Factual Information 2015:1.17 Organisational and Management Information/1.17.2.3.1
1.17.2.3.1 Flight Operations The structure consists of 6 Senior Managerial positions namely: i. QA & Regulatory Affairs ii. Training & Standards iii. Flight Safety & Human Factors iv. Technical & Development v. Crew Planning & Deployment vi. Line Operations. All of the above 6 report to the Head of Flight Operations: a) Organisation & Management related to B777 Operations All the fleets in the company fall under the purview of Chief Pilot Line Operations. The fleet is headed by Fleet Manager B777 who reports to the Chief Pilot Line Operations. The B777 has been with the company for the past 17 years and until March 2014 the fleet comprised of 17 aircraft. On the B777, MAS is approved for 180 minutes ETOPS operation. b) Technical Crew Since the early days of operations, MAS started with domestic and regional services. Thus, the fleet of aircraft had always included small propeller aircraft and short haul twin engine jets. This is where a new recruit would be posted to, be it fresh ab-initio or experienced pilots from the Air force or General Aviation. The career of a pilot begins as a co-pilot on the smallest Turbo Props, or sometimes when the demand and the promotion is rapid, suitable candidates may be posted direct to the B737 upon entry into the airline. A copilot would need to serve for at least 5 to 7 years in the company on the lower fleet before one can be considered for promotion to the B777. They are normally promoted from the B737/200/400/800 or sometimes from the A330 fleet. The airline embarked into sponsoring fresh cadets for pilot training since it first started but had slowed down this programme with the abundance supply of self-sponsored pilots since the last 5 years. On the average it would take at least 15 years of flying in the company before a pilot can be promoted to command the B777. Among the factors for career progression, is eligibility in terms of total hours, competency, seniority in the pilot ranking and the airlines expansion plan. In Malaysia Airlines, no young fresh ab-initio pilot would be posted direct to the big Wide Body jet without the smaller twin jets experience. At point of entry the career progression would start from DHC6/F50, B737 and A330/B777 then finally to the B747 and/or A380. Promotions are normally carried out in this above order. By the time a captain is ready for the B777, he would have at least flown F50, B737 or A330 or combination of all the 3 aircraft with at least a total of 6000 hours, part of which has to be a minimum of 2000 command hours on the smaller jets. c) Working Schedule The working schedule and rest requirement to manage crew fatigue is highly regulated and normally bounded by guidelines stipulated by the CAA UK CAP 371 and the Malaysian Civil Aviation Regulations (MCAR). The MCAR adapts the CAA CAP 371. With the formation of the Joint Aviation Requirements (JAR), DCA Malaysia had gradually migrated towards regulations stipulated in the JAR. Duty and Flight Time Limitation are strictly guided by these published regulatory documents. In general MAS has since its inception, adopted a more stringent and restrictive measure based on the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Pilots Association and the Management, to ensure that all Technical Crew are well rested before they are scheduled to any assigned flight duties. The Pilots Association plays an important role to ensure that all these limitations are not exceeded and all these agreed limits are published and available in the MoU. Malaysian Airlines Pilots Association (MAPA) although with limited rights, played a pivotal role in the overall welfare and interest of the pilots. In the case of MH370, the expected flight and duty time was less than 8 hours, with a single leg of one take-off and one landing. The Regulatory requirement and MoU, only require one set of crew to man the flight. Standard company practice calls for the whole set of crew to lay over in Beijing and fly back the next day. Beijing is a destination that MAS operates on a daily basis with the same aircraft type. The guidelines for Technical Crew requirement are: Less than 8 hours : 2 crew (1 Captain & 1 Co-pilot) Between 8 to 10 hours : 3 crew (2 Captains & 1 Co-pilot) More than 10 hours : 4 Crew (2 Captains & 2 Co-pilots) Technical Crew are required to undergo medical check-up by approved Aviation Doctors for their Licence renewal. The medical certificate issued, forms part of the validity of a pilots flying licence. d) Safety Management System MAS Safety Management System (SMS) has been designed to comply with the framework as per ICAO in Annex 