Cabin safety regulations explained

Some new Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR) replace or change some Civil Aviation Regulations 1998 (CAR) and Civil Aviation Orders (CAO) that covered cabin safety.

Find out more about the flight operations regulations transition.

Effects of changing rules on cabin safety

Most rules for cabin safety subject matter are now in the group of CASR called the flight operations regulations. These regulations replace many of the CAR that previously covered cabin safety.

For example, requirements for emergency and life-saving equipment from CAR 253 are now in Part 121, 133 and 135 of CASR – depending on your operations.

The CASR introduced in 2021 include:

• Part 91 of CASR General operating and flight rules that apply to all operators and pilots.
• Part 119 of CASR Australian air transport operators - certification and management apply to all operators with an Air Operator's Certificate (AOC).
• Additional rules apply depending on your operations, including one or more of the following:
  • Part 121 of CASR – Larger aeroplane air transport
  • Part 133 of CASR – Rotorcraft air transport
  • Part 135 of CASR – Smaller aeroplane air transport

Points of note for Cabin Safety in the CASR

Part 91 General operating and flight rules

• Passenger compliance with safety instructions by cabin crew
• No approval required for the carriage of animals
• Carriage of children with a serious medical condition is provided for in the Part 91 Manual of Standards.

Part 119 Australian air transport operators – certification and management

• Approval of significant changes
• Training and checking requirements for operational safety-critical personnel
• CEO responsibility for the conduct of cabin crew training and checking
• There is no Part 119 Manual of Standards.

Part 121 Larger aeroplane air transport

• Determining minimum cabin crew numbers
• Operating with reduced cabin crew
• Cabin crew operating on a fourth aeroplane type
• Cabin crew English proficiency requirements
• Assignment and training of senior cabin crew
• When a demonstration of emergency procedures is required
• New and revised training and checking requirements including annual and 3-yearly training, cabin crew supervised line flying, cabin crew line checks.
• Senior Instructor approvals replaced by AMC
• Removal of automatic Chief Pilot approval to conduct training and checking involving safety and emergency procedures
• Standards for training devices

Part 133 Rotorcraft air transport

• English proficiency requirements for cabin crew and air crew
• Passenger lists
• Carriage of restricted persons
• Search and rescue services and emergency and survival equipment
• Safety briefing cards
• Sterile cockpit rules
• Assignment of senior cabin crew
• Training, checking and competence of medical transport specialists

Part 135 Smaller aeroplane air transport

• English proficiency requirements for air crew
• Passenger lists
• Carriage of restricted persons
• Information about search and rescue services and emergency and survival equipment
• Sterile cockpit rules
• Training, checking and competence of medical transport specialists

Manual of Standards replace Civil Aviation Orders

All of the CAO related to the CAR have now been repealed. Instead, detailed technical material and requirements that complement the CASR are found in the relevant Manual of Standards (MOS).

Not every CASR Part has a corresponding MOS, for example there is no MOS for Part 119. Not every regulation refers to a MOS. It occurs where the regulation is broad and further detail is required.

When the flight operations CASR became effective, relevant cabin safety content moved from CAO to MOS.

For example, you can find standards for emergency and life-saving equipment:

• for larger aeroplanes in chapter 11 of the Part 121 MOS (Division 9 to 12)
• for rotorcraft in chapter 11 of the Part 133 MOS (Division 9 to 12)
• for smaller aeroplanes in chapter 11 of the Part 135 MOS (Division 9 to 12).

The relevant MOS for flight operations are:

• Part 91 Manual of Standards
• Part 121 Manual of Standards
• Part 133 Manual of Standards
• Part 135 Manuals of Standards

Supporting material

You can also find guidance on some cabin safety matters in our supporting material, such as Acceptable Means of Compliance and Guidance Material (AMC/GM) and Advisory Circular (AC).

These documents don’t prescribe rules, we create them to clarify intent and provide guidance or education to help you meet requirements.

AMC/GM for flight operations CASR

You can find AMC/GM by searching for the title or Part number in the Acceptable Means of Compliance and Guidance Material search.

• Part 91 general operating and flight rules
• Part 119 Australian air transport operators – certification and management
• Part 121 Australian air transport operations – larger aeroplanes
• Part 133 Australian air transport operations – rotorcraft
• Part 135 air transport operations – small aeroplanes

AC relevant to cabin safety

You can find AC by searching for the title or document number in the Advisory Circular document search.

Multi-part AC

Part 91 AC

Part 119 AC