ETOPS

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Under ETOPS (according to ICAO since 2012 also EDTO , see section "Acronym" ) in aviation regulations are summarized which allow airlines to plan a shorter route for a flight than the standard safety rules for reaching an alternate airport allow. The regulations are set by the aviation authorities FAA , ICAO and EASA .

overview

ETOPS flight plan and non-ETOPS flight plan in comparison
The first ETOPS flight of an Airbus aircraft was an Airbus A310 of Pan Am over the Atlantic in 1986

According to the standard rules (i.e. without taking ETOPS into account), flight routes must not exceed a maximum distance from the next alternate airport . This distance is measured in flight minutes. This is to ensure that an alternate airport can still be reached safely in the event of an engine failure. The ETOPS regulations now give the option of "extending" this time to the alternate airport so that airlines can shorten the route of the flight. In order to still be able to guarantee a high level of safety for the flight, the ETOPS regulations place strict requirements on the construction of the aircraft and the engines, the maintenance of the aircraft , the flight preparation and the flight execution.

The aim of the ETOPS regulations is to use technical regulations and procedural requirements to minimize the likelihood of engine failure and to ensure that sufficient safety reserves remain in the event of an engine failure. Only the case of an engine failure is considered here. Other reasons for a course change or premature landing ( e.g. pressure drop , medical emergency , weather ) are recorded statistically, but have no effect on the definition and application of the ETOPS regulations.

Both airlines and aircraft types require ETOPS certification . Airlines must demonstrate special ETOPS safety standards both in aircraft maintenance and in flight planning and execution. Aircraft types are always certified together with the corresponding engine model; an aircraft type with several engine alternatives therefore also requires several ETOPS certifications. A flight according to ETOPS rules can only be carried out if both the airline and the aircraft-engine combination have a valid ETOPS approval, otherwise not.

Flights according to ETOPS rules are more environmentally friendly and economical because they use less kerosene , and they are more attractive for passengers because they reduce travel times .

In the early days of ETOPS, only those aircraft types were considered that had two engines . For aircraft types with more engines that were approved at that time (e.g. Airbus A340 ), no maximum distances to alternate airports had to be observed; for them the route could be chosen freely. These options continue to exist for these aircraft types ( grandfathering ). Aircraft types with more than two engines that were approved after 2007, however, fall under the ETOPS regulations and must go through the ETOPS approval procedure (example: Boeing 747-8 ).

acronym

In the meantime, “ETOPS” has to be seen as an independent term without a clear definition for the individual letters. Over the years there have been many ways of giving the individual letters a meaning. These interpretations have changed again and again over time; In the end, however, none of them caught on. Only the acronym "ETOPS" has held up. Variants for the formulation were:

interpretation used by comment source
Extended-range Twin-engine Operation (al) Performance Standards ICAO
Extended-range twin operations ICAO
Extended-range operations with two-engine airplanes FAA
Extended Range Operations by Turbine-Engine Airplanes ICAO
Extended Range Operations by Airplanes with Two Turbine Engines ICAO
Extended Range Operations FAA, ICAO FAA until 1985
Extended twin-engine operations Lufthansa, FAA FAA 1985-2007
Extended Operations FAA since 2007

Other acronyms

There are other acronyms in the same context:

EROPS (Extended Range Operations)
Is used synonymously with ETOPS and also has some of the (appropriate) meanings from the table above.
LROPS (Long Range Operational Performance Standards)
This acronym was first used by Airbus when "ETOPS" was still used exclusively for aircraft with two engines in order to include aircraft with more engines in the regulations. EASA has adopted this terminology.
EDTO (Extended Diversion Time Operations)
In 2012, the ICAO introduced the new acronym “EDTO” into the regulations when it took over aircraft with more than two engines. This acronym is supposed to be slowly gaining acceptance; the use of “ETOPS” is still permitted and documents with the designation “ETOPS” remain valid.

Playful interpretations

Two of these acronyms have joke interpretations that have become quite popular. These include:

ETOPS
  • Engines Turn (ing) Or Passengers Swim (ming) (Eng .: engines turn or passengers swim )
  • Engines Turn (ing) Or Parcels Sink (ing) ( Engines : engines turn or parcels sink ), a modification for cargo flights
EROPS
  • Engines Run (ning) Or Passengers Swim (ming) ( Engines run or passengers swim )
  • Engines Run (ning) Or Pilots Swim (ming) (Eng .: engines run or pilots swim )

Regulations

Compare the FAA standard rule to ETOPS-120

First of all, it must be emphasized that ETOPS is an extension of the possibilities for airlines . If ETOPS does not apply, the stricter 60 or 90 minute rules apply.

