Wet-Leasing a Foreign Turboprop: Whose AOC Applies?
A Pakistani AOC holder operating three ATR 42-320s on domestic scheduled routes has a six-month capacity shortfall after an engine failure. It proposes to wet-lease a foreign-registered 68-seat turboprop from a foreign AOC holder. The lease states that the foreign lessor supplies the aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance, while the Pakistani operator sets the schedule, sells the seats and uses its own flight number. The aircraft will remain on the foreign register with a foreign certificate of airworthiness; the pilots will hold foreign licences and medicals. The foreign operator has no Pakistani operating authorization. The Pakistani operator asks PCAA to approve the arrangement 30 days before the first flight and says its own AOC already covers all turbine aircraft.
1. Who would exercise operational control under this lease, and can the Pakistani AOC holder treat the aircraft as part of its own AOC?
Read the worked answer
The label wet lease is not decisive. Because the foreign lessor supplies crew and maintenance, it may retain operational control; the Pakistani operator's schedule and seat sales are commercial functions. If the foreign operator retains operational control, the flights are under the foreign AOC, and the Pakistani AOC holder cannot simply add the aircraft to its own AOC. PCAA must decide who has operational control and must authorise the foreign operator to operate into Pakistan. If the Pakistani operator is to exercise operational control, the aircraft should be on the Pakistani register and the crew should hold Pakistani licences or validations.
2. What approvals and safety checks should PCAA require before the first flight?
Read the worked answer
PCAA should require the foreign AOC, foreign C of A, maintenance and insurance evidence, lease and crew records; verify the foreign authority's oversight; check traffic rights and economic authorisation; and approve the arrangement in writing. The 30-day request is tight. The Pakistani operator must show how operational control, dispatch, load control, security and emergency response will be exercised. It must not advertise or sell the flights as its own AOC service before approval.
3. What changes if the Pakistani operator insists on using its own flight number and selling seats as its own service?
Read the worked answer
Using its own flight number and selling seats does not convert a foreign-operated flight into a Pakistani AOC operation. It may amount to a code-share or charter requiring specific authorisation. The Pakistani operator cannot hold out the foreign aircraft as covered by its AOC merely because the AOC says all turbine aircraft. PCAA should require clear disclosure and a compliant commercial arrangement.