Technical communications contain announcements from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation regarding issues of airworthiness. These concern development, certification, manufacture and maintenance of aircraft/aircraft parts as well as of maintenance personnel and companies. Technical communications may be subscribed under FOCA's News Service.
TCs usually consist of explanations or information on how the FOCA interprets certain legal provisions or which procedures it envisaged for their implementation.
The classification of TCs to date as instructions (TC-I), directives (TC-D), communications (TC-C) and information (TC-INFO) is to be simplified following a decision by the DETEC Appeals Committee. New and revised TCs will either be published as directives or communications. Instructions, which have not been lifted, will remain valid in the sense of directives as explained below.
TC directives
Directives are recommendations or explanations and are therefore not legally binding. They set out – in the sense of 'acceptable means of compliance' or 'interpretative and explanatory material' – the official interpretation of the legal provisions to which they refer. It is therefore worth noting that in the event of legal dispute or an accident investigation, for example, these directives can be highly significant. In principle, proof of equivalent safety can also be demonstrated by other means. Directives are also intended to define uniform administrative practices with a view to consistent application of the law.
TC communications
Communications consist of information of a general nature and do not usually have a direct bearing on airworthiness, e.g. on the organisation and procedures in technical supervision by the FOCA.
For further information please refer to the german page.
Further information
