Airworthiness and Directives

The main information disseminated by Airworthiness Directives (ADs) serves as a manual that offers assistance on the maintenance of safe flights. Airworthiness directives are mostly offered for a specific product on specific types of certified aircrafts (Tooley, 2007). Some of the airworthiness directives are time-bound such that their compliance require immediate obedience before operation of the aircraft. They act as warnings that certain deficiency of an aircraft exists and requires attention. On the other hand, advisory circulars (ACs) provide information on standards, procedures and practices that help in following airworthiness directives.

The main purpose of Advisory circulars is to offer guidance to operators of aircrafts on their responsibility of following Airworthiness directives as well as keeping their maintenance records. The advisory circulars are one way, but not the only way of matching up to the requirements of airworthiness directives. The main difference between airworthiness directives and advisory circulars is that ADs act as guidelines for the condition of the licensed aircraft in terms of product and technical functioning while ACs provide ways and means of complying with the guidelines provided in ADs.

Airworthiness directives are essential to flight department managers as stated below in various ways. First, they act as pointers that certain aircrafts may be unsafe for use compromising its airworthiness. Secondly, they assist managers to come up with corrective action plans for a licensed aircraft in urgent cases. More so, they help the manager in inspecting if all the flights under his authority comply with the directives (Peacock, 2012).

Their enforcement help the flight manager achieve the goals of the department and reduce the number of aircraft accidents caused by malfunctioning.

By use of the airworthiness directives, managers are able to determine the level of skills required by a standard engineer while hiring (Tooley, 2007). Since the directives contain licenses on specified products, the manager is able to control importation and exportation of such products.