The impact of the ongoing pandemic COVID-19 on the aircraft industry has been unprecedented. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Cayman Islands (CAACI), custodian of the Cayman Islands’ Aircraft Registry (CIAR), has implemented proactive measures to meet these new challenges providing enhanced services to our existing and potential clients associated with aircraft leasing and financing transactions.
The CAACI has always recognised the importance of aircraft financiers and lessors, as many of our clients in aircraft ownership and operation depend on these financial intermediaries. This is a valuable relationship we wish to foster through an insightful and collaborative understanding to the interdependencies of the industry. We have introduced material processes, bespoke products and refined online portals, all specifically designed to support the interests of lessors. The CAACI is working to establish long term relationships with lessors that will provide ready solutions where aircraft registration support is required with emphasis beyond the registration process.
The CAACI is currently focused on offering a Transition Register which is supported by highly experienced employees and full-time personnel of the authority. Our team have extensive regulatory backgrounds in several regulatory jurisdictions; this along with our regulatory Code (Overseas Territories Aviation Requirements [OTARs]) enables our ability to place aircraft in multiple jurisdictions in an expeditious manner following our normal attention to stringent safety protocols.
A new objective of the CAACI, within the Transition Register offering, is to delegate responsibilities to qualified Continuing Airworthiness Management Organisations (CAMO) under the Air Navigation (Overseas Territories) Order (AN(OT) O). This is a significant task for the CAACI where specific oversight arrangements in keeping within the delegation have to be established to ICAO performance based regulation standards.
This delegation to selected CAMOs (approved for Aircraft Transition activities) provides for significant efficiencies in the relationship between the CAACI acting in regulatory oversight and the CAMO making submissions for gaining Approvals and Certificates.
Scenarios such as aircraft repossessions where timely and proactive solutions are necessary, these pre-established compliant resources in CAMO and Ferry Flight Operators are vital to achieving reliable and safe outcomes.
The CAACI has established a project management system for Transition Aircraft. This generates the need for close coordination between all involved, regular liaison meetings are arranged to ensure the Transition project remains active during the aircraft’s registry in the Cayman Islands and commensurate with the status of the Lessors operational objective. The key is to mitigate last minute exercises often the case where aircraft sit in storage without any oversight.
Our online portal VP-C online has for over a decade proven to be a significant advantage in ensuring we all efficiently manage Applications for the issuance of Certificates and Approvals. The system provides login accounts that provide secured and ready access to all of the airworthiness and operational certifications of the various aircraft of a particular lessor which have been registered in the Cayman Islands. In addition to existing functionality, VP-C Online is being innovated to include a Lessor Module whereby a lessor can apply for a VP-C Online account.
The CAACI offers Lessors a Service Level Agreement (SLA) that is specifically designed for Aircraft Transitions, offering a clear list of the services provided and a fixed fee structure. This provides the Lessor with confidences and pre-defined budgetary information often required by financiers and investors associated with aircraft assets.
With a focus on the quality of service and flexibility the CAACI continues to set themselves apart from other aircraft registry jurisdictions. They remain committed to offering a personal, responsive and high quality service to their customers, and to finding innovative and efficient solutions to the needs of those they work with.
