PSNI DAC 13/25 - Helicopter Maintenance and Role Equipment

PSNI currently have 2 Eurocopter Helicopters operating from a location in Northern Ireland. Provision of aerial support is a province wide asset managed by Crime Operations Air Support Unit. The direction of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) states that an operator (PSNI) of an aircraft must have a maintenance agreement in place with suitability licensed suppliers to provide continuing airworthiness and the respective maintenance services, without these formal arrangements in place the aircraft would have to be grounded. The supplier is the original and sole equipment manufacturer of the PSNI aircraft types; the design is their Intellectual Property and shall not be delegated or licensed to a 3rd party. The supplier is the Type Certificate Holder for the core aircraft design and it is responsible for defining the aircraft's "build standard, safe operation and maintenance of airworthiness policy". The platform design, qualification data and safety case empowers the supplier to specify the requirements and mandate modifications for all components (includes specialist role equipment) fitted to the core aircraft and mission systems. The supplier is an CAA approved continuing airworthiness management organisation and a BCAR A8-23 authorised helicopter maintenance organisation. They have intellectual proprietary rights to the equipment fitted on the aircraft. The aircraft is used for national security type specific duties and is fitted with specialist surveillance equipment. They have the unique competency to manage mature, high flying rate fleets as the OEM and they are the sole source for providing a single integrated solution, they offer an integrated logistics support utilising their supply chain, access to national stock levels and availability of all specialist tooling. They have existing infrastructure in place for the delivery of this service and have unique knowledge and experience in working with PSNI and their specific operational needs since aircraft entry into service.