It is rumored again and again that ETOPS would apply over seas or deserts . This is only indirectly and only partially true. In fact, no information is given in the official regulations as to the nature of the earth surface overflown. Only the distance to the nearest suitable airport is decisive. However, the airport density is greater in densely populated areas, so that ETOPS is used less often there, while in other regions with a significantly lower airport density, the ETOPS rules are more likely to apply.

General

The maximum distance to the next alternate airport that the flight routes must adhere to is measured in flight minutes. The FAA demands 60 minutes for two - jet engines and 180 minutes for three and four - jet engines with reduced performance due to an engine failure. The ICAO and EASA demand 90 minutes for all turbine-powered aircraft, regardless of the number of their engines and with all engines running at full power. For details on calculating the flight minutes, see section "Terms" .

With an ETOPS certification, this distance can be increased and the flight route shortened. In order to receive such a certification, the aircraft and engine manufacturers must implement special technical safety regulations during the design phase, and the airlines must be able to prove that they have and implement special procedures for maintenance, flight planning and execution.

The concept of ETOPS is, on the one hand, to minimize the probability of engine failure both through design measures and through special precautions in maintenance, and on the other hand, in the event of a defect, to still have sufficient safety reserves through suitable design measures, and to provide the pilots with guidelines with which an engine failure is already taken into account in the flight planning and you can react correctly during the flight.

ETOPS only considers the case of an engine failure. For other types of incidents there are specific rules that take particular account of the type of incident.

If the flight route becomes “more direct”, it is thus shorter. As a result, less kerosene is used, which in turn protects the environment and makes the flight more economical. If an airport is permanently closed in certain regions, it may be that certain flight connections have to be canceled despite ETOPS approval.

The rules issued by the regulatory authorities or organizations differ in detail. For example, the FAA requires a defibrillator to be carried at ETOPS , but not the EASA. The terminology also differs significantly depending on which aviation authority uses it. The FAA has extended the term ETOPS to all aircraft since 2007, regardless of the number of engines, the ICAO has called the same thing EDTO since 2012, and EASA means with ETOPS only the rules for aircraft with two engines; the acronym LROPS is used for the other aircraft . And while the FAA requires certain requirements for the airport fire department , these requirements are missing in the EASA regulations. Likewise, the application to cargo flights: The FAA rules only apply to passenger flights, while the ICAO intends to apply the rules to both passenger flights and cargo flights. These are just a few examples of the numerous differences in the details of the ETOPS regulations.

The ETOPS approval takes place in two independent stages. In the first stage, the aircraft is tested together with the engine model and receives its type approval ("Type Design Assessment") . This is usually requested by the manufacturer of the aircraft. In the second stage, the airline must apply for a permit to operate flights in accordance with ETOPS and provide evidence of the documents and processes ("Operational Approval") (see below in the sections " For maintenance " and " For flight planning "). Only an airline with a valid license can operate a flight according to ETOPS rules with an aircraft type with a valid license.

The national aviation authority is responsible for the approval and monitoring of the airline .

Terms

The ETOPS-120 radii around Keflavík ( KEF ), Kangerlussuaq ( SFJ ), Lajes / Terceira ( TER ) and Gander ( YQX )

Flight time

The unit for ETOPS is flight minutes . The flight time required to reach this airport is measured for each planned alternate airport if an engine fails at the most unfavorable point on the flight route (furthest away from this airport). It should be noted that in this case neither the most economical altitude nor the flight speed can be maintained; it has to be flown lower and slower. This increases air resistance and fuel consumption . Among other things, the ETOPS regulations therefore include increased fuel reserves.

This relationship between the distance to the alternate airport and the time required with reduced performance is determined individually for each type of aircraft. Aircraft types with turbofan engines still have comparable flight characteristics, so that the following rule of thumb can be used to convert flight minutes into distance: one hour corresponds to about 400 nm (approx. 741 km).

ETOPS approvals are issued in units of 75, 90, 120, 138, 180, 207, 240, 330 and 370 minutes.

