WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF AN FAA AUDIT

You have an important role in protecting the aircraft. It starts with cargo safety. Anything added to an airplane can introduce risk. Dangerous goods, also known as Hazardous Materials, and other cargo can contribute to catastrophic incidents when things go wrong. The risk starts well before the airport. Cargo safety and preventing undeclared dangerous goods is everyone's responsibility.

§173.22 Shipper's responsibility.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this part, a person may offer a hazardous material for transportation in a packaging or container required by this part only in accordance with the following:

(1) The person shall class and describe the hazardous material in accordance with parts 172 and 173 of this subchapter, and

(2) The person shall determine that the packaging or container is an authorized packaging, including part 173 requirements, and that it has been manufactured, assembled, and marked in accordance with:

(i) Section 173.7(a) and parts 173, 178, or 179 of this subchapter.

(ii) A specification of the Department in effect at the date of manufacture of the packaging or container.

(iii) National or international regulations based on the UN Recommendations (IBR, see §171.7 of this subchapter), as authorized in §173.24(d)(2);

(iv) An approval issued under this subchapter; or

(v) An exemption or special permit issued under subchapter A of this chapter.

(3) In making the determination under paragraph (a)(2) of this section, the person may accept:

(i) Except for the marking on the bottom of a metal or plastic drum with a capacity over 100 L which has been reconditioned, remanufactured or otherwise converted, the manufacturer's certification, specification, approval, or exemption or special permit marking (see §§178.2 and 179.1 of this subchapter); or

(ii) With respect to cargo tanks provided by a carrier, the manufacturer's identification plate or a written certification of specification or exemption or special permit provided by the carrier.

(4)(i) For a DOT Specification or UN standard packaging subject to the requirements of part 178 of this subchapter, a person must perform all functions necessary to bring the package into compliance with parts 173 and 178 of this subchapter, as identified by the packaging manufacturer or subsequent distributor (for example, applying closures consistent with the manufacturer's closure instructions) in accordance with §178.2 of this subchapter.

(ii) For other than a bulk package or a cylinder, a person must retain a copy of the manufacturer's notification, including closure instructions (see §178.2(c) of this subchapter). For a bulk package or a cylinder, a person must retain a copy of the manufacturer's notification, including closure instructions (see §178.2(c) of this subchapter), unless permanently embossed or printed on the package. A copy of the manufacturer's notification, including closure instructions (see §178.2(c) of this subchapter), unless permanently embossed or printed on the package when applicable, must be made available for inspection by a representative of the Department upon request for at least 90 days once the package is offered to the initial carrier for transportation in commerce. Subsequent offerors of a filled and otherwise properly prepared unaltered package are not required to maintain manufacturer notification (including closure instructions).

(iii) When applicable, a person must retain a copy of any supporting documentation used to determine an equivalent level of performance under the selective testing variation in §178.601(g)(1) of this subchapter. Such documentation is to be retained by the person certifying compliance with §178.601(g)(1), as prescribed in §178.601(l), and retained as prescribed in paragraph (a)(4)(ii) of this section.

(b) No person may offer a motor carrier any hazardous material specified in 49 CFR 385.403 unless that motor carrier holds a safety permit issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

(c) Prior to each shipment of fissile radioactive materials, and Type B or highway route controlled quantity packages of radioactive materials (see §173.403), the shipper shall notify the consignee of the dates of shipment and expected arrival. The shipper shall also notify each consignee of any special loading/unloading instructions prior to his first shipment. For any shipment of irradiated reactor fuel, the shipper shall provide physical protection in compliance with a plan established under:

(1) Requirements prescribed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, or

(2) Equivalent requirements approved by the Associate Administrator.

Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting §173.22, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.

§173.22a Use of packaging’s authorized under special permits.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, no person may offer a hazardous material for transportation in a packaging the use of which is dependent upon an exemption or special permit issued under subpart B of part 107 of this title, unless that person is the holder of or a party to the exemption or special permit.

