Temporary Authority to Operate

Effective Date: June 2011

Version in Effect: 3 (revised in December 2023), issued on the joint authority of the TAA, the OAA and the AIA

Reference: TAM Part 5, Chapter 7

OPI / Telephone: DTAES 3-2 / 819-939-4813

1. Purpose

1.1. This joint Technical Airworthiness Authority (TAA)-Operational Airworthiness Authority (OAA)-Airworthiness Investigative Authority (AIA) Advisory presents guidance which Applicants for a Temporary Authority to Operate (TAO) may follow to ensure compliance with the Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces (DND/CAF) Technical, Operational and Investigative airworthiness rules in order to conduct activities related to defence for the DND/CAF using civilian-registered aircraft.

2. Applicability

2.1. This TAA-OAA-AIA advisory applies to organizations seeking a TAO to conduct activities relating to defence for the DND/CAF using an aircraft on a civil register that is either.

1. owned by a civilian person or organization and operated under a contract, agreement or understanding with the DND/CAF; or
2. operated by the DND/CAF.

3. Related Material

3.1. Definitions

1. Applicant. The regulated entity (organization’s representative individual) that is applying to the Technical Airworthiness Authority for an airworthiness certificate, accreditation or other form of airworthiness approval (see TAM (Reference 3.2.a) Glossary for full definition). In the context of a Temporary Authority to Operate (TAO), the Applicant is the DND/CAF organization that seeks to contract a civil aircraft operator to conduct an Activity Relating to Defence.
2. Experimental Flight Permit (EFP). A Flight Permit issued by the TAA to provide flight authority for conducting test and evaluation flights in support of research and development, engineering flight testing and developmental flight testing. (Derived from Reference 3.2.a, Glossary)
3. Flight Permit. A temporary flight authorization granted to an aircraft to operate for a specific purpose and within specified limits (Reference 3.2.a, Glossary). A DND/CAF flight permit may be issued to a civil registered aircraft, provided that it is operating under the authority of a TAO. There are two types of possible flight permits: an Experimental Flight Permit (EFP) and a Specific Purpose Flight Permit (SPFP).
4. Activity Relating to Defence. In accordance with reference 3.2.e, an activity, service or situation that has a connection to the national defence of Canada and, consequently, a connection to the DND/CAF.
5. Military Capability Authorization (MCA). Certification by the DND/CAF that a proposed equipment, configuration, design change and/or capability complies with the DND/CAF airworthiness standards. A MCA applies to the operator of a civil aircraft that is conducting activities relating to defence for the DND/CAF. A MCA is issued by the TAA and OAA to declare that the equipment, configuration, design change and/or capability complies with DND/CAF airworthiness standards, is acceptable to the DND/CAF for use and that it is safe for operation in flight. It also certifies that the aircraft operator and maintenance organization are acceptable and have been appropriately trained.
6. Specific Purpose Flight Permit (SPFP). A SPFP is issued jointly by the TAA and OAA to provide temporary flight authority when the aircraft does not meet the conditions of its Certificate of Airworthiness (CoA), but is capable of safe flight (Derived from TAM (Reference 3.2.a) definition). In the context of a TAO for civil-registered aircraft, it would normally be used for the temporary installation of Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) to meet a short term requirement, such as a one off task. If the GFE will be needed for long term tasks in support of the DND/CAF, the installation of the GFE will be authorized by issuing a MCA.
7. Temporary Authority to Operate (TAO). A special type of flight authority, issued jointly by the TAA and OAA, on behalf of the Minister of National Defence (MND), which authorizes an aircraft operator to perform activities relating to defence using an aircraft that is on a civil aircraft register (Reference 3.2.a and reference 3.2.b). The TAO also indicates that flight safety aspects of the activity will be monitored by the AIA and that flight safety occurrences will be subject to investigation by the AIA (Reference 3.2.c and reference 3.2.d), and the flying orders, publications, and regulations that will be applicable to the activities to be conducted. A TAO may be valid for a number of flights or a specific period, or up to a maximum duration of three years, and may be renewed as required.
8. Task Authorization/Tasking Order (TA/TO). A formal contractual document, signed by DND/CAF, authorizing the activity relating to defence. The TA/TO will specify the aircraft type being tasked, the nature of the activity and the exact timeframe for which the authorization will be valid. The approved TA/TO format will be specified in the TAO.

