However, in practice on commercial airline service, the time available before departure is tight so the crew member carrying out the external check will often commence the External Check immediately on arrival at the aircraft prior to boarding. Timing and Co-ordinationĪn external check should normally be conducted only after the Aircraft Technical Log is available at the aircraft and has been properly examined by the aircraft commander. It does not matter which pilot has been assigned PF duties for the departure and, provided that the person delegated to carry out the check is on duty, under the command of the designated aircraft commander, and aircraft type qualified, they do not need to be a member of the operating crew they could be ‘heavy crew’ on long haul flights or present because of pilot line training activity. It is quite common for aircraft commanders to decide to carry out the external inspection prior to the first flight of a particular flight crew duty period themselves. It is the pilot designated as aircraft commander for the forthcoming flight who must determine who carries out the duty. It is entirely unrelated to the separate requirements for appropriately qualified aircraft maintenance technicians to carry out scheduled checks and inspections necessary for the Certificate of Release to Service to be signed and, in some cases, to remain valid for the specified duration. Incidentally it also provides an opportunity to observe the environment in which the aircraft is parked and may sometimes allow the observation of aspects of aircraft hold loading and routine aircraft servicing. It is primarily, therefore, a general visual inspection of those aspects of fitness of the aircraft for flight which can be verified wholly or partly in that way. ![]() The procedures detailed in the Aircraft Flight Manual (AFM) and Operations Manual take absolute precedence where any conflict exists or is perceived DescriptionĪ Fight Crew Pre Flight External Check is part of the basis for the Captain's Aircraft Acceptance which must be formally recorded in the Aircraft Technical Log prior to every flight departure. CAUTION: This article provides general guidance.
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