Civil Aviation Authority Services

Posted on Nov 12th, 2015

The Wicks Group offers a range of consulting services to help civil aviation authorities (CAAs) achieve system development or improvement goals. We are particularly well-known for our services that assist CAAs with preparing for International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) audits conducted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA,) and with accomplishing other civil aviation system development or improvement goals.

Our IASA audit preparation services typically include statutory and regulatory review and revision, development of inspector guidance materials, development of an inspector training program and training curricula, operator certification file review and correction, development and implementation of appropriate surveillance and problem resolution procedures, improvement of personnel licensing practices and procedures; and delivery of specialized training to CAA inspectors. Our IASA consulting teams include former FAA safety inspectors, attorneys, management consultants, and technical writers, and we have achieved an unbroken record of success, with all IASA project clients to date having achieved an IASA Category 1 (compliant) rating from the FAA.

Our broader services to CAAs often entail assessing current policies or program designs, processes, and documentation; recommending improvements; preparing or revising policy and procedures manuals, technical manuals, or other documents needed to support new or improved programs or processes; and facilitating CAA work group reviews of draft versions of the new manuals or documents. We also routinely train CAA personnel on new programs, policies, and procedures to support successful implementation.

We also provide specialized research and analytic services to CAAs in connection with civil aviation sector development initiatives under consideration.

Representative Experience

Conducting comprehensive IASA audit preparation projects for the CAAs of Azerbaijan, Cabo Verde, India, Trinidad and Tobago, and Ukraine, all of which resulted in an IASA Category 1 rating for the country
Providing the Trinidad and Tobago CAA with strategic planning and analytical support related to the development of a state-of-the-art General Aviation/Business Aviation (GA/BA) facility at a greenfield airport, including preparing a detailed strategic business plan, making comprehensive financial projections focused on revenues and job creation, advising on critical aviation regulations governing GA/BA, and preparing executive briefings on the plan and projections for government decision-makers
Assisting the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) with assessing the feasibility of gaining FAA approval of its aviation repair stations by establishing Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement Maintenance Implementation Procedures (MIP) with the FAA, including briefing the JCAB on the FAA’s history of MIP development with other countries and process for carrying out MIP discussions, and providing a Difference Analysis Table comparing Japanese and US maintenance regulations
Assisting the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) with determining the business aviation value chain segments that are most susceptible and appropriate for development, including conducting interviews with dozens of key informants with business aviation sector interests in the Singapore region, analyzing available market data, preparing a forecast of business aviation activity in Singapore, and providing recommendations to the CAAS as to the most effective actions to take
Working with FAA Flight Services Division (AFS) stakeholders to develop standardized procedures for AFS Airman Designees, including consolidating regulatory guidance in FAA Order 8610.2, Technical Personnel Examiner Handbook; FAA Order 8710.3E, Designated Pilot and Flight Engineer Examiner’s Handbook; and FAA Order 8710.7, Sport Pilot Examiner’s Handbook into a new FAA Order 8900.2, General Aviation Airman Designee Handbook, and preparing draft revisions of related FAA inspector guidance
Assisting the FAA Flight Technologies and Procedures Office with developing new regulatory guidance related to special authorizations and special areas of operation, consolidating guidance for unmanned aircraft systems, and preparing new guidance related to the Operations Safety System and navigation specifications
Developing new or substantially revised manuals for the FAA AFS Flight Program Office to support Flight Program Operations, including a new Flight Operations Manual to standardize the understanding and application of Flight Program Office policies and procedures among 1,100 participants, and revising various manuals required for the AFS Flight Program Air Operator Certificate
Assisting the FAA Flight Program Office with implementing a Flight Service Center concept by refining the proposed content and organization of various manuals needed to implement the concept, facilitating work group discussions on policies and procedures to be used; providing the technical expertise needed to develop new policy and procedures manual content, and drafting new manual content
Providing comprehensive consulting services to FAA AFS to organize, support, and facilitate a multi-region work group tasked with developing an improved National Leadership Development Program for AFS, including carrying out primary data collection on Best Practices in leadership development, preparing briefing papers on key research topics (e.g., Succession Planning), providing full work group meeting planning and facilitation services to achieve consensus on program redesign, and preparing the final report and executive briefing
Conducting a Safety Management System (SMS) initial gap analysis for the FAA AFS Flight Program Office and provided an assessment of “next steps” for SMS implementation
Assisting the General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with implementing new economic licensing regulations, including developing an application package for air carriers interested in obtaining an economic license, advising GACA on the application package and oral presentation evaluation process, and drafting the record of decision when the licensee selections were made
Drafting comprehensive civil aviation regulations for Kenya under the US Presidential “Safe Skies for Africa” initiative

Read about our IASA audit preparation work for the India Directorate General of Civil Aviation here
Read about our IASA audit preparation work for the Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority here
Read about our program development work for the Federal Aviation Administration here