AC139-3 - Aerodrome inspection programme and condition reporting

Purpose

This AC provides guidance material on aerodrome inspections, runway condition reporting, maintenance programmes and aerodrome condition reporting requirements, to assist aerodrome operators to meet Civil Aviation Rule Part 139 Aerodromes—Certification, Operation and Use.

This material is intended for applicants for and holders of:

• an aerodrome operator certificate, and
• a qualifying aerodrome operator certificate.

It is also recommended to operators of non-certificated aerodromes.

As set out in Part 139, different types of aerodrome operators have different requirements with regards to Runway Condition Reports (RCRs).

Operators of:

• aerodromes required to provide an Air Traffic Control (ATC) service need to compile, produce and submit RCRs into the IFIS tool and publish ‘Runway conditions monitored during ATC hours of service’, in the Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP), and
• aerodromes not required to provide an ATC service should determine their ability to compile and produce RCRs and how they will pass RCRs to the air operator and publish a status of either ‘Runway conditions monitored’ or ‘Runway conditions not monitored’ accordingly, in the AIP. This status should be re-assessed regularly.

Operators of non-certificated aerodromes do not have to produce RCRs.

All aerodrome operators however, including non-certificated aerodromes, need to keep their runway clear and free of foreign objects. In addition to RCR guidance, this AC contains advice about keeping runways free of debris, which we hope will be useful.

Note: This AC uses the term ‘take-off and landing performance assessment’, instead of the common US acronym TALPA, since New Zealand practices in this area differ from those of the US.

Related rules

This AC relates to Civil Aviation Rule Part 139 Aerodromes—Certification, Operation and Use - specifically rules 139.23, 139.103, 139.107, 139.117 and 139.123, for qualifying aerodrome operator determination.

Change notice

Revision 5 updates the content of this AC to align with ICAO’s introduction of the Global Reporting Format (GRF) for runway condition reporting, as set out in ICAO Circular 355. This update adapts the contents of Circular 355 to provide guidance material for New Zealand conditions. It aligns with Amendment 15 of Part 139 to reflect ICAO guidance, specifically the update of rules 139.103 and 139.107.

For aerodrome operators to compile, produce and submit RCRs into the Internet Flight Information Service (IFIS) tool, which aircraft operators can safely rely on to enable aeroplane take-off and landing performance assessment, it is necessary for operators to develop a good understanding of Part 139, in conjunction with other relevant rules, such as Part 172, and related ACs.

The main changes in this Revision are to add:

• a Version History
• an Abbreviations and a Definitions section
• APPENDIX A: RCRs – Assessment and Report Format
• APPENDIX B: Practical guide for aerodromes required by the Director to provide an ATC service.
  • Assessment, compiling and production of a runway condition report.
  • Followed by the submission of the runway condition report into the IFIS tool for promulgation. 
• APPENDIX C: Practical guide for aerodromes not required by the Director to provide an ATC service.
  • Assessment, compiling, production of a runway condition report.
  • Followed by the passing, by prior agreement, of a runway condition report.
• APPENDIX D: Flow Chart for Part 139 Certificated and Qualifying Aerodrome Operators
• APPENDIX E: How to access the RCR Internet Flight Information System (IFIS) portal
• APPENDIX F: How to use the RCR IFIS portal
• APPENDIX G: Scenarios with examples of RCR, Voice ATIS, D-ATIS and NOTAM.