UK OHSAG Jan 2015 Minutes

Posted by on Mar 7, 2015 in Accidents & Incidents, Airfields / Heliports / Helidecks, Crises / Emergency Response / SAR, Design & Certification, Helicopters, Human Factors / Performance, HUMS / VHM / UMS / IVHM, Logistics, Maintenance / Continuing Airworthiness / CAMOs, Offshore, Oil & Gas / IOGP / Energy, Resilience, Safety Management, Survivability / Ditching | 0 comments

UK Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG) Jan 2015 Minutes

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has just published the minutes of the latest,  27 Jan 2015, meeting of the Offshore Helicopter Safety Action Group (OHSAG).

The OHSAG was formed as a result of the ‘Civil Aviation Authority Safety Review of Offshore Public Transport Helicopter Operations in Support of the Exploitation of Oil and Gas’ (CAP1145).

Items to note:

  1. This meeting was held the day before the issue of CAP 1243, the Offshore Helicopter Review Progress Report, which provided an update on the progress with CAP1145 10 months to 31 Dec 2014 (discussed by Aerossurance previously).
  2. Communication, particularly to the passenger community was discussed further.
  3. UK CAA confirmed that they have trained Flight Ops Inspectors’ to carry of Safety Assessment of Community Aircraft (SACA) inspections (i.e. to inspect other EU states helicopters operating in the UK).  In the previous meeting it had been noted that the UK CAA were to ‘investigate further operations of foreign operators in the UK who may not comply with CAP1145’.
  4. It was noted that the 6m / Sea State 6 restriction had resulted in more flight cancellations than expected this winter.
  5. It was noted that a paper on the future management / control of helideck inspections was to be formally circulated to group members after the meeting for comment.
  6. A Cranfield University report on fire fighting on Normally Unattended Installations (NUIs) is to be presented at the next meeting.  The draft report was described as ‘well received’ but it is not stated who had seen the draft.
  7. Progress on coordinating customer audits was reported and is to be reviewed at the meeting after next.
  8. An action was raised to clarify who was ‘driving’ the issue of EBS for aircrew.
  9. The Irish Aviation Authority was not invited to this meeting, despite an action on October 2014. There is however an action to liaise with the other North Sea National Aviation Authorities through an EASA Collaborative Working Group.

The next meeting is scheduled for late April (conveniently prior to the first HeliOffshore AGM).  The meeting interval now seem to have settling at quarterly.

Aerossurance covered the issue of the October minutes here and both the previous minutes (with links to all prior meeting minutes) and a recent  Oil & Gas UK briefing session here (which includes video of the CAA presentation and panel sessions).

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Aerossurance is an Aberdeen based aviation consultancy.  For expert advice on offshore helicopter safety, operations, airworthiness, survivability and contracting matters, contact us at enquiries@aerossurance.com

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