M.A.202
M.A.202(a) Occurrence reporting responsibilities
(a) Without prejudice to the reporting requirements set out in Annex II (Part-145) and Annex Vc (Part-CAMO), any person or organisation responsible in accordance with point M.A.201 shall report any identified condition of an aircraft or component which endangers flight safety to:
(1) the competent authority designated by the Member State of registry of the aircraft, and, when different to the Member State of registry, to the competent authority designated by the Member State of the operator;
(2) to the organisation responsible for the type design or supplemental type design.
AMC M.A.202(a) Responsibilities
Accountable persons or organisations should ensure that the type certificate (TC) holder receives adequate reports of occurrences for that aircraft type, to enable it to issue appropriate service instructions and recommendations to all owners or operators.
Liaison with the TC holder is recommended to establish whether published or proposed service information will resolve the problem or to obtain a solution to a particular problem.
An approved continuing airworthiness management or maintenance organisation should assign responsibility for co-ordinating action on airworthiness occurrences and for initiating any necessary further investigation and follow-up activity to a suitably qualified person with clearly defined authority and status.
In respect of maintenance, reporting a condition which endangers flight safety is normally limited to:
— serious cracks, permanent deformation, burning or serious corrosion of structure found during scheduled maintenance of the aircraft or component.
— failure of any emergency system during scheduled testing.
M.A.202(b) Occurrence reports
(b) The reports referred to in point (a) shall be made in a manner determined by the competent authority referred to in point (a) and shall contain all pertinent information about the condition known to the person or organisation making the report.
AMC M.A.202(b) Reports
The reports may be transmitted by any method, i.e. electronically, by post or by facsimile.
Each report should contain at least the following information:
— reporter or organisation’s name and approval reference if applicable,
— information necessary to identify the subject aircraft and/or component,
— date and time relative to any life or overhaul limitation in terms of flying hours/cycles/landings etc., as appropriate,
— details of the occurrence.
AMC 20-8 General Acceptable Means of Compliance for Airworthiness of Products, Parts and Appliances provides further guidance on occurrence reporting.
M.A.202(c) Maintenance organisation (incl. Airworthiness review) occurrence reporting responsibilities
(c) Where the maintenance or the airworthiness review of the aircraft is carried out on the basis of a written contract, the person or the organisation responsible for those activities shall also report any condition referred to in point (a) to the owner and the operator of the aircraft and, when different, to the CAMO or CAO concerned.
M.A.202(d) Occurrence reporting initial report
(d) The person or organisation shall submit the reports referred to in points (a) and (c) as soon as possible, but no later than 72 hours from the moment when the person or organisation identified the condition to which the report relates, unless exceptional circumstances prevent this.
M.A.202(e) Occurrence reporting follow-up report
(e) The person or organisation shall submit a follow-up report, providing details of actions which that person or organisation intends to take to prevent similar occurrences in the future, as soon as those actions have been identified. The follow-up report shall be submitted in a form and manner established by the competent authority.
GM 3.15 to Regulation (EU) 376/2014- Follow-up reports
Among reportable occurrences only those for which the analysis (of single occurrence or together with a group of other occurrences) has led to the identification of an actual or potential aviation safety risk are covered by the obligation to transfer analysis and follow-up related information.
For those occurrences, Regulation 376/2014 requires organisations to transmit to their competent authority the results of the analysis performed, if any; and any action to be taken pursuant to that analysis.
Organisations are required to report preliminary results within 30 days from the date of notification of the occurrence by the reporter and are encouraged to report final results as soon available and no later than three months after the notification (Article 13(4) and (5)).
Whereas organisations are encouraged to provide complete analysis and follow-up as soon as available and, in principle, no later than three months after the occurrence notification, it is recognised that analysing an occurrence may take longer than three months, especially in the event of a complex investigation or where the services of a specialist investigator are required.
The follow up requirements are not intended to jeopardise the quality and thoroughness of an occurrence analysis. It may be detrimental to safety if rushed in order to be completed within the encouraged three months period without properly establishing root cause and determining relevant remedial action.