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Maintenance and Manufacturing Staff Instructions, MSI 33


Subject: Number: MSI 33
Evaluation - Person Responsible for Maintenance Revision No: 0
  Number of Pages:  
File No:  AARP-5009-3-33 Issue Date: January 18, 1999

1. Purpose

1.1 The purpose of this instruction is to clairify the evaluation procedures used to confirm the qualifications of an applicant for a position as the Person Responsible for Maintenance (PRM) for the following organizations, and to identify the evaluation procedures:

  1. Air Operators;
  2. Aircraft AMOs;
  3. Specialist AMOs.

Information Notes:

(i) CAR/STD 604.50/624.50 does not require the PRM to attempt an exam or face an interview, unless the private operator also holds an AMO certificate with a rating in the aircraft category for the type of aircraft operated.

(ii) Until such time as CAR/STD 406.36/426.36 is amended to reflect the requirements of STD726, Flight Training Unit (FTU) PRM applicants who hold a pilot licence or an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer Licence are not required to attempt an examination.

(iii) These procedures are not retroactive and do not apply to PRMs approved prior to the effective date of this MSI.

2. General

2.1 Air Operator and Aircraft AMO PRM applicants require a similar knowledge base as opposed to PRM applicants for a specialist AMO. Accordingly, two examinations have been developed to assess these separate areas of responsibility. They are: Regulatory Requirements examination - Person Responsible for Maintenance - Air Operator or Aircraft AMO; and Regulatory Requirements examination - Person Responsible for Maintenance - Specialized AMO. Both examinations are corrected utilizing the Flight Training and Aviation Education (FTAE) system, which also generates the feedback letters.

2.2 When PRM's transfer from one aircraft AMO to another, or from one specialized AMO to another, they are not required to re-write the examination. They are however, required to undergo the interview process, which is to confirm the knowledge of maintenance control policies and procedures of the nominating organization. A PRM transferring from a specialized AMO to an aircraft AMO must write the applicable examination in addition to completeing the interview. A PRM who transfers from an aircraft AMO to a specialized AMO is not required to write the examination, having previously completed an evaluation against a broader scope of duties, but still requires the interview.

3. Procedures

3.1 General

Other than the applicable examination to be administered for the type of PRM, procedures will be identical, regardless of the AMO type.

3.2 Examination

The following procedures shall be followed when evaluating a PRM applicant:

  1. The appropriate regulatory requirements examination shall be administered as an "open book" test. The purpose of the examination is to test the ability to locate, understand and apply, regulatory requirements. The applicant shall be provided access to all regulatory reference material. Access should not be limited to documents that are specific to the area being examined. Access may be in hard copy or electronic format (i.e. by use of CD/ROM or Internet connection). Access to the Transport Canada Internal site is prohibited.
  2. Examinations shall be completed within three hours.
  3. The pass mark is set at 70%.
  4. Feed-back and debrief following failure will focus on the areas of weakness to provide the applicant with awareness for further study.
  5. Re-write is subject to a thirty day waiting period following a first failure attempt, and six months following a second or subsequent failure.

3.3 Interview

The following procedures are to be followed when interviewing PRM applicants:

  1. Once the applicable Regulatory Requirements examination has been satisfactorily completed, the applicant will undergo a personal interview by an inspector versed in the functional area being addressed. The inspector should be accompanied by another Transport Canada employee to ensure objectivity of the process The purpose of the interview is to confirm knowledge of maintenance control policies and procedures for that particular environment.
  2. The applicant must demonstrate a knowledge of all topic areas being evaluated. He will be informed of any mistakes and the correct answers will be discussed. Questions and responses will be recorded. Note: refer to STD 573.03(5) and /or 726.03(4) for the required list of topics.
  3. Interviews may be accomplished at the organizations facility.
  4. The applicant will be informed of the outcome of the interview immediately, and the decision will be confirmed by a written notification to the applicant and the employer, within 10 days.
  5. In all instances examination and interview assessments must be properly documented and waiting periods respected to support those outcomes.

4. Effective Date

4.1 This instruction comes into effect on February 18, 1999.

5. HQ Contact

5.1 The responsible officer indicated below may be contacted for information regarding this MSI:

Brian Whitehead, AARPC
Aircraft Maintenance & Manufacturing Branch
E-mail: whitehb@tc.gc.ca
Phone:      (613) 941-8371
Facsimile: (613) 952-3298

D.B. Sherritt
Director,
Maintenance and Manufacturing

Date modified:
2010-05-03