EASA and CAAC have planned many activities focusing on helicopter safety this year, and held the first from 29-31 March on the subject of air operations regulation. Under the framework of the established cooperation platform EU-China Aviation Partnership Project (APP), experts of EASA’s Flight Standards Directorate and CAAC’s Flight Standard Department led the regulatory exchange which was complemented by views from academia and industry. A high attendance number of close to 300 participants showed the strong general interest in the discussion on helicopter operations safety aspects.

​

The workshop started with an overview of the current air operations regulation for helicopters in Europe and China, with a focus on which regulation is applicable for the different type of operations. Subsequently, views from Aviation Training Organisations were shared, including on safe operation under instrument meteorological conditions and helicopter training. On the second day of the activity, operators from China and Europe presented their perspective on the implementation of the regulation, benefits, challenges, and recommendations to the authorities. This was followed by OEM presentations covering solutions on standards and technologies to improve operations safety management. On the final day, EASA and CAAC wrapped up the activity by sharing the current perspectives on regulatory revisions, also noting that deeper cooperation between Europe and China in this area will be of strong benefit for the safety of helicopter operations in both regions. 

​

The presentations supporting the exchange between the two authorities were delivered by the Civil Aviation Management Institute of China, Civil Aviation Flight University of China, NAFA International Flying Academy, CITIC Offshore Helicopter Company, Beijing Reignwood Star General Aviation Company, Rouer General Aviation Development Group Company, Norsk Luftambulanse Helikopter, Airbus Helicopters, and Safran Electronics & Defense.

​

You can find the supporting resources for this activity here.  A password is required. To request access please contact Wang Lili at lili.wang@eu-china-app.org.

​

The next activity that will be organised by EU-China APP in the domain of helicopter safety is the Helicopter Point in Space (PinS) procedure design and application Workshop in the end of May. More information on this event will be provided via the APP website, newsletter and WeChat account.