Use of Safety Belts for Crew and Passengers / Admission to the Flight Deck

Use of Safety Belts for Crew and Passengers

Any technical deficiencies of seat belts (passenger or crew) must be entered in the Aircraft Technical Log.

Crew

Each flight crew member on the flight deck shall keep his safety lap belt fastened while at his station. Flight crew members shall keep their safety lap belts and shoulder harnesses fastened during:

• Taxi;
• Take-off and climb to 10.000 ft (FL100);
• Descent from 10.000 ft (FL100) to landing;
• Turbulent conditions; and
• Whenever deemed necessary by the Commander in the interest of safety.

If one pilot vacates his seat whilst airborne for any reason, then the pilot in control must wear his full harness and have his seat in the normal flying position. During the climb and descent, both pilots should have their seats in the normal flying position.

Cabin crew members shall be at their assigned crew stations, properly secured by the safety belts and harnesses fastened during:

• Taxi (except for safety-related duties);
• Take-off;
• Landing; and
• Whenever deemed necessary by the Commander in the interest of safety (turbulence, etc).
• The need for this will be indicated by the Seat Belts sign ON.

Passengers

The Commander shall ensure that each person on board is briefed before take-off on how to fasten and unfasten his safety belt/harness. The cabin crew must also inform all passengers that the use of the seat belts is recommended during the entire flight. Before take-off and landing, and whenever he considers it necessary in the interests of safety, the Commander shall ensure that each passenger on board occupies a seat with his safety belt/harness properly secured. The need for this will be indicated by the Seat Belts sign ON and a subsequent PA announcement. The announcement is usually done by CIC but may also be done by the Commander whenever he deemed necessary.

Seat belts must be un-fastened and the Seat Belts sign switched OFF during:
• Transit;
• Refuelling with passengers on board.

If, after landing, the aeroplane must stop during taxiing and before reaching the parking position, the Commander should consider informing the passengers via PA (if possible in the specific situation) to remain seated with fastened seat belts until the aeroplane has reached the final parking position.

Admission to the Flight Deck

The flight deck door must be closed and locked when the aeroplane’s doors are closed for departure and shall remain closed until the engines are shut down on arrival, except when necessary to allow routine access or permit access and way out by authorised persons.

The flight deck door may be opened, solely at the discretion of the aircraft Commander, when required for the purposes of essential entry and egress from the flight deck.

Before opening the door the CCTV or door viewer must be checked. A pilot will acknowledge and unlock the door. One cabin crew member is required to stand at the front of the cabin facing the passengers and monitoring the cabin at all times. Once entry has been gained the door must be closed and locked.

The flight crew must not leave the flight deck while the aircraft engines are in operation except for health (including physiological needs) and safety reasons.

General Policy

Admission to the flight deck is normally at the sole discretion of the Commander, subjected to current policy issued by SSCA or the State Authorities.

No person other than operating flight crew member shall have admission to or be carried on the flight deck, unless such person is:
• A representative of SSCA, responsible for certification, licensing or inspection, if this is required for the performance of his official duties; or
• An employee of other national aeronautical authorities, if this is required for the performance of his official duties; or
• An employee of foreign aeronautical authorities/organisations performing specific duties and/or on a familiarisation flight, as approved by Flight Operations Manager; or
• An employee of The Company (i.e. holder of Company ID); or
• Authorised according to the “Use of Vacant Crew Seats” procedure (refer to OM Part A, Chapter 8).

A person shall only be carried on the flight deck provided that a seat with safety belt/safety harnesses is available and that requirements concerning supplemental oxygen are met.

The person shall be instructed:

• About the use and location of emergency exits, life jackets and oxygen;
• Not to distract and/or interfere with the operation of the flight;
• Not to touch any controls, switches, instruments, circuit breakers;
• Not to smoke;
• Not to talk unless invited to do so by the Commander;
• To keep the safety belt/safety harnesses fastened at all times.

Subject to local regulatory requirements, passengers may be allowed by the Commander to visit the cockpit for a short period during cruise, provided the visits are properly supervised by cabin crew. While a visitor is in the cockpit, one pilot has to give his total attention to flight monitoring and management duties. In general, visitors to the flight deck should be briefed that they should not initiate conversations with the flight crew and that in the event of any warning indication they must remain silent.

Furthermore, during take-off and landing, Commanders are not authorised to permit a passenger, other than a staff passenger, to remain on the flight deck without special permission from the Flight Operations Manager. Such cases are further subject to the consent of the Commander to this passenger occupying a flight deck jump seat during the take-off and landing.

Commander's Authority to Refuse a Travel / Admission to the Flight Deck

The final decision regarding the admission to the flight deck of persons of the above categories rests with the Commander who should request credentials or identification of such persons before granting such admission. In the interest of safety, admission to the flight deck shall not cause distraction and/or interfere with the flight operation.

CAA personnel entitled to enter and remain on the flight deck in order to be able to perform their duties shall only be denied access by the Commander if he deems this necessary in the interest of safety. The commander shall explain the circumstances of such denial in the ASR.

Cockpit Introduction for Cabin Crew

For introduction purposes it is permitted to have a cabin crew member in the cockpit during take-off and/or landing, provided this cabin crew member is a member of the working crew and does not have an emergency duty (e.g. ferry flights). This procedure shall be applied in a restrictive manner and never for commercial reasons (i.e. selling the cabin crew jump seat).

Flight Deck Door Procedures

Before flight the Commander shall brief the CIC as to the current flight deck door emergency access code. The code shall not be written down on any paperwork by the CIC to guard against the code falling into the wrong hands.

For the flight crew procedures when leaving the flight deck refer to OM Part A, Chapter 8.

Before making request to open the flight deck door, cabin crew member shall:
• Close the forward galley curtain and dim galley lights to prevent a direct view from the cabin to the area in front of the flight deck door;
• Verify that the adjacent lavatory (if applicable) and galley area are not passenger occupied; and
• Keep the flight deck door opened for only the minimum time required to quickly enter the cockpit.

The cabin crew must use the interphone system or keypad should an entry to the cockpit is required.

The flight crew must positively identify the fact that the area around the flight deck door is clear and that the person requesting entry is authorised to enter the cockpit. Once this is confirmed the flight crew will unlock the door.

Prior to leaving the flight deck, the crew member must inspect the area around the cockpit door through the video surveillance system or viewing lens or by communicating with the cabin crew through the interphone system.

Special code phrase arranged before commencing duty (e.g. »CAPTAIN, I REALLY MUST COME IN THE COCKPIT«) shall be used if cabin crew wants to communicate security-related problem to the Commander. Should such phrase be communicated to the cockpit via the interphone, then the flight deck door shall not be opened.

In aeroplanes not fitted with the (operational) video surveillance system, the cabin crew must use the interphone system should an entry to the cockpit be required. The request for entry must be preceded by a code word. The code word for each flying duty period will be decided by the Commander and upon boarding the aeroplane he will communicate it to the First Officer and to the CIC, who in turn will brief one more cabin crew member in this regard. The CIC must be briefed that the code word will not be used on the interphone unless the area around the galley and entrance to the cockpit is clear. Should the code word not be used then the cockpit door will not be opened. Refer also to OM Part A, Chapter 8.