6, Appendix 7, Framework for Safety Management Systems and the expanded guidance found in the ICAO Safety Management Manual ICAO SMM (Doc.9859) and IATA SMS Implementation Guide. In addition this system is consistent with the DCA Malaysia’s Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC) document number 06-2008: SMS. MAS has established these requirements to ensure positive control and continuous improvement for safe and secure operations, including the operations of its subsidiaries MASWings, Firefly, MAS Aerospace Engineering and MASKargo. This document forms an integral part of the Corporate Safety Policy Manual. e) Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) The airline acknowledges the importance of safety as its utmost priority. Like most other airlines, with statistics showing Human Factor as the main contributor to Air Accidents, the Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) programme was introduced. This system has contributed tremendously even in non-eventful cases where impending trend towards an unsafe situation could be recorded. With this system in place investigations of events that could lead to an incident would be undertaken and remedial actions and recommendations put into place. f) Line Operations Safety Audit (LOSA) LOSA was first introduced in 2004 in collaboration with the University of Texas. The results were fruitful and recommendations were implemented via Safety Change Process (SCP). MAS conducts LOSA every 2 years but not later than 5 years. The way LOSA was conducted is by taking random sampling of all aspect of operations including random audit of normal scheduled commercial flight. g) Crew Recourses Management (CRM) MAS considers CRM as a critical component of flight safety during operations. The training programme included the Cabin Crew & Dispatchers. For new recruits there will be a 3 days programme for CRM. Recurrent training is conducted on a yearly basis. The Safety Awareness Programme (SAP) conducted on a yearly basis includes the recurrent for the CRM training/ refresher. This programme has been in the system ever since the release of ICAO Annex 6 Part 1. h) Training & Standards MAS manages their entire training requirement in-house including the mandatory requirement for the Flight Crew. MAS has its own Training Centre for Pilots as well as Engineers. It is presently equipped with various Full Flight Simulators for all the fleet in the Company with most of the Flight training devices certified to FAA Level D, capable of zero flight time training. This Training Centre has been established for more than 40 years and has been certified by many countries as an approved Type Rating Training Organisation (TRTO.) Type Rating Instructors (TRI) & Type Rating Examiners (TRE) normally come from within the airline and they require stringent training and check before being approved by the DCA Licensing Division of Malaysia. Besides the availability as a TRTO, the Simulators are utilised by neighbouring airlines and smaller organisations within the region to fulfill their training and checking requirements. Competency of pilots, as per regulatory requirements worldwide, is normally monitored every 6 months. MAS training policy requires 2 Simulator sessions every 6 months. The two training sorties every 6 months consist of 1 review and training followed by the Proficiency check sessions. i) Safety & Emergency Procedures (SEP) Proficiency in Safety & Emergency Procedures is also part of the mandatory training requirement which is conducted every 12 months. It is based on the Aircraft Type that the pilot is rated on. This recurrent training requires a minimum of 3 days which covers all aspect of emergencies including medical and first aid knowledge .This section of Training falls under the purview of Flight Safety & Human Factor. j) Operation Control Centre (OCC) The OCC is where the dispatch of flight crew and cabin crew takes place. A team of Licensed Aircraft Dispatchers are stationed in this Department. Besides the crew formalities required prior to departure, the flight crew will be working in tandem with the assigned dispatcher to review all documentations related to the assigned flight which influences the decision on the finalized routing and fuel ordered by the Captain of the flight. k) Technical and Development Technical Data and aircraft performance falls under the control of the Ops Engineering Department. This Department works closely with the Technical Services Department of Engineering Division and Aircraft Manufacturers on Performance Engineering matters Technical & Development department participates in evaluation of new Aircraft Type and Aircraft Equipment.