Canadian Aviation Regulations (SOR/96-433)

Statistics on the Number of Passengers and Aircraft Movements

• 303.06 (1) The operator of an airport or aerodrome shall review, at least once every six months, the statistics in respect of the number of emplaned and deplaned passengers resulting from the Electronic Collection of Air Transportation Statistics project carried out jointly by the Department of Transport and Statistics Canada for the twelve months preceding the date of the review and determine whether the airport or aerodrome qualifies as a designated airport under subsection 303.02(1).

• (2) The operator of a designated airport shall compile monthly statistics setting out the number of movements by commercial passenger-carrying aircraft in each aircraft category for fire fighting.

• (3) The operator of a designated airport shall, at least once every six months, review the monthly statistics for the twelve months preceding the date of the review and determine the three consecutive months with the highest total number of movements by commercial passenger-carrying aircraft in all aircraft categories for fire fighting.

• (4) Where the review shows more than one period of three consecutive months having the same total number of movements by commercial passenger-carrying aircraft, the period to be used for the purposes of section 303.07 is

  • (a) the period involving the highest aircraft category for fire fighting; or

  • (b) where those periods involve the same highest aircraft category for fire fighting, the period involving the greatest number of movements in that category.

• (5) The Minister may, in writing, on application by the operator of a designated airport, authorize the operator to cease providing an aircraft fire-fighting service if the operator demonstrates by means of a risk analysis based on Standard CAN/CSA-Q850-97 entitled Risk Management: Guideline for Decision-makers as amended from time to time that the cessation of the aircraft fire-fighting service will not result in an unacceptable risk to aviation safety.

• (6) If the Minister issues an authorization under subsection (5), the operator of a designated airport shall submit the content of the authorization for publication in the Canada Flight Supplement and in a NOTAM, if the NOTAM is published earlier.

• (7) The operator of a designated airport shall

  • (a) retain the monthly statistics referred to in subsection (2) for five years after the date of the review; and

  • (b) provide them to the Minister at the Minister’s request.

Critical Category for Fire Fighting

• 303.07 (1) The operator of a designated airport shall determine a critical category for fire fighting for the airport based on the number of movements at the airport during the three-month period determined in accordance with subsection 303.06(3) or (4) by commercial passenger-carrying aircraft in the highest and the next highest aircraft categories for fire fighting.

• (2) Where, during the period referred to in subsection (1), the number of movements at the designated airport by aircraft in the highest aircraft category for fire fighting is 700 or more, the critical category for fire fighting is equivalent to that highest aircraft category for fire fighting.

• (3) If, during the period referred to in subsection (1), the number of movements at the designated airport by aircraft in the highest aircraft category for fire fighting is less than 700, the critical category for fire fighting shall be determined by decreasing the highest aircraft category for fire fighting by one category.

• (4) If the operator of a designated airport anticipates a period of one or more hours of movements of aircraft of a lower aircraft category for fire fighting only, the operator may reduce the critical category for fire fighting to the highest aircraft category for fire fighting anticipated for that period if the operator

  • (a) documents the anticipated situation; and

  • (b) notifies the appropriate air traffic control unit or flight service station of the reduced critical category for fire fighting for publication in a NOTAM.

Division II — Extinguishing Agents and Aircraft Fire-Fighting Vehicles

Extinguishing Agents and Equipment

303.08 The operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall provide its aircraft fire-fighting service with both the principal and the complementary extinguishing agents and the equipment delivering the agents that meet the requirements set out in the aircraft fire-fighting standards.

Extinguishing Agent and Aircraft Fire-fighting Vehicle Requirements

303.09 Subject to sections 303.10 and 303.11, the operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome the critical category for fire fighting of which is set out in column I of an item of the table to this section shall provide to the aircraft fire-fighting service at the airport or aerodrome the quantities of water and complementary extinguishing agents set out in columns II and III of the item, and the minimum number of aircraft fire-fighting vehicles set out in column IV of that item necessary to provide the total discharge capacity set out in column V of that item.