3.2. Regulatory References

1. C-05-005-001/AG-001 – Technical Airworthiness Manual (TAM), Part 5, Chapter 7
2. B-GA-104-000/FP-001 – Operational Airworthiness Manual (OAM), Article 315
3. A-GA-135-001/AA-001 – Flight Safety for the Canadian Armed Forces
4. A-GA-135-003/AG-001 – Airworthiness Investigation Manual
5. Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces and Transport Canada (as represented by Transport Canada Civil Aviation) Concerning the Responsibilities for Canadian Civil Registered Aircraft Performing Activities Relating to Defence (available internally, within DND, at AEPM RDIMS #1938916 (English), and #1958421 (French))
6. A-GA-005-000/AG-001 – Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces (DND/CAF) Airworthiness Program
7. B-GA-100-001/AA-000 – National Defence Flying Orders
8. Canadian Air Division Orders
9. RCAF Flight Operations Manual
10. TCCA Advisory Circular AC 102-001 – Operation and Maintenance of Aircraft Performing Activities Relating to Defence
11. Joint TAA-OAA-AIA Advisory 2022-01 – Oversight of Civil Aircraft Operators Contracted to Provide Air Services to the DND/CAF

4. Discussion

4.1 Overview

4.1.1 In accordance with the Aeronautics Act, civil registered aircraft that perform activities relating to defence are regulated by the Minister of National Defence (MND), rather than the Minister of Transport (MOT). Aircraft that perform both civil operations and activities relating to defence remain on the civil aircraft register. To ensure that civil registered aircraft can easily transfer between civil and military operations, the DND/CAF and Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Reference 3.2.e, which facilitates sharing information and transfer of responsibilities between the two regulators. TCCA has also issued an Advisory Circular (AC 102-001, Reference 3.2.j), to familiarize aircraft operators, approved maintenance organizations, delegates and TCCA staff with the aforementioned MOU.

4.1.2 In accordance with the MOU (Reference 3.2.e), the DND/CAF acts as the regulator and provides the flight authority to conduct activities relating to defence. To be so authorized, the aircraft operator must meet the requirements of the DND/CAF Airworthiness (AW) Program (Reference 3.2.f). However, the DND/CAF gives credit for civilian flight authorities to authorize the activities without the need to issue a DND Airworthiness Clearance. The enabling flight authority is called a Temporary Authority to Operate (TAO). In order to avoid the civilian operator commencing the service without this flight authority, the Applicant must ensure that an appropriate contract is in place, as per Joint TAA-OAA-AIA Advisory 2022-01 (Reference 3.2.k), and advise the OAA staff and/or TAA staff when activities relating to defence for the DND/CAF will be conducted, together with a request for the issue of a TAO.

4.1.3 The TCCA Advisory Circular (Reference 3.2.j) expands on the information contained in the MOU and provides the civilian operator practical guidance on demonstrating and maintaining compliance with regulations and standards, when transitioning between operating under the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) and when contracting their services to DND/CAF under the authority of a TAO. Key topics include:

1. examples of Activity Relating to Defence, where a TAO is required
2. information on the military regulatory structure
3. the regulatory responsibility, as well as interaction and transfer of authority between TCCA and DND/CAF regulatory structures
4. maintenance and modification of aircraft when conducting an activity relating to defence, and the return to compliance with the CARs for civil operation.

4.1.4 TAOs are prepared by the TAA (DTAES 3 staff), in conjunction with the OAA and AIA staffs, then released jointly by the TAA and OAA. Note that the AIA is part of the TAO process, in that they sign the TAO acknowledging that they are prepared to monitor the operator and investigate as required. A TAO replaces (and therefore, renders invalid) the civil Certificate of Airworthiness (CoA) and any Air Operator Certificate (AOC) when the aircraft is performing activities relating to defence. Thus, when conducting an activity relating to defence for the DND/CAF, a copy of the TAO, Task Authorization/Tasking Order (TA/TO) and any associated DND/CAF flight permit must be carried on board the aircraft as proof that the aircraft is being operated as a military aircraft under the regulatory authority of the DND/CAF.

4.1.5 In addition to stating that an aircraft is under the regulatory authority of the DND/CAF, a TAO contains annexes that specify general conditions and limitations for the activities, selected sections of National Defence Flying Orders (Reference 3.2.g), Canadian Air Division Orders (Reference 3.2.h), the RCAF Flight Operations Manual (Reference 3.2.i) and Flight Safety orders (Reference 3.2.c), as well as any special maintenance requirements and approved configurations of the aircraft.

4.1.6 For those aircraft operators who have been contracted to conduct activities related to defence, the DND/CAF AW Program is applied through contract law (see Reference 3.2.k). The terms and conditions of the TAO clearly refer to the contract for which it is issued, including specific conditions that must be complied with by the aircraft operator. If the aircraft operator is a sub contractor of a prime contractor (with whom the DND/CAF has the main contract), the TAO will be issued to the aircraft operator, not the prime contractor; the aircraft operator will, then, be regulated through the contract between the prime contractor and the sub contractor. Should the aircraft operator fail to comply with the TAO and/or contract, the TAA/OAA may suspend or revoke the TAO.

