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Type Certificates for DH and Bulldog aircraft to be rescinded

Fundamental changes are about to occur to the way in which type design support is provided to the range of aircraft under the responsibility of de Havilland Support Ltd (DHSL). These changes take effect from 1st April 2012 and will allow UK-registered aircraft to be operated on a Permit to Fly.

The UK CAA has recently determined that for so-called ‘orphan’ aircraft types (those for which there is no Type Certificate Holder (TCH) it may now be admissible to operate either on a Certificate of Airworthiness or a Permit to Fly, at the discretion of the aircraft owner. The pre-condition of the UK CAA is that orphan aircraft may only be granted a Certificate of Airworthiness if an acceptable organisation has entered into a CAA Type Responsibility Agreement (TRA) to oversee the continued airworthiness of those aircraft. Conversely, if there were to be no TCH and if no TRA could be arranged, then all aircraft of the type would be obliged to operate on a Permit to Fly. This would curtail all operation for valuable consideration, such as flying training in a club environment or pleasure flying.

For many of the aircraft types supported by DHSL, it is increasingly unrealistic and disproportionate for them to follow all the maintenance protocols now implied by a UK CAA Standard Category Certificate of Airworthiness. Migrating these aircraft types to a Permit to Fly would offer their owners a more viable route to sustaining the airworthiness of their aircraft.

Agreement has therefore been reached with the UK CAA for DHSL to relinquish its responsibilities as a TCH and to take out a TRA for the Tiger Moth, Dragon Rapide, Chipmunk and Bulldog only. This will allow the owners of aircraft types covered by the TRA to elect to operate on the form of certification which best suits their operational requirements.

All other aircraft types previously supported by DHSL will no longer be eligible for the grant of a UK Certificate of Airworthiness and must transfer to a Permit to Fly. The Permit to Fly may be supervised by the UK CAA or the Light Aircraft Association (LAA) at the discretion of the owner, except that in the case of the multi-engined types being orphaned (Dragon, Dragonfly, Dove and Heron) only a CAA-supervised Permit to Fly will be available.

Unfortunately, to ensure our ongoing presence in support of the certificated aircraft, an annual TRA membership fee will become payable by commercial and other operators who require a Certificate of Airworthiness to allow operation for valuable consideration or unhindered operation overseas.

It is anticipated that the UK CAA will issue an Information Notice to define the regulatory implications of the DHSL actions, and the transition arrangements. Before the date of implementation it will be necessary for owners of only the Tiger Moth, Dragon Rapide, Chipmunk and Bulldog aircraft to declare what their future certification basis will be. To help owners decide on the basis of certification which best suits their needs, DHSL will be holding an Operators’ Conference at Duxford on Friday 20th January 2012.