| (1) | An air service operator shall— |
| (a) | establish a scheme for regulating flight and duty periods, rest periods and days free of duty, whichever may be applicable, for flight crew, cabin crew, and flight operation officers; |
| (b) | ensure that a scheme established in terms of paragraph (a) complies with limitations as prescribed in Document SA-CATS 121; |
| (c) | in the event that a scheme does not comply with the limitations referred to paragraph (b), propose a scheme based on relevant scientific data, which satisfies the Director that an equivalent level of safety in line with the limitations as prescribed in Document SA-CATS 121, is achieved; |
| (d) | publish a scheme in an operations manual referred to in regulation 121.04.2; |
| (e) | plan the flight duty periods as prescribed in Document SA-CATS 121; |
| (f) | ensure that flight duty periods are planned in a way that enables a crew member to remain free from fatigue so that they can operate to a satisfactory level of safety under all circumstances; |
| (g) | specify reporting times that allow sufficient time for ground duties; |
| (h) | take into account the relationship between the frequency and pattern of flight duty periods and rest periods, and give due consideration to the cumulative effects of undertaking long duty hours combined with minimum rest periods; |
| (i) | allocate duty periods which eliminates practices that causes disruption to an established sleep or work pattern. such as alternating day and night duties; |
| (j) | provide rest periods of sufficient time to enable crew members to overcome the effects of previous duties and ensure sufficient rest by the start of a following duty period; |
| (k) | plan recurrent extended recovery rest periods and notify crew members sufficiently in advance; |
| (I) | plan flight duties in such a way that they are completed within the allowed flight duty period. taking into account the time necessary for pre-flight duties, the sector and turnaround times, as well as post-flight duties; |
| (m) | assign a home base to each crew member; and |
| (n) | not assign a flight duty period if such a flight duty period is not in compliance with the provisions of a scheme referred to in paragraph (a) or if— |
| (i) | such a flight duty period may cause a crew member to exceed the flight time and duty periods while on flight duty; or |
| (ii) | a crew member suffers from or, is likely to suffer from fatigue, which may endanger the safety of an aircraft, its crew members, or passengers. |
| (2) | A crew member shall not accept a flight duty period if it is not in compliance with the provisions of a scheme referred to in subregulation (1) or if— |
| (a) | a crew member knows or has been made aware that such flight assignment may cause a crew member to exceed the flight time and duty periods referred to in subregulation (1) while on flight duty; or |
| (b) | a crew member knows or suspects that he or she is suffering from fatigue or feels unfit, to the extent that an aircraft, its crew members, or passengers may be endangered; |
| (3) | Where flight crew member, cabin crew member, or flight operation officer is aware that they may be in violation of a scheme referred to in subregulation (1), such flight crew member, cabin crew member, or flight operation officer shall. without delay, inform an air service operator. |
| (4) | For the purposes of reporting in subregulation (3), an air service operator shall include— |
| (a) | appropriate management personnel of an air service operator; or |
| (b) | an appointed duty crew scheduler; or |
| (c) | a duty person responsible for operational control over the flight; and |
| (d) | in the case of a cabin crew member, a PIC or such cabin crew member's immediate supervisor. |
| (5) | A crew member shall make use of the opportunities and facilities provided for rest by an air service operator in terms of this subregulation, to plan and use the rest periods responsibly. |
| (6) | When undertaking duties for more than one air service operator, a crew member shall: |
| (a) | maintain his or her individual records regarding flight and duty times and rest periods as prescribed in Document SA-CATS 121; and |
| (b) | provide each air service operator with the data required to schedule activities as prescribed in Document SA-CATS 121. |
[Regulation 121.02.13 substituted by regulation 7(a) of Notice No. 5008, GG50880, dated 28 June 2024 (Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Civil Aviation Regulations, 2024)]
