Amendments to Canadian Aviation Regulations

Summary#

These are final amendments to the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) collected as the Regulations Amending the Canadian Aviation Regulations (Various Amendments, 2021). They clarify rules on airport maps and wildlife plans, remove a routine Transport Canada interview for newly hired maintenance heads, give maintenance heads explicit authority to ground aircraft for safety, fix rest-time options for some medical-evacuation crews, clarify French wording, and codify two existing exemptions. The amendments took effect on December 7, 2022.

What it does#

• Clarifies airport requirements:
  • airport operators must possess an airport grid map (rather than only develop one);
  • initial airport wildlife management plans must be submitted to Transport Canada (not “only on request”).
• Removes the formal requirement that the Minister interview newly hired maintenance heads in several parts of the CARs. Inspectors will still check knowledge during routine inspections.
• Gives the maintenance manager / person responsible for maintenance / person responsible for the maintenance control system the explicit duty to remove aircraft from service when safety or regulatory compliance justifies it. The duty no longer depends on the certificate holder assigning it.
• Changes the definition of a minor interference with a crew member (level 1) to use clearer wording: “insulting or obscene language” and “the causing of a disturbance, including verbal abuse or obscene gestures.”
• Fixes French wording that used “dénomination sociale” so the French text matches the English intent about providing a legal name (for individuals and corporations).
• Codifies two exemptions into the CARs:
  • the exemption that the aircraft ID plate must show the manufacturer’s name as it was when the aircraft was made;
  • the exemption (NCR-135-2020) that gives Subpart 705 medical-evacuation (MEDEVAC) flight crews a third option for time free from duty: one period of at least 4 consecutive days within each 19 consecutive days. The list of free-from-duty options is corrected so operators may choose any one of the options (they are not cumulative).
• Corrects small editorial errors in fatigue/rest rules and in some French provisions.
• Adds penalty entries to the enforcement schedule for certain new or clarified duties with maximum penalties of $5,000 for individuals and $25,000 for corporations.

Who's affected#

• Airport operators — must hold grid maps and submit initial wildlife plans.
• Air operators, including holders of air operator certificates and MEDEVAC operators — changes to rest-time options and to who must ensure maintenance safety.
• Maintenance managers and other maintenance heads in:
  • flight training units,
  • approved maintenance organizations,
  • air operators — they will now have explicit authority to remove aircraft from service.
• Flight crew members (including MEDEVAC crews) — clearer choices for time off and corrected wording in fatigue rules.
• Aircraft manufacturers and owners — clarification about the name on aircraft identification plates.
• Transport Canada inspectors — ministerial interviews removed but inspectors will continue to check knowledge and compliance during inspections.
• Flight attendants and crew unions may notice the clearer wording about minor interference incidents (the change was discussed with CUPE, which supported the wording).

If any group is unclear about how a specific provision applies to them, the amended CARs and related Standards should be consulted or you can contact Transport Canada.

Why it matters#

• Safety clarity: giving maintenance heads a clear, explicit duty to ground unsafe aircraft reduces the chance that nobody has the authority to stop a plane from flying when it shouldn’t.
• Less paperwork and quicker hiring: removing the formal ministerial interview for maintenance heads reduces an administrative step for employers and for Transport Canada, and saves time and modest costs for industry and government.
• Better operational certainty for MEDEVAC crews: codifying the third rest-option (the 4‑day in 19‑day option) removes an inconsistency that could have caused scheduling confusion.
• Clearer rules for airports: requiring possession of grid maps and submission of wildlife plans aligns the written rules with current practice and with international guidance on emergency planning.
• Fewer language mismatches: fixing the French wording reduces confusion about when a legal name must be provided.
• Stronger enforcement clarity: adding penalty amounts ($5,000 / $25,000) for specific failures makes the consequences for non-compliance clearer.

These are administrative and technical changes intended to reduce ambiguity and align regulatory text with how the aviation system already operates.