The newly established Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Greece issued the first Air Operator Certificates (AOC). The AOC & CAMO signed by the Commander of the Civil Aviation Authority, Dr. Chr. Tsitouras, following close checks by the competent Inspectors of the Flight Standards Directorate of the HCCA, was of MERKUR AIR.
The new Learjet A35 which MERKUR AIR added to its fleet
MERKUR AIR’s AOC is, as far as we know, the first to be issued by the newly established Independent Civil Aviation Authority, following the transfer of relevant responsibilities from the CAA to the APA last January.
The fact that the certification process of MERKUR AIR was completed entirely by the human resources of APA and within the stipulated time limits and deadlines proves the smooth succession and continuity between the two Services, the functionality of the Regulations, which govern the licensing of Air Carriers in our country, as well as the level of expertise of the Greek Civil Aviation Inspectors.
Another interesting element, which emerged through the certification process of MERKUR AIR, is that, because the company will initially operate with an aircraft of Swedish Registry, performing hospital and passenger air taxi flights, it was according to international Aviation Legislation and article 83bis of ICAO Convention, it is necessary to draw up and sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Greek and Swedish CAA for their cooperation and the definition of the limits and content of their responsibilities, in relation to the supervision of the company and the technical maintenance of the aircraft.
With the kind cooperation of the Airworthiness Inspectors of the two Aviation Authorities, the negotiations and the required checks were effectively completed and the MoU was signed on time by both the Commander of the APA and the competent Swedish CAA.
The happy outcome of this obviously sensitive process shows, among other things, the confidence of the Swedish National Aviation Authority in the operational level and in the personnel of APA, which is the bond of the Hellenic Aviation Authority.
