Prepare for departure and dispatch aircraft

This standard is about preparing for the departure of and dispatching aircraft. This involves confirming that the aircraft has received the required servicing, that loading has been completed and that the crew are ready for departure. This also involves providing the required information to ground crew and aircraft operating crew and confirming that the required documentation has been completed before the aircraft departs.

This standard is for those working in airports/airfields carrying out roles such as dispatchers and traffic officers whose role involves preparing an aircraft for departure and dispatching aircraft.

When you have completed this standard, you will be able to demonstrate your knowledge of and ability to:

• Prepare for departure and dispatch aircraft

1. Complete the departure preparation for the dispatch of an aircraft in line with organisational and the airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
2. Collate and compile pre-departure information for the crew as required by the airline
3. Identify the allocated stand and carry out pre-dispatch checks in line with organisational and the airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
4. Provide pre-departure information to ground crew before and during the aircraft preparation for departure in line with organisational and the airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
5. Use the required personal protective equipment (PPE) for dispatching aircraft in line with organisational and the airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
6. Respond to identified health, safety and security breaches in line with organisational and airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
7. Monitor the progress of all service providers to confirm the scheduled departure time is met in line with organisational, airport/airfield and airline procedures
8. Record identified issues in the aircraft departure process in line with organisational, airport/airfield and airline procedures and relevant legal requirements
9. Conduct a departure briefing with ground crew and aircraft operating crew in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures
10. Conduct pre-departure verification checks according to organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
11. Update information relating to the final aircraft load in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
12. Confirm and communicate that the aircraft is ready for departure in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
13. Maintain your own, colleagues’, passengers’ and visitors’ health, safety and welfare when preparing for departure and dispatching an aircraft
14. Complete the dispatch of an aircraft in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
15. Take the required action to confirm the aircraft is dispatched and can depart safely during adverse weather in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
16. Record the aircraft departure time and communicate to colleagues and service providers in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements
17. Analyse any departure delay and take the required action in line with organisational, airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures
18. Complete and process the required documentation in line with your airport/airfield and the airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements

1. The requirements of legislation relating to the departure and dispatch of aircraft
2. How to complete the departure preparation for the dispatch of an aircraft
3. The standard aviation terminology relating to arrival and departure times of aircraft
4. The 24 hour clock and time variations (UTC, BST)
5. The standard ground times and minimum ground times, airline precision time schedules
6. The standard movement messages to include movement and load messages; and how to interpret them
7. Your organisation's, the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s communication systems, channels and procedures
8. The ground handling equipment requirements relating to the aircraft
9. How to interpret and communicate information relating to an aircraft departure
10. The ground support services required for the aircraft and how to contact them
11. Your organisation's, the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements for boarding passengers
12. Your organisation's, the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s aircraft mass and balance procedures and the potential dangers of incorrect calculations
13. The relevant legal requirements which relate to and your organisation's, the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s baggage, cargo and mail handling procedures
14. Your organisation's and the airport’s/airfield’s procedures and relevant legal requirements for preparing the departure stand/gate
15. How to maintain safe working practices when dispatching aircraft
16. The airline or airport/airfield procedures to adopt whilst fuelling is taking place, and awareness of aircraft fuelling safety
17. The required personal protective equipment (PPE) for dispatching aircraft
18. The impact of adverse weather on aircraft departures and dispatch and actions to take for safe working
19. The airline critical time line/precision time schedule and other service provider requirements
20. How to brief ground crew and aircraft operating crew with the required information
21. Your organisation's, airport/airfield and airline’s procedures for loading bulk and containers and the potential effects of incorrect loading
22. Your organisation's airport/airfield and airline’s procedures for checking the aircraft mass and balance documents to confirm that the aircraft limitations are not exceeded
23. The types of dangerous goods, restricted articles and special cargo and your organisation’s the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s procedures for checking the packing and loading of them
24. Your organisation's procedures for identifying, allocating and communicating departure delays
25. How to complete the dispatch of an aircraft and required documentation in line with your organisation’s, the airport’s/airfield’s and airline’s procedures and relevant legal requirements

Departure preparation for the dispatch of an aircraft includes:

a) Receive, decode and document a standard movement message, 

b) Receive the load instruction report and pass to the aircraft loading personnel

c) Receive load sheet from load planning and pass to the aircraft commander

d) Receive and pass fuel figures according to airline and organisational procedures, confirm fuel figures with the aircraft commander

Pre-departure verification checks include:

a) Loading

b) Passengers boarded

c) Aircraft departure documentation

Aircraft documentation includes:

a) Load plan

b) Load sheet

c) Cargo manifest

d) Passenger manifest

e) Special load notification to captain (NOTOC)

f) The accounting and authorisation of hold baggage for transportation by air (AAA)

g) Specials list for the airline

h) Passenger list for the airline

i) Meal list for the airline

j) Weather pack for the airline

Aircraft departure documentation includes: 

a) Hold baggage manifest declaration

b) Load sheet

c) Load instruction report

FOD
Foreign Object Debris

NOTOC
Special Load – Notification to Captain

GSE
Ground Service Equipment

UTC
Universal Time Constant

BST
British Summer Time

AAA
The accounting and authorisation of hold baggage for transportation by air