HKIE Professional Assessment - Aircraft Discipline cheat sheet

HKIE aircraft discipline practice is governed by the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order and CAD Hong Kong requirements; design/repair approvals follow HKAR-21, maintenance organisations HKAR-145, licensing HKAR-66/147.

Controlled documents must be traceable: every maintenance action is recorded against the approved maintenance data (AMM, SRM, IPC, AD, SB) with revision status identified at time of use.

Airworthiness Directives are mandatory; Service Bulletins are mandatory only when incorporated by an AD, a design approval, or the operator's approved maintenance programme.

A maintenance release certifies that the work was carried out per approved data; it does not certify that the aircraft is free of all defects - deferred items must be recorded under the approved deferral scheme (MEL/CDL).

MEL/CDL deferral requires: defect entered in the technical log, operational and maintenance procedures applied, and rectification interval tracked; exceeding the interval grounds the aircraft.

Mass and balance: CG position must remain within the forward and aft limits for all loading states; forward limit is set by elevator authority/nose-wheel loading, aft limit by static margin and tail-load.

Standard atmosphere: ISA sea level 15 °C and 1013.25 hPa; tropospheric lapse rate 1.98 °C per 1000 ft; pressure altitude = indicated altitude corrected for subscale setting error (approximately 30 ft per hPa).

Human factors regulation (HKAR-145/66) requires error-capturing defences: independent inspection for critical tasks, duplicate sign-off, shift handover records, and fatigue risk management for duty periods.

Structural repair classification: a repair is major if it affects airworthiness, weight/balance, or structural strength; major repairs require approved design data and a supplemental type certificate or repair design approval.

Damage tolerance: allowable damage limits (ADL) and structural repair manual limits define when a defect may be blended out, repaired, or requires engineering disposition.

Corrosion control per the operator's CPCP: Level 1 corrosion is blend-out within limits, Level 2 requires a repair scheme, Level 3 requires replacement or major repair approval.

Electrical bonding and lightning protection: resistance limits are specified in the SRM/AMM; bonding paths must be restored after any structural repair or component replacement.

Non-destructive testing methods must be selected per the approved data: eddy current for surface/subsurface cracks in aluminium, ultrasonic for internal defects, magnetic particle for ferromagnetic surface cracks, dye penetrant for non-porous surfaces.

Fuel system safety: defuelling and refuelling require bonding, no ignition sources within the defined zone, and fuel quantity/quality checks per the AMM before release.

Composite repairs require approved repair schemes (typically bonded or bolted per SRM); moisture ingress and lightning strike damage are common findings requiring NDT and engineering assessment.

Configuration control: all modifications must be embodied against an approved embodiment instruction, and the aircraft records (logbooks, modification status) must reflect the as-built configuration.

Continuing airworthiness management: the operator's CAMO maintains the aircraft maintenance programme, tracks AD/SB compliance, and controls the mass and balance and reliability programme.

Reliability programme data (alert levels, repeat defect rates) drives maintenance programme adjustments; a reliability alert requires investigation and corrective action before further escalation.

Technical log requirements: defects, deferred items, and maintenance releases are recorded; the certificate of release to service is signed only by an authorised certifying staff.

Certifying staff authorisation (HKAR-66/145) requires type training, OJT, and a formal company authorisation; the scope of authorisation must match the task.

Occurrence reporting: serious incidents and accidents are reported to CAD; MOR (mandatory occurrence reporting) covers defects that could affect airworthiness, and reports are made within the prescribed timeframe.

Quality system: an independent quality audit function monitors compliance with HKAR-145; findings are classified and corrective actions tracked to closure with root cause analysis.

Tooling and test equipment must be calibrated and traceable to a national standard; out-of-calibration equipment invalidates the work performed with it.

Storage and shelf life: time-limited items (seals, batteries, life-limited parts) must be tracked; life-limited parts are controlled by cycles, hours, or calendar limits recorded in the engine/airframe records.

Aircraft systems safety assessment: a failure that is catastrophic must have a probability of less than 1×10⁻⁹ per flight hour; hazardous less than 1×10⁻⁷; major less than 1×10⁻⁵; minor less than 1×10⁻³ (CS/FAR 25.1309).

Redundancy principles: fail-safe design uses dissimilar redundancy, monitored redundancy (comparator), or safe-life components; a single failure must not cause a catastrophic condition.

EWIS (electrical wiring interconnection systems) requires separation of power and signal routes, arc fault protection, and inspection per the enhanced zonal analysis procedure.

Ageing aircraft structures: supplemental structural inspection programmes and corrosion prevention control programmes are required for aircraft beyond design service goals.

Weight and balance calculations: moment = weight × arm; CG = total moment / total weight; the empty weight and CG must be established after any modification and recorded in the weight and balance report.

Performance: take-off field length must account for engine failure at V1 (accelerate-stop and accelerate-go), and landing distance must account for the dispatch condition; contaminated runway corrections apply.

Flight manual limitations (V speeds, MTOW, MLW, altitude limits, ETOPS) are binding; any deviation requires an approved flight manual change or operational approval.

Fuel planning: final reserve fuel, alternate fuel, contingency fuel, and taxi fuel must be computed per the operator's approved method; tankering must respect landing weight limits.

HKIE professional assessment expects evidence of engineering judgement: identify the applicable requirement, state the technical basis, and show the verification method (test, analysis, inspection).

Design change control: any change to type design requires classification (major/minor); major changes need an approved design organisation and airworthiness authority approval.

Independent inspection (dual inspection) is required for critical tasks such as flight control connections, engine controls, and system rigging; the second inspector must be independent of the first.

Torque and safetying: fasteners must be torqued to the specified value using a calibrated tool, and safety devices (lockwire, cotter pins) fitted per the AMM; torque values are not to be estimated.

Fluid servicing: hydraulic fluid, engine oil, and fuel must meet the specified grade; mixing of incompatible fluids is prohibited and cross-contamination must be checked before servicing.

Ground handling and jacking: aircraft must be jacked per the AMM with the correct jack points and load limits; the aircraft must be restrained and the CG within the jacking limits.

Environmental control and pressurisation: cabin pressure differential limits and outflow valve operation must be tested after any system disturbance; decompression scenarios require crew oxygen checks.

Documentation: certificates of airworthiness, maintenance records, and modification records must be retained for the prescribed period; loss of records requires an approved reconstruction process.

Regulatory hierarchy for Hong Kong aircraft: ICAO Annexes set the international baseline; CAD Hong Kong implements them through HKARs and the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order.

HKAR-21 covers design and production; HKAR-145 covers maintenance organisations; HKAR-66 covers certifying staff licensing; HKAR-147 covers training organisations.

An aircraft maintenance programme must be approved by CAD; it defines scheduled tasks, intervals, and the escalation/de-escalation process for interval changes.

AD compliance is mandatory and must be recorded in the aircraft records with the AD number, method of compliance, and date; repetitive ADs require interval tracking.

Airworthiness review: the continuing airworthiness management organisation conducts an annual airworthiness review and issues a certificate of airworthiness review, valid for one year.

Permit to fly: an aircraft without a valid C of A may be flown under a permit to fly for a specific purpose, with defined limitations and no fare-paying passengers.

Maintenance error management: a just culture approach distinguishes errors from violations; error investigation uses a structured model (e.g. MEDA) to identify organisational and individual factors.

Competence and training: certifying staff must maintain currency through recent experience and recurrent training; the training record must be retained and auditable.