Avionics News June 2022 - 20

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES
Continued from page 19
CANADA
News & Regulatory Updates
Forward Regulatory Plan
In the last couple of years, Transport Canada
Civil Aviation has been slowly changing the way
the regulatory affairs division communicates with
the public. It started in pieces back in 2016 with
some changes to the CARAC process and then with
the introduction of the Regulatory Modernization
project launched in 2018. The website for CARAC
activities was improved somewhat as well. The
TCCA has also started to publish a report called
the Forward Regulatory Plan, which identifies the
planned initiatives over a two-year period. The first
was published in 2019 but was not easy to find.
The latest issues were published in April 2022 and
covers a number of items that should get to Gazette
I this year. The only thing planned for Gazette II is
some miscellaneous amendments.
In the last two years, there has been a lot of
work completed toward managing the pandemic
and all the related issues due to shutdowns and
restrictions. However, work has continued in
other areas but mostly toward minor corrections
and simple improvements to current regulations.
Additionally, there are many items that have been
brought forward by the Standing Joint Committee
for the Scrutiny of Regulations (a committee formed
by members of Parliament that review regulations
and ensure they meet legal standards), which the
TCCA is obligated to address. There has been a
backlog of these issues that are being cleared. As
business returns to normal, activity is picking up
and the TCCA is beginning to tackle larger changes.
This is what is covered in this current version of the
Forward Regulatory Plan.
Some of the items on this list have been seen
in the last six months or so, such as proposed
changes for training, licensing and light data
recorders. There are also several operational
20 avionics news * june 2022
regulatory changes coming for night visual flight
operations, water airports, approach ban and aircraft
registration. Of course, there is CAR 521 and the
changes to aeronautical approval fees. These NPAs
should be published this fall.
The one that has stood out is a proposed change
to the SMS regulations. The TCCA had to publish
a state safety plan to meet ICAO requirements in
2019. In this plan, the TCCA described what it
already had in place and, for manufacturers and
design holders, most of the SMS elements were
already in the current approved manuals. The
TCCA has also hinted at adding regulations for
these certificate holders to formally require an
SMS program. The interesting thing in this current
planned initiative, however, is the TCCA proposing
to take all the current SMS regulations and move
them to CAR Part I. The goal of this initiative is " to
harmonize and improve compliance with Canadian
safety management system requirements, and to
ensure compliance of Canadian regulations with
International Civil Aviation Organization Standards
and Recommended Practices in Annex 19 to the
Chicago Convention. "
In the initial planning phase to introduce SMS
into the Canadian system, there was a lot of
discussion by a select few that to properly introduce
SMS, there needed to be one requirement. From
there, guidance could then be prepared to show how
specific organizations can meet the requirements.
If the TCCA's intent was to change the culture,
this was the best way to proceed. Creating unique
rules for each segment of the industry would only
complicate the process, lengthen it, and prevent the
natural adoption of the SMS concept.
Fifteen years later, not much has changed in
the implementation of SMS since the initial round
of requirements for certain certificate holders.
Hopefully, this next step will get us to a better
place. With the AEA's involvement in SMS
development in the industry and with the guidance
and training offered, the AEA will certainly be
proactive with the TCCA in this next phase. q
Avionics News June 2022

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