The "crooked" numbers of 138 and 207 minutes come about by calculating the next lower unit plus 15%. The 138-minute limit is required for the Atlantic and the 207-minute limit for the Pacific . With limits of 120 minutes, there would still be a small “taboo zone” left on the Atlantic that could be flown with ETOPS-138 without having to resort to (more expensive) aircraft types that are approved for a 180-minute limit. For the Pacific, the 207-minute limit is of particular interest if one of the alternate airports were to be temporarily closed. Both values ​​were only of temporary importance; In the meantime, in these regions, aircraft types that have ETOPS approvals with higher values ​​are flown. The FAA removed this 15 percent rule from its rulebook in 2007.

Alternate airport

The suitable alternative airports must be determined before each flight . The airport features as have runway length and bearing capacity match the flown aircraft type and its load. According to the rules of the FAA, the airport fire brigade must meet special ETOPS criteria. Military bases of the US Air Force can also be used as an alternate airport .

ETOPS for aircraft

An ATR 42, an aircraft type with ETOPS-120 approval

ETOPS approvals can only be obtained for turbine-powered aircraft. Piston engine-powered aircraft are therefore excluded from ETOPS approvals. Both turbine jet engines and turboprop engines come into question as permissible engines . For example, the aircraft types ATR 42 and ATR 72 have ETOPS approvals of 120 minutes. According to EASA, business jets can receive ETOPS approval, according to FAA not.

There are differences in the FAA and ICAO regulations regarding the purpose of the flights. The FAA limits the validity of ETOPS rules to passenger flights, while the ICAO intends to apply the rules to both passenger and cargo flights.

ETOPS are basically regulations for civil aviation. Flights of the national air forces are exempt from both the strict 60-minute rule and the ETOPS extensions. However, similar regulations can be found in the service regulations and the internal safety regulations. In the military context, the possibility of air refueling is available and thus a theoretically infinite range.

Table of aircraft types
plane Engine ETOPS time
according to FAA (min) 		ETOPS time
according to ICAO (min) 		ETOPS time
according to EASA (min) 		Remarks
ATR 42 2 PW127 k. A. k. A. 120 only variants -500 and -600
ATR 72 2 PW127 k. A. k. A. 120 only variants -500 and -600
Airbus A300 -600 2 (all) k. A. 180 180 only variant -600
Airbus A310 2 (all) k. A. 180 180 all variations
Airbus A320 family 2 (all) k. A. 180 k. A. all variations
Airbus A320neo 2 (all) 180 k. A. 180 all variations
Airbus A330 2 (all) k. A. > 180 240 all passenger variants
Airbus A330 -200F 2 (all) k. A. 180 k. A. Freight variant
Airbus A340 -200 / -300 4 CFM56-5C k. A. free k. A. 260 min fire suppression
Airbus A340 -500 / -600 4 RR Trent 500 k. A. free k. A. 285 min fire suppression
Airbus A350 2 RR Trent XWB k. A. > 180 370 all variations
Airbus A380 4 (all) k. A. free k. A. 240 min fire suppression
Boeing 737-200 2 JT8D k. A. 120 k. A. not variant -100
Boeing 737 classic 2 CFM56-3 k. A. 120 k. A. Variants -300, -400, -500
Boeing 737 NG 2 CFM56-7 k. A. 180 k. A. Variants -600, -700, -800, -900
Boeing 737MAX 2 CFM LEAP 180 k. A. 180 all variations
Boeing 747-400 4 (all) k. A. free k. A.
Boeing 747-8I 4 GEnx-2B 330 > 180 k. A.
Boeing 757 2 (all) k. A. 180 k. A. all variations
Boeing 767 2 (all) k. A. 180 k. A. all variations
Boeing 777 2 (all) 330 > 180 k. A. Variants -200ER, -200LR -300ER
Boeing 777 F 2 GE90 330 > 180 k. A. 777 Freighter
Boeing 777-300 2 (all) k. A. 180 k. A. 777-300 only
Boeing 787 2 (all) 330 > 180 k. A. all variations
Bombardier Global 5000 2 RR BR710 k. A. k. A. 180 Business jet
Embraer Lineage 1000 2 GE CF34 k. A. k. A. 120 Business jet
Lockheed TriStar 3 RR RB211 k. A. free k. A.
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 3 (all) k. A. free k. A.
McDonnell Douglas MD-11 3 (all) k. A. free k. A.
McDonnell Douglas MD-80 2 JT8D k. A. 120 k. A.