Temporary Exemption

• 303.10 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome does not have to meet the requirements referred to in section 303.09 where those requirements cannot be met because of a personnel shortage or unserviceable equipment at the airport or aerodrome caused by circumstances beyond the control of its operator and a notification of the reduced level of aircraft fire-fighting service at the airport or aerodrome has been given to the appropriate air traffic control unit or flight service station for publication in a NOTAM.

• (2) When the condition described in subsection (1) continues for seven days or more, the operator of a designated airport shall, no later than seven days after the onset of the condition,

  • (a) establish a plan specifying the corrective measures that are necessary to meet the requirements of section 303.09 and the dates by which those measures shall be taken, which dates shall be as early as practicable given the circumstances; and

  • (b) submit the plan to the Minister.

• (3) The operator of a designated airport shall implement the submitted plan by the date specified in the plan.

Authorization Respecting Reduced Requirements

• 303.11 (1) The Minister may, in writing, on application by the operator of a designated airport, authorize the operator to meet the requirements set out in the table to section 303.09 for a lower critical category for fire fighting than that established for the airport pursuant to section 303.07 where that operator demonstrates that

  • (a) the critical category for fire fighting was the result of movements by unusually large commercial passenger-carrying aircraft or an unusually high number of movements by commercial passenger-carrying aircraft at the airport and either of these situations is unlikely to be repeated within the next year; or

  • (b) the number of movements by, or the size of, commercial passenger-carrying aircraft at the airport is expected to be altered in a manner that would result in a lower critical category for fire fighting.

• (2) Where a written authorization has been issued pursuant to subsection (1), the operator of the designated airport shall meet the requirements set out in the table to section 303.09 for the lower critical category for fire fighting specified in the authorization and shall ensure that

  • (a) notification of the reduced level of aircraft fire-fighting service and the period during which the level is reduced is given to the appropriate air traffic control unit or flight service station for publication in the Canada Flight Supplement and in a NOTAM, where the NOTAM is published earlier;

  • (b) procedures are established to restore the level of aircraft fire-fighting service to the previous higher level if the reduction in the number of movements by, or in the size of, commercial passenger-carrying aircraft at the airport is temporary; and

  • (c) the procedures for a reduction in the level of aircraft fire-fighting service and the procedures referred to in paragraph (b) are set out in the airport operations manual.

Adjustment to Higher Requirements

303.12 Where an increase in the number of movements by, or in the size of, commercial passenger-carrying aircraft at a designated airport results in the establishment for the airport of a higher critical category for fire fighting than the previous category, the operator of the airport shall meet the requirements for that higher category as set out in the table to section 303.09 within one year after the date of establishing the higher critical category for fire fighting.

Division III — Personnel Requirements

Minimum Personnel

303.13 During the hours of operation of the aircraft fire-fighting service, the operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall ensure that trained aircraft fire-fighting personnel are in response posture and in sufficient number to operate the aircraft fire-fighting vehicles and apply the extinguishing agents required by section 303.09.

Training of Personnel

303.14 The operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall ensure that all personnel assigned to aircraft fire-fighting duties are trained in accordance with the aircraft fire-fighting standards.

Equipment and Protective Clothing

303.15 The operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall provide all personnel assigned to aircraft fire-fighting duties with the equipment and protective clothing necessary to perform their duties.

Firefighter Qualifications

• 303.16 (1) No operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall permit a person to act and no person shall act as an aircraft firefighter at the airport or aerodrome unless the person has, within the previous 12 months, successfully completed the training specified in the aircraft fire-fighting standards.

• (2) The operator of a designated airport or of a participating airport or aerodrome shall

  • (a) maintain, for each aircraft firefighter, a training record containing the information specified in the aircraft fire-fighting standards;

  • (b) keep the training record for three years after the day on which the aircraft firefighter leaves the service of the airport or aerodrome; and

  • (c) at the request of the Minister, provide the Minister with a copy of the training record.