AMC1 CAO.A.070(a) Component certificate of release to service

CAA ORS9 Decision No. 1

1. An aircraft component which has been maintained off the aircraft requires the issuance of a CRS for such maintenance and another CRS in regard to being installed properly on the aircraft when such installation occurs. When an organisation maintains a component for use by the same organisation, a CAA Form 1 may not be necessary depending upon the organisation’s internal release procedures defined in the CAE.

2. In the case of components in storage prior to Part-145, Part-M and Part 21 and not released on a CAA Form 1 or equivalent in accordance with M.A.501(a)(1) or ML.A.501(a), or removed serviceable from a serviceable aircraft or from an aircraft which has been withdrawn from service, the following applies:

2.1. A CAA Form 1 may be issued for an aircraft component which has been:

— maintained before Part-145 or Part-M became effective, or manufactured before Part 21 became effective;

— used on an aircraft and removed in a serviceable condition. Examples include leased and loaned aircraft components;

— removed from aircraft which have been withdrawn from service, or from aircraft which have been involved in abnormal occurrences such as accidents, incidents, heavy landings or lightning strikes;

— maintained by an unapproved organisation.

2.2. An appropriately rated Part-CAO maintenance organisation may issue a CAA Form 1 as detailed in points 2.5 to 2.9, as appropriate, in accordance with the procedures detailed in the CAE as approved by the CAA. The appropriately rated Part-CAO maintenance organisation is responsible for ensuring that all reasonable measures have been taken to ensure that only approved and serviceable aircraft components are issued with a CAA Form 1 under this point 2.

2.3. For the purposes of this point 2 only, ‘appropriately rated’ refers to an organisation with an approval class rating for the type of component or for the product in which it may be installed.

2.4. A CAA Form 1 issued in accordance with this point 2 should be issued by signing in block 14b and stating ‘Inspected/Tested’ in block 11. In addition, block 12 should specify:

2.4.1. when the last maintenance was carried out and by whom;

2.4.2. if the component is unused, when the component was manufactured and by whom with a cross reference to any original documentation which should be included in the Form;

2.4.3. a list of all airworthiness directives (ADs), repairs and modifications known to have been incorporated. If no ADs or repairs or modifications are known to be incorporated, then this should be so stated;

2.4.4. the detail of life used for service life-limited parts being any combination of fatigue, overhaul or storage life;

2.4.5. for any aircraft component having its own maintenance history record, reference to the particular maintenance history record as long as the record contains the details that would otherwise be required in block 12. The maintenance history record and acceptance test report or statement, if applicable, should be attached to CAA Form 1.

2.5. New/unused aircraft components

2.5.1. Any unused aircraft component in storage without a CAA Form 1 up to the effective date(s) for Part 21 that was manufactured by an organisation acceptable to the CAA at the time may be issued with an CAA Form 1 by an appropriately rated maintenance organisation approved under Part-CAO. CAA Form 1 should be issued in accordance with the following points, which should be included in a procedure within the CAE.

Note 1: It should be understood that the release of a stored but unused aircraft component in accordance with this point represents a maintenance release under Part-CAO and not a production release under Part 21. It is not intended to bypass the production release procedure agreed by the UK for parts and subassemblies intended for fitment on the manufacturers’ own production line.

(a) An acceptance test report or statement should be available for all used and unused aircraft components that are subject to acceptance testing after manufacturing or maintenance as appropriate.

(b) The aircraft component should be inspected for compliance with the manufacturer’s instructions and limitations for storage and condition including any requirement for limited storage life, inhibitors, controlled climate and special storage containers. In addition, or in the absence of specific storage instructions, the aircraft component should be inspected for damage, corrosion and leakage to ensure good condition.

2.5.2. If it is not possible to establish satisfactory compliance with all applicable conditions specified in point 2.5.1 (a) to (c) inclusive, the aircraft component should be disassembled by an appropriately rated organisation and subjected to a check for incorporated ADs, repairs and modifications and inspected/tested in accordance with the maintenance data to establish satisfactory condition and, if relevant, all seals, lubricants and life-limited parts replaced. Upon satisfactory completion after reassembly, a CAA Form 1 may be issued stating what was carried out and the reference to the maintenance data included.

2.6. Used aircraft components removed from a serviceable aircraft

2.6.1. Serviceable aircraft components removed from a UK registered aircraft may be issued with a CAA Form 1 by an appropriately rated organisation subject to compliance with this point 2.6.1.

(a) The organisation should ensure that the component was removed from the aircraft by an appropriately qualified person.

(b) The aircraft component may only be deemed serviceable if the last flight operation with the component fitted revealed no faults on that component or related system.

(c) The aircraft component should be inspected for satisfactory condition including in particular damage, corrosion or leakage and compliance with any additional maintenance data.

(d) The aircraft record should be researched for any unusual events that could affect the serviceability of the aircraft component such as involvement in accidents, incidents, heavy landings or lightning strikes. Under no circumstances may a CAA Form 1 be issued in accordance with this point 2.6 if it is suspected that the aircraft component has been subjected to extremes of stress, temperatures or immersion which could affect its operation.

(e) A maintenance history record should be available for all used serialised aircraft components.

(f) Compliance with known modifications and repairs should be established.

(g) The flight hours/cycles/landings as applicable of any service life-limited parts including time since overhaul should be established.