Explanation:

  • (all) = all engine variants have the same approval
  • > 180 = "beyond 180 minutes"
  • k. A. = no information available
  • free = no ETOPS certification required (free choice of route)

ETOPS for maintenance

The ETOPS regulations also regulate the maintenance activities for an airline. All ETOPS-critical components and activities are identified, the procedure and responsibilities are defined and recorded in a maintenance program . This maintenance program is checked and approved by the responsible aviation authority. All maintenance work on aircraft used for ETOPS flights must now be carried out in accordance with this maintenance program.

The aim of the regulations is to keep the risk of an engine failure at a constant low value, even if the ETOPS times keep getting longer.

Specifications and documents from the aircraft and engine manufacturers can be consulted and adopted for your own documentation.

Formally, specifications for ETOPS-relevant maintenance only apply to aircraft with two engines.

Examples of such requirements are:

  • The oil consumption of an engine should not only be balanced, but instead logged and analyzed. This information is the basis for monitoring and evaluating the condition of the engines. In this way, timely repairs can prevent a breakdown during the flight.
  • The list of spare parts includes, among other things, the classification of whether the component is ETOPS-approved or not, and whether the component is ETOPS-relevant at all. This also affects the storage of spare parts. A non-ETOPS-approved component may be installed, but the aircraft in question then loses its ETOPS certification until the ETOPS-approved component has been retrofitted.
  • In the case of many incidents, the airline is obliged to report to the aviation authority within a given period (e.g. 72 hours). At the same time, the cause of the error must be found and countermeasures must be taken so that such an incident (for this reason) does not happen again. Such incidents include, but are not limited to: engine failures; Diversions (regardless of the cause) and subsequent (safety) landings at airports that were not the actual destination; Failure of an ETOPS-relevant component and control failure of the engines.
  • The APU (the auxiliary unit ) is an important component for ETOPS. It must be ensured that it can be started with 95% reliability at any time, even under adverse conditions. This must be proven by regular tests. These tests must be recorded and reported to the aviation authority.
  • It must be ensured that aircraft components that are operated “in parallel” (such as the two engines on a twin-engine aircraft) are not processed with “ identical or similar maintenance activities” (“significant parallel systems are not subject to identical or similar maintenance activities ") . This is to prevent systematic errors in redundant systems from causing both systems to fail in flight at the same time. Countermeasures could be to carry out the maintenance of the two engines at different times, to assign them to two different technicians or to have complete functional tests connected to this maintenance. Such a function check is part of the maintenance program (and therefore approved by the aviation authority). The result must be documented.
  • The maintenance personnel must undergo special training for ETOPS . These training courses should be repeated and / or deepened at regular intervals, if necessary in an updated form.
  • The airline must consider the configuration of its aircraft and is responsible for the correct use of its fleet. In this context, there was an incident at American Airlines , which had both aircraft in its Airbus A321 fleet that were allowed to carry out ETOPS flights to Hawaii and those that were not allowed to. In September 2015, a flight was carried out with an aircraft not approved for this connection . An (approved) replacement aircraft had to be transferred for the return flight, and the non-approved aircraft had to fly back empty.

When the airlines implemented these strict maintenance guidelines, they saw surprisingly high cost savings. At that time, the cost of an engine failure during flight to an average of 850,000 were US dollar appreciated. A third of the engine failures exceeded the $ 1 million cost. The cost of an engine failure could exceed the annual earnings of an aircraft. Therefore, the airlines have transferred these maintenance procedures to non-ETOPS aircraft.

ETOPS for flight planning

The ETOPS regulations also extend to flight planning and the execution of flights. This is to ensure that sufficient safety reserves remain in the event that one of the alternate airports has to be approached due to an engine failure. The rules help flight planning so that all necessary aspects are taken into account and nothing is forgotten. This includes, for example, gathering information about the weather, selecting alternative airports and checking their availability, determining the flight route, informing the pilots about what needs to be considered on this flight with regard to ETOPS and calculating the kerosene requirement. All these steps are regulated in detail. These rules are based, among other things, on past experiences (especially incidents) so that all experiences are taken into account before each flight.

