safety. These cases have led
to an increased emphasis on operational
control by the FAA.
The FAA specifies the necessary components of the operational control system
to be used at an air carrier, but not how it
should be implemented. This is because of
the wide variety of operations being conducted under Part 135, with each having
their own unique operational needs. This

degree of flexibility means that the individual operators are free to develop systems
that they will actually use. However, the
notion of operational control often extends
beyond the flight department and can affect
aircraft owners and how lease and management contracts are structured. Ultimately,
the liability for a flight rests with the entity
exercising operational control over it.
Lee Smith is an ATP and CFII rated pilot
with a background in corporate and Part
135 operations.

BEST PRACTICES

New oSHA ops and Training Standards
By RoB fINfRoCK

FAR Part 91 corporate flight departments
and FAR Part 135 air charter operators
must be aware of recent policy changes
implemented by the U.S. Department of
Labor's Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) aimed toward
improving the safety of flight department
employees and cabin crewmembers.
Announced in 2012 with formal implementation beginning last August, the new
Hazard Communication Standard (HCS)
complies with the United Nations' Globally
Harmonized System of Classification and
Labeling of Chemicals for providing basic
information of a chemical's hazard and risk.
Under that standard, the characteristics
and toxicity of all chemicals must be displayed using geographical information system
(GIS) standards for identification, with documentation and handling instructions for hazardous materials available to all flight department employees and cabin crewmembers.
"Implementing the GIS brings us in line
with the rest of the world," said Gregory
Ripple, an attorney and partner in the Grand
Rapids, Michigan, law firm of Miller and
Johnson who specializes in aviation law and
OSHA requirements. "We live in a global
economy, and flights carrying these chemicals cross international borders every day."
While the full HCS does not go into
effect until 2016, OSHA mandated that
4

all flight department employees receive
the appropriate training by December 1,
2013-a deadline that some smaller operations may not have met.
"I'm shocked by the number of employers that have not conducted the required
training," Ripple added. "Whether you
have one employee or 1,000, you need to
comply. But, that's probably due to a lack
of communication; as much as OSHA publicized these changes, it's not something a
lot of people really paid attention to."
The new OSHA guidelines also address
cabin crewmembers' exposure to high
noise levels, with the policy covering
almost any person-flight attendants, cargo
handlers, and medical personnel-performing a company duty in an aircraft cabin
while in flight. The standards do not apply
to pilots who enter the aircraft cabin as
part of their job duties, however.
Hearing conservation programs, guidance
for exposure to blood-borne pathogens,
and rules on record-keeping and access to
employee exposure and medical records
also fall under the revised OSHA standards,
which supplement existing Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) requirements and
cover occupational safety and health standards not presently overseen by the agency.
"Again, these are all areas that I would
expect larger flight departments and FBOs

to have already addressed," Ripple noted. "If
they already had a dedicated workplace safety person, the necessary training has probably already taken place-but for those that
don't, it likely slipped through the cracks."
Ripple acknowledged that enforcement of
the new regulations may be difficult. "That's
something that both agencies haven't really
figured out," he added. "The FAA and OSHA
each stated that they would not disrupt operations [to enforce the revised standards] or conduct investigations during flight. That leaves
addressing these matters on a compliance
basis, either during a random OSHA inspection
or in response to an employee complaint.
"However, should OSHA visit your business,
you need to be in compliance," he concluded.
Operators seeking additional information
about the new standards, including compliance requirements and training materials,
may download the OSHA Fact Sheet at
https://www.osha.gov/Publications/
OSHA3642.pdf.
-Rob Finfrock
The Aircare Solutions Group
offers Hazard Communication
Standard Training for OSHA's new
GHS labeling requirements at no
charge (factstraining.com/OSHAcompliance-package.shtml).

https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3642.pdf http://www.factstraining.com/OSHA-compliance-package.shtml http://www.factstraining.com/OSHA-compliance-package.shtml

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