(b) If an exemption or special permit authorizes the use of a packaging for the transportation of a hazardous material by any person or class of persons other than or in addition to the holder of the exemption or special permit, that person or a member of that class of persons may use the packaging for the purposes authorized in the exemption or special permit subject to the terms specified therein. Copies of exemptions and special permits may be obtained by accessing the Hazardous Materials Safety Web site at http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/hazmat/regs/sp-a” or by writing to the Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety, U.S. Department of Transportation, East Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001, Attention: Records Center.

(c) When an exemption or special permit issued to a person who offers a hazardous material contains requirements that apply to a carrier of the hazardous material, the offeror shall furnish a copy of the current exemption or special permit to the carrier before or at the time a shipment is tendered.

International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) Assessor's Checklist Instructions

General. An IASA assessment is conducted using the following IASA Assessor’s Checklist. Using an established checklist ensures transparency and repeatable results in the conduct of assessments. The Checklist is designed to be used only by trained IASA assessors who have successfully completed IASA training and/or assessors undergoing OJT under the supervision of a trained assessor. The assessor’s checklist is also sent to the foreign Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in advance of the assessment so they can complete the checklist prior to the assessment, and return it to the assessment team leader. This enables the team to work more efficiently by verifying the Authority’s answers to each question.

Description. The assessor’s checklist is a comprehensive guide, covering all elements of the State's safety oversight program, which are subject to assessment under this program. The checklist is divided into nine (9) sections corresponding to the eight (8) critical elements of safety oversight system, as defined in ICAO Document 9734, Part A, Chapter 3, plus one section covering General Information and Air Operator Complexity. In essence, it is a road map to guide both the IASA team and the State through a systematic verification process. In exceptional circumstances, an observation may be made that may not have been addressed in the assessor's checklist; in these circumstances, the team member will inform the team leader so that he or she may advise the State of the reason for doing so. Such observations shall be recorded in the applicable comment section along with their specific relevance to safety oversight.

Checklist sections:

General  General Information and Air Operator Complexity

CE-1     Primary Aviation Legislation

CE-2     Specific Operating Regulations

CE-3     State Civil Aviation System and Safety Oversight Functions

CE-4     Technical Personnel Qualification and Training

CE-5     Technical Guidance, Tools, and the Provision of Safety Critical Information

CE-6     Licensing, Certification, Authorization and Approval Obligations

CE-7     Surveillance Obligations

CE-8     Resolution of Safety Concerns

Checklist use: The checklist is designed to be used primarily by the assessors in the conduct of the assessment. Although not required, it has proven beneficial for the CAA to complete the checklist prior to the assessment and provide the completed checklist to the team leader. It would assist the team if the CAA includes hyperlinks to the applicable regulatory and technical guidance references in their responses. Questions contain expandable comment fields as needed, however in some cases questions may only require a yes/no response. The checklist is designed to be divided into sections that can be assigned to different assessor specialties during the assessment activity. Below is a table outlining which specialty should be responsible for completion of each section of the checklist.

ASA Checklist Section Assignment

Cont'd

Cont'd

Each checklist section identifies the ICAO SARPs, and the related guidance materials that are subject to an IASA assessment. The checklist provides the document reference and indicates if it is an Article of the Chicago Convention (CC), an ICAO Standard (STD), or guidance material (GM).

The heading at the beginning of each section also allows for team member(s) completing that section to be listed, and an overall compliance status for that section to be indicated.  An assessment finding that identifies lack of compliance with a regulation promulgated by the Contracting State, a provision of the Chicago Convention, or implementation of an ICAO Standard is an indication that the compliance status is unsatisfactory.  An assessment finding that identifies lack of adherence to an ICAO Standard and Recommended Practice, procedure or safety-related guidance material will be recorded, but may not cause the particular section to be unsatisfactory.  The section compliance status is determined by making an overall evaluation of the CAA’s compliance status in the area covered by the checklist section for inclusion in the assessment report. Any finding will require a description and the reasons for the non-compliance and will include the ICAO reference.

NOTE - Electronic versions of the checklist may be downloaded from the public web site:

http://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/iasa/checklists/ 

ICAO publications referred to in the IASA checklists: 

Revisions to ICAO publications referenced in the checklists are highlighted in the table above.