Details relate, for example, to the calculation of the speed and the distance covered depending on the weather and wind conditions and the associated route planning as well as the question of which airports are available as alternative airports and which properties they must have. There are three different strategies with which an alternate airport can be reached: on the one hand for minimized kerosene consumption, or flying over high obstacles (high mountains), as well as a special strategy called "EDTO strategy". It is also determined in advance from which points on the route the next alternative airport should be approached, the "Equal Time Points" (ETP). These can shift depending on the wind situation. The ETP for which there is the greatest need for kerosene is the “critical point” . This is usually the ETP to the last alternate airport. The kerosene supply must be calculated for this point.

history

Until 1985: pre-ETOPS era

As early as 1935, the Bureau of Air Commerce (a forerunner of the FAA ) in the USA issued safety regulations for air traffic: Night flights over rugged terrain were only allowed to be carried out by multi-engine aircraft that were still airworthy even if only one engine was still working . A year later, in 1936, a regulation was passed that was similar to the later 60-minute rule: Airplanes with only two piston-engine propellers had to prove that there was an adequate airfield on the route at least every 100 miles . For aircraft of this generation, 100 miles was about an hour's flight time.

Lockheed Super Constellation

At that time, all aircraft were powered by propellers in conjunction with piston engines. The reliability of such drives was limited and the probability of failure high. After the development of ever more powerful piston engines, it became clear that the reliability decreases the more powerful the engines become. Although the engine failure probabilities add up in an airplane with multiple engines (a four-engine machine is four times the probability of a single engine failing, a twin-engine is only twice that), the reliability of the four-engine machine is greater.

The Lockheed Super Constellation was jokingly dubbed the “best three-engine in the world” because it often landed with only three functioning engines because one of the four installed engines failed during the flight. In addition, some serious aircraft accidents at the time are due to multiple engine failures, e.g. For example, the Flying Tiger Line flight 923 , in which three of four engines failed during a flight and the machine had to be ditched in the Atlantic , or Pan-Am flight 6 , which had to make an emergency landing in the Pacific and even film recordings of its ditching the United States Coast Guard exist.

For this reason, the FAA established the rule in 1953 that the flight routes for aircraft with fewer than four engines must be selected in such a way that an airport can be reached within 60 minutes with correspondingly reduced power at any point in time during the flight. This displaced two- and three-engine aircraft for (then) long-haul flights by four-engine aircraft.

Also in 1953, the ICAO issued a recommendation that set a maximum distance of 90 minutes for all aircraft. An exception could be made if the aircraft with two failed engines still had a certain efficiency. As a result, this exemption could not be used for aircraft with a total of two engines.

With the introduction of jet-powered aircraft, aviation reliability has improved significantly. Although the volume of traffic in transatlantic traffic has increased significantly, the total number of aircraft accidents has decreased. It was observed that the rate at which the aircraft accidents fell was proportional to the introduction of jet-powered aircraft. In addition, the reliability of jet engines does not depend on the installed power.

Airbus A300

In 1964, the FAA exempted three-engine jets from the 60-minute rule. Three-beam vehicles could thus choose any route and no longer had to maintain maximum distances from alternate airports. The trigger was the positive experience with the newly registered Boeing 727 , which in the analysis was certified as being as reliable as four-engine machines. The Lockheed TriStar and Douglas DC-10 triple emitters were inspired by this release.

After the approval of the Airbus A300 in the variant A300B2 on March 15, 1974 there was the first twin-engine jet equipped with engines with a high bypass ratio. For three- and four-engine jets there were no differences between US and other airlines at that time, but for the A300 the following was true: outside the US, this jet could fly according to the ICAO 90-minute rule, US companies were around 60 -Minutes rule of the FAA bound. As a result, US airlines have put pressure on the FAA to relax these rules for the A300 in order to stay competitive. For this reason, the FAA initially gave the A300 a bonus of 15 minutes for the Caribbean region in 1977, which today would correspond to a regionally limited ETOPS 75 rule. The high reliability of the A300 engines made this possible without compromising safety.

1985 to 2007: ETOPS for aircraft types with two engines

A Boeing 767-200ER of TWA starts at Los Angeles Airport

After the success of the A300, Boeing developed the types 757 and 767 , which were also designed with two engines in the interests of economy. Especially for the busy transatlantic service, more direct connections could be offered with these aircraft at lower operating costs (than with a jumbo jet ). From 1980 onwards, Boeing advocated a relaxation of the 60-minute rule for two-jet engines at the FAA. After no accident due to engine failure was observed in the following years, instead all accidents were due to other reasons, the engine reliability of modern turbofan engines was considered sufficient and the first ETOPS approvals were granted in 1985. Even statistics on military flights with twin-engine planes were included in the considerations. Initially, admissions were granted for a maximum of 120 minutes.

