A harness instrument, commonly issued by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), stated that a harness could be used instead of a seatbelt for take-off and landing. Although not intended by CASA, this instrument was easily able to be misinterpreted as indicating that a seatbelt was not required to be used during take-off and landing.
Published on 2 December 2021, Civil Aviation Safety Regulation Part 138 Manual of Standards at 14.03 removes the requirement for individual instruments regarding the use of safety harnesses on board aircraft. Accordingly, the risk associated with this safety issue has been resolved.
Issue finalisation date: 22 December 2021
In January 2021, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) advised that regulatory provisions for use of seatbelts and other restraint devices such as safety harnesses for aerial work operations will be covered by the new Civil Aviation Safety Regulations Part 138 – Aerial work operations from 2 December 2021. CASR 138 will replace all individual harness instruments with a national standard.
Relevantly, section 14.03 of the Part 138 Manual of Standards will require that the harness is fit for the particular purpose of the operation and the crew member must have been trained in its use and assessed as competent before the flight.
Civil Aviation Safety Regulation Part 138 was issued in December 2021. CASR 138.375 (1) reads:
The Part 138 Manual of Standards may prescribe requirements relating to the wearing of seatbelts or other restraint devices during aerial work operations.
The Part 138 Manual of Standards at 14.03 (3) reads:
When a safety harness or a restraint strap (the equipment) is worn instead of a seatbelt, the equipment must be:
(a) fit for the particular purpose of the operation; and
(b) compliant with the requirements of, or approved under, Part 21 of CASR; and
(c) serviceable before the operation commences.
The language of the Part 138 Manual of Standards is much simpler than that of the previous instrument. A major drawback with the instrument was the use of the word ‘approved’ with two different meanings. Here ‘approved’ is used only once, in the context of the approvals for manufacturing the equipment. The harnesses must also be 'fit for the particular purpose….' This means a manufacturer’s advice must be observed.