4.2 TAO Requirements

4.2.1 To be eligible for the award of a TAO, the aircraft operator must meet all of the following requirements:

1. Acceptable Aircraft Design and Continuing Airworthiness. The aircraft design must be based on an acceptable standard, and must have an acceptable continuing airworthiness support system that maintains the design at an acceptable level of safety. Annex A, Section 1 of this advisory provides an acceptable airworthiness standard for continuing airworthiness of the aircraft design.
2. Flight Authority. The aircraft must have and maintain a valid civilian flight authority deemed acceptable by the TAA and the OAA. All flight authorities must meet the standards in Annex A, Section 2 of this advisory.
3. Air Operator Certificate. The aircraft operator must either: hold an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) or Foreign AOC (FAOC) issued by TCCA; or be approved as a private operator in accordance with Canadian Aviation Regulation (CAR) 604; or operate under a foreign civilian operating approval that enables the aircraft operator to fly under their national flight authority when not conducting activities relating to defence for the DND/CAF. Refer to Annex A, Section 3 of this advisory for details.
4. Acceptable Maintenance Control System. The aircraft operator must have a maintenance control system that maintains a valid flight authority and meets the requirements in Annex A, Section 4 of this Advisory.
5. Performance of Maintenance. Maintenance must meet the requirements in Annex A, Section 5 of this Advisory.
6. Acceptable Operator System. The aircraft operator must have an acceptable operating system that meets the requirements in Annex A, Section 6 of this advisory.

7. Maintaining a TAO Flight Authority. The aircraft operator will be subject to TAA and OAA audits, as described in Annex A, Section 7 of this advisory, to verify compliance with the advisory requirements. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the suspension or revocation of an issued TAO.
8. Flight Safety Program (or Safety Management System). The aircraft operator must have a program to document and submit reportable military-civilian occurrences to AIA staff, and be prepared to investigate/support AIA investigations into those occurrences.

4.3 TAO Process

4.3.1 The DTAES TAO Office of Primary Interest (OPI) prepares the TAO, with input from the Staff Officer Operational Airworthiness (SO OA). For an initial release of a TAO, DTAES sends copies of the TAA, OAA and AIA audit checklists to the operator, for completion and return. These audit checklists document an aircraft operator’s compliance with minimum airworthiness requirements for each focus area, and, at the discretion of the Applicant, may also be used as part of a bid evaluation questionnaire. The completed checklists are forwarded to the TAA (DTAES 4) audit staff, SO OA and DFS staff, as applicable, for review and resolution of any queries. Once the checklists have been signed off as accepted, they are forwarded to the DTAES TAO OPI, for retention and archiving with all other TAO documentation relating to the aircraft operator.

4.3.2 Typically, the assessment of an aircraft operator for the initial issue of a TAO will consist of a remote desktop audit. However, DND/CAF staff may choose to conduct an on site visit to the aircraft operator, if they deem it necessary. If the initial assessment is conducted remotely, an on site audit will normally follow during the first year of operation. If the TAO is to be renewed after the first period of operation, subsequent regular audits will be conducted by technical and operational airworthiness staffs at an interval of 24 months or less, as required. If the TAO is valid for more than one year, the technical and operational airworthiness staffs will conduct an annual airworthiness review, to verify if anything significant has changed in the operation that might require the TAO to be withdrawn and/or re issued with amended details.

4.3.3 The DTAES TAO OPI then compiles details of the aircraft operator’s AOC and aircraft used for the contract in an AOC and Fleet Details sheet. If a DND/CAF Flight Permit is required for the activity relating to defence, the DTAES OPI will prepare it, in conjunction with the Applicant and SO OA.

4.3.4 When all checklists have been accepted and all queries have been resolved, the TAO is staffed for signatures. The AIA signs the TAO to state that DFS staff are ready to monitor the flight safety aspects of the operation, then the TAA and OAA (or their delegates) sign to approve the TAO. Once the TAO is approved, it is issued to the aircraft operator. Since a DND/CAF Flight Permit cannot be issued for an aircraft on a civil register, unless it is operating under a TAO, any DND/CAF Flight Permit will not be signed until the TAO has been approved.

4.3.5 The DTAES OPI forwards copies of the signed TAO and any DND/CAF Flight Permit to the aircraft operator, DND/CAF Applicant, the DND/CAF Airworthiness Authorities, TCCA HQ and the TCCA Regional Office (if the operator is a Canadian company).

Annex

A. TAO Requirements in Detail