The first flight according to ETOPS rules took place on February 1, 1985 by the TWA with a Boeing 767 from Boston to Paris .

In the following years the reliability of the engines was measured and analyzed. Based on these empirical values, the limit value for some types of aircraft and engines could be raised to 180 minutes from 1988.

In 2002 Airbus at the air show in Farnborough be installed at the end of the runway a banner that read: "4 engines 4 long-haul" (dt .: four engines for long-haul flights ) to the Airbus A340 to praise. The A340 is equipped with four engines and thus freed from restrictions in route planning; the competitor Boeing had a more economical aircraft with the Boeing 777 , which is equipped with only two engines. Virgin Atlantic Airways took over this slogan and wrote it on all of its aircraft, as this airline operated exclusively four-engine aircraft at that time and used them exclusively for long-haul service. After Virgin Atlantic ordered the first twin-engine planes, this saying was removed from the aircraft in 2007.

2007 until now: ETOPS for all aircraft

In 2007, the FAA fundamentally revised its ETOPS regulations. Since then, all turbine-powered aircraft types have been included in the ETOPS system, regardless of the number of their engines. The reason for this is that the reliability of the engines does not depend on their performance and therefore two-jet machines are no less reliable than four-jet engines. Rather, the probability of a single engine failure is twice as high with four engines as with two. This means that aircraft with four engines must now also strive for ETOPS certification.

The Airbus A380 , the latest four-engine aircraft type from Airbus, had its maiden flight on April 27, 2005 and its certification on December 12, 2006 and is therefore not subject to the ETOPS regulation. The first four-engine aircraft type that required ETOPS certification was the Boeing 747-8 , which had its maiden flight on February 8, 2010 and was approved on August 19, 2011.

In 2009, EASA granted the Airbus A330 the ETOPS certification of “beyond 180 minutes” (more than 180 minutes) . This made the A330 the first type of aircraft to exceed this limit.

Airbus A350

For its part, the ICAO fundamentally revised its ETOPS regulations in 2012. It was renamed EDTO . The ICAO (like the FAA five years earlier) extended the regulations to three- and four-engine aircraft types. However, the ICAO still does not require certification for four-jet aircraft types, only the fire suppression system is considered and the ETOPS time limit is derived from it.

After commissioning on October 26, 2011, the Boeing 787 initially received an ETOPS approval of 330 minutes. After several serious mishaps itself had taken place during the line operation, the FAA has this type of aircraft on 16 January 2013, a no-fly occupied. When this was lifted in April 2013, a significantly lower ETOPS approval of 180 minutes was issued. It was not until May 2014, more than a year later, that the FAA put the original certification of 330 minutes back into effect.

With the approval of the Airbus A350 in January 2015, Airbus originally wanted to achieve an ETOPS approval of 420 minutes. This endeavor was later dropped. The A350 has received a permit of 370 minutes (six hours ten minutes), which is still the highest value to date and means very few restrictions on the globe as long as all alternate airports are open.

In August 2017, a team of test pilots “painted in the sky” the silhouette of a Dreamliner aircraft over the entire North American continent during an 18-hour ETOPS certification flight for the new Trent 1000 TEN engine . Such special flight routes can be easily tracked on flight tracker apps such as Flightradar24 .

criticism

The Finnish Accident Investigation Agency criticizes the fact that some ETOPS times are now five hours, but the voice recorder still only records two hours. This means that after an incident that is concluded using the ETOPS time with a successful landing at an alternate airport, the cause of the incident can no longer be traced in the voice recorder.

The organization for air passenger rights in the USA FlyersRights.org criticizes the long ETOPS approval of the Boeing 787 and demands that it be limited to ETOPS-120. The argument given is the large number of serious incidents during the approval phase and at the start of commercial operations with passengers.

