Banner Towing Rating - How?

Hey,

for banner towing EASA specifies in Part FCL:
FCL.805 Sailplane towing and banner towing ratings
(a)
Holders of a pilot licence with privileges to fly aeroplanes or TMGs shall only tow sailplanes or banners when they hold the appropriate sailplane towing or banner towing rating.
[…]
(c)
Applicants for a banner towing rating shall have completed:
(1) at least 100 hours of flight time and 200 take-offs and landings as PIC on aeroplanes or TMG, after the issue of the licence. At least 30 of these hours shall be in aeroplanes, if the activity is to be carried out in aeroplanes, or in TMG, if the activity is to be carried out in TMGs;
(2) a training course at an ATO including:
(i) theoretical knowledge instruction on towing operations and procedures;
(ii) at least 10 instruction flights towing a banner, including at least 5 dual flights.
(d)
The privileges of the sailplane and banner towing ratings shall be limited to aeroplanes or TMG, depending on which aircraft the flight instruction was completed. The privileges will be extended if the pilot holds a licence for aeroplanes or TMG and has successfully completed at least 3 dual training flights covering the full towing training syllabus in either aircraft, as relevant.
(e)
In order to exercise the privileges of the sailplane or banner towing ratings, the holder of the rating shall have completed a minimum of 5 tows during the last 24 months.
(f)
When the pilot does not comply with the requirement in (e), before resuming the exercise of his/her privileges, the pilot shall complete the missing tows with or under the supervision of an instructor

and in the AMC:
AMC1 FCL.805 Sailplane towing and banner towing rating
THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE AND FLYING TRAINING
(a) The aim of the towing instruction is to qualify licence holders to tow
banners or sailplanes.
(b) The ATO should issue a certificate of satisfactory completion of the
instruction that can be used for licence endorsement.
[…]
(d) Theoretical knowledge: banner towing
The theoretical knowledge syllabus for banner towing should cover the
revision or explanation of:
(1) regulations about banner towing;
(2) equipment for the banner towing activity;
(3) ground crew coordination;
(4) pre-flight procedures;
(5) banner towing techniques, including:
(i) take-off launch;
(ii) banner pickup manoeuvres;
(iii) flying with a banner in tow;
(iv) release procedure;
(v) landing with a banner in tow (if applicable);
(vi) emergency procedures during tow, including equipment
malfunctions;
(vii) safety procedures;
(viii) flight performance of the applicable aircraft type when towing a
heavy or light banner;
(ix) prevention of stall during towing operations.
[…]
(f) Flying training: banner towing
The exercises of the towing training syllabus for banner towing should be
repeated as necessary until the student achieves a safe and competent
standard and should comprise at least the following practical training
items:
(1) pickup manoeuvres;
(2) towing in-flight techniques;
(3) release procedures;
(4) flight at critically low air speeds;
(5) maximum performance manoeuvres;
(6) emergency manoeuvres to include equipment malfunctions
;
(7) specific banner towing safety procedures;
(8) go-around with the banner connected;
(9) loss of engine power with the banner attached (simulated).

Our AeroClub ATO (www.edxe.de) can train for the banner rating, although we have only one instructor to do so. You might contact us on details at [email protected].

In France, you won’t need it before August 2018, if I remember correctly.

Rwy20 wrote:

In France, you won’t need it before August 2018, if I remember correctly.

How does that work? FCL is regulation in France, too.

Some parts, like the mountain rating, banner towing and IIRC aerobatics have a clause which permits member states to apply them later. France has used this and it is published in a regulation that I am too lazy to dig out from legifrance.

Edit: Found it

Article 3
Modifié par ARRÊTÉ du 2 avril 2015 – art. 2

En application du paragraphe 2 bis de l’article 12 du règlement (UE) n° 1178/2011 modifié susvisé, les dispositions suivantes de l’annexe I (PART FCL) de ce règlement sont applicables au plus tard le 8 avril 2018 :

a) Les dispositions relatives aux licences de pilote de ballons et de planeurs ;

b) Les dispositions de la sous-partie B (licence de pilote d’aéronef léger) ;

c) Les dispositions des paragraphes FCL. 800 (qualification de vol acrobatique), FCL. 805 (qualifications pour le remorquage de planeurs et de banderoles), FCL. 815 (qualification de vol en montagne) ;

d) Les dispositions de la section 10 (instructeur de qualification de vol en montagne (MI)) de la sous-partie J.

So it’s April 8, 2018.

Unfortunately I don’t know either where you could get the current qualification, nor if and how any grandfathering will work.

Possibly a tangent, but still on topic, I think. In Poland ultralights are not considered planes, but I can fly an Aeroprakt with a PPL. Do I need hours on a “real” plane to use the Aeroprakt for towing, or are hours on it acceptable? Who determines that? The ATO giving the rating? The NCAA (National Civil Aviation Authority)?

It is for your national CAA to make rules for glider towing with ultralights. Here are the French rules – not that this would help you at all in Poland, but just as an example.