(h) Compliance with known applicable airworthiness directives should be established.

(i) Subject to satisfactory compliance with this point 2.6.1, a CAA Form 1 may be issued and should contain the information as specified in point 2.4 including the aircraft from which the aircraft component was removed.

2.6.2. Serviceable aircraft components removed from a non-UK registered aircraft may only be issued with a CAA Form 1 if the components are leased or loaned from the maintenance organisation approved under Part-CAO that retains control of the airworthiness status of the components. A CAA Form 1 may be issued and should contain the information as specified in point 2.4 including the aircraft from which the aircraft component was removed.

2.7. Used aircraft components removed from an aircraft withdrawn from service

Serviceable aircraft components removed from a UK registered aircraft withdrawn from service may be issued with a CAA Form 1 by a maintenance organisation approved under Part-CAO subject to compliance with this point 2.7.

(a) Aircraft withdrawn from service are sometimes dismantled for spares. This is considered to be a maintenance activity and should be accomplished under the control of an organisation approved under Part-CAO, employing procedures approved by the CAA.

(b) To be eligible for installation, components removed from such aircraft may be issued with a CAA Form 1 by an appropriately rated organisation following a satisfactory assessment.

(c) As a minimum, the assessment will need to satisfy the standards set out in points 2.5 and 2.6 as appropriate. This should, where known, include the possible need for the alignment of scheduled maintenance that may be necessary to comply with the maintenance programme applicable to the aircraft on which the component is to be installed.

(d) Irrespective of whether the aircraft holds a certificate of airworthiness or not, the organisation responsible for certifying any removed component should ensure that the manner in which the components were removed and stored are compatible with the standards required by Part-CAO.

(e) A structured plan should be formulated to control the aircraft disassembly process. The disassembly is to be carried out by an appropriately rated organisation under the supervision of certifying staff, who will ensure that the aircraft components are removed and documented in a structured manner in accordance with the appropriate maintenance data and disassembly plan.

(f) All recorded aircraft defects should be reviewed and the possible effects these may have on both normal and standby functions of removed components are to be considered.

(g) Dedicated control documentation is to be used as detailed by the disassembly plan, to facilitate the recording of all maintenance actions and component removals performed during the disassembly process. Components found to be unserviceable are to be identified as such and quarantined pending a decision on the actions to be taken. Records of the maintenance accomplished to establish serviceability are to form part of the component maintenance history.

(h) Suitable Part-CAO facilities for the removal and storage of removed components are to be used which include suitable environmental conditions, lighting, access equipment, aircraft tooling and storage facilities for the work to be undertaken. While it may be acceptable for components to be removed, given local environmental conditions, without the benefit of an enclosed facility, subsequent disassembly (if required) and storage of the components should be in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.

2.8. Used aircraft components maintained by organisations not approved in accordance with Part-M Subpart F, Part-CAO or Part-145

For used components maintained by a maintenance organisation not approved under Part-M Subpart F, Part-CAO or Part-145, due care should be taken before acceptance of such components. In such cases, an appropriately rated maintenance organisation approved under Part-CAO should establish satisfactory conditions by:

(a) dismantling the component for sufficient inspection in accordance with the appropriate maintenance data;

(b) replacing all service life-limited components when no satisfactory evidence of life used is available and/or the components are in an unsatisfactory condition;

(d) completing all certification requirements as specified in CAO.A.070.

In the case of used components maintained by an FAA Part-145 repair station (USA) or by a TCCA CAR573 approved maintenance organisation (Canada) that does not hold a CAA Part-145, Part-CAO or Part-M Subpart F approval, the conditions (a) through (d) described above may be replaced by the following conditions:

(a) availability of a Form 8130-3 (FAA) or TCCA 24-0078 (TCCA) or an Authorized Release Certificate Form One (TCCA);

(b) verification of compliance with all applicable airworthiness directives;

(c) verification that the component does not contain repairs or modifications that have not been approved in accordance with Part 21;

(d) inspection for satisfactory condition including in particular damage, corrosion or leakage; and

(e) issuance of a CAA Form 1 in compliance with points 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4.

These alleviated requirements are based on the fact that credit can be taken for their technical capabilities and their CAA oversight, as attested by the following documents:

— Maintenance Annex Guidance (MAG) between the FAA and CAA

— Maintenance Annex Guidance (MAG) between the TCCA and CAA

2.9. Used aircraft components removed from an aircraft involved in an accident or incident

Such components should only be issued with a CAA Form 1 when processed in accordance with point 2.7 and a specific work order including all additional necessary tests and inspections made necessary by the accident or incident. Such a work order may require input from the TC holder or original manufacturer as appropriate. This work order should be referenced in block 12.

3. A certificate should not be issued for any component when it is known that the component is unserviceable except in the case of a component undergoing a series of maintenance processes at several approved maintenance organisations and the component needs a certificate for the previous maintenance process carried out for the next approved maintenance organisation to accept the component for subsequent maintenance processes. In such a case, a clear statement of limitation should be endorsed in block 12.

4. The certificate is to be used for export/import purposes, as well as for domestic purposes, and serves as an official certificate for components from the manufacturer/maintenance organisation to users. It should only be issued by organisations approved by a CAA or the CAA as applicable within the scope of the approval.