Web links

Commons : ETOPS  - Collection of Images

Primary sources

ICAO

EASA

FAA

Summaries

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Note: With " an engine failure" is meant the failure of exactly one engine.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h EDTO Module 2 - Basic concepts. (PDF; 5.46  MiB ) In: EDTO Workshop. ICAO , October 3, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2016 .
  3. ↑ EDTO Module 8 - Continued surveillance. (PDF; 856 KiB) In: EDTO Workshop. ICAO , October 3, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2016 .
  4. ↑ a b ETOPS in AllAcronyms. allacronyms.com, accessed February 24, 2015 .
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t J. Angelo DeSantis: Engines Turn or Passengers Swim: A Case Study of How ETOPS Improved Both Safety and Economics in Aviation. (PDF; 530 KiB) University of California, Davis - School of Law, November 21, 2013, accessed January 14, 2017 .
  6. ^ A b Glossary of civil aviation and air travel terminology. airodyssey.net, accessed February 24, 2015 .
  7. ↑ Master Minimum Equipment List / Minimum Equipment List - Policy and Procedures Manual. (PDF; 398 KiB) ICAO , archived from the original on February 15, 2017 ; accessed on February 28, 2017 (English).
  8. ↑ a b c d GUIDANCE FOR THE USE OF WAFS GRIDDED ICING FORECASTS FOR EXTENDED RANGE OPERATIONS BY TURBINE-ENGINED AEROPLANES (ETOPS). (PDF; 64 KiB ) ICAO , p. 2 , accessed on February 24, 2015 (English).
  9. ↑ a b c d Advisory Circular 120-42B. (PDF; 730  KiB ) In: Advisory Circular. FAA , June 13, 2008, p. 6 , accessed January 28, 2017 .
  10. ↑ Revision of rules for ETOPS & LROPS. (PDF; 6.27  MiB ) In: FAST 32. Airbus , July 2003, p. 17 , archived from the original on November 5, 2014 ; accessed on January 7, 2017 (English).
  11. ↑ LROPS - Long Range Operations. Airbus , archived from the original on March 9, 2007 ; accessed on February 24, 2015 .
  12. ↑ Cargo fligthts require ETOPS certification. The Professional Pilots Rumor Network Forum, September 21, 2004, accessed February 24, 2015 .
  13. ↑ Report summer / autumn 2005: “Jump over the oceans in the air”. (PDF; 2.71 MiB) MTU Aero Engines , 2003, pp. 50–53 , archived from the original on January 16, 2006 ; accessed on February 16, 2015 .
  14. ^ John Croft, David Learmount: FAA frees twins from ETOPS limits. flightglobal.com, January 16, 2007, accessed January 14, 2017 .
  15. ^ John Croft: US FAA to end ETOPS range restrictions for qualified aircraft. flightglobal.com, January 9, 2007, accessed January 14, 2017 .
  16. ^ Sick passenger. In: Forum. pilotenboard.de, April 17, 2009, p. 2 , accessed on January 14, 2017 : "According to JAR OPS, a defibrillator is not mandatory for ETOPS"
  17. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l EDTO Module 6 - Flight Operations considerations. (PDF; 9 MiB) In: EDTO Workshop. ICAO , October 3, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2016 .
  18. ↑ a b c EDTO Module 7 - Implementing EDTO regulations. (PDF; 1.6 MiB) In: EDTO Workshop. ICAO , October 3, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2016 .
  19. ↑ a b c d e EDTO Module 3 - Approval Process. (PDF; 2.3 MiB) In: EDTO Workshop. ICAO , October 3, 2014, accessed on October 14, 2016 .
  20. ^ Karl Swartz: Most of the rule times make sense, but why 138 minutes? Great Circle Mapper FAQ. Retrieved November 21, 2011 .
  21. ↑ Karl Swartz: 240- (and 207-) minute rule times for ETOPS ?! I thought 180 minutes was the highest. Great Circle Mapper FAQ. Retrieved November 21, 2011 .
  22. ↑ a b Federal Register Vol. 72, No. 9. (PDF; 1.2 MiB) FAA , January 16, 2007, accessed on January 28, 2017 (English).
  23. ^ Information for Aviators / Wideawake Airfield - Ascension Island. (PDF; 179 KiB) December 9, 2016, accessed on January 26, 2017 (English).
  24. ↑ a b c ATR '-600' aircraft receive ETOPS 120 minutes certification. ATR , June 7, 2013, accessed January 14, 2017 .
  25. ↑ a b c ATR-500 Series. (PDF; 5.65 MiB) In: Advertising brochure. ATR, p. 9 , accessed on January 31, 2017 (English).
  26. ↑ a b c TYPE-CERTIFICATE DATA SHEET No. EASA.A.084 for ATR 42 and ATR 72. (PDF; 570 KiB) EASA , October 17, 2012, p. 17 , accessed on February 4, 2017 (English).
  27. ↑ JAA offers to relent on business-jet ETOPS limits. flightglobal.com, July 9, 1997, accessed January 14, 2017 .
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