Helicopter Regulation in Brazil
Strict regulations over helicopter flights are very important, especially in large cities, due to the danger arising from these activities. In this article, we will take a look at helicopter flight regulations in Brazil.
Responsible Entity
In Brazil, the ANAC is responsible for regulating all matters related to civilian aircrafts. ANAC stands for Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil, which is Portuguese for National Agency for Civil Aviation, and defines civil aircraft as all those that are public or private. Aircrafts that are employed by the Brazilian Armed Forces are not considered civil aircrafts.
Helicopter Register
The ANAC keeps track of all civil aircrafts in Brazil. It is therefore necessary to register all aircrafts with the ANAC, and helicopters are no different. This control is done through the Sistema de Registro Aeronáutico Brasileiro, which is Portuguese for Brazilian Aeronautical Registry System, or RAB.
The main responsibilities of the Brazilian Aeronautical Registry System are to:
- Keep record of aircraft nationality and registration marks
- Issue certificates of registration, airworthiness and flight authorization
The RAB also keeps records of all pilots or aircraft owners.
Owners of new aircrafts have up to 15 days after the transaction date to register their aircraft with the RAB. Any sale of aircraft must advise the RAB, within 10 days of the transaction date.
Necessary Processes and Documentation
The first step to register an aircraft in Brazil is to request the Aircraft Nationality and Registration Marks from ANAC. Once this is granted, it is necessary to book these Marks as yours, in order to prevent other owners from using the same Marks as the ones that the ANAC gave you. Finally, when these are booked, it is possible to have them painted on the aircraft’s shell.
In order to book these Marks, the following documentation is necessary:
- Application for aircraft registry, downloadable in this link
- For legal entities: articles of association, CNPJ number, report of the assembly that elected the members of the Board of Directors
- For individuals: copy of identification document, CPF number, proof of address, proof of residency status in the country, in case of foreigners
- Insurance policy
- Certificado de Vistoria Técnica Inicial, which is Portuguese for Initial Technical Inspection Certificate
- Nota Fiscal or any other document proving how the aircraft was acquired. The original document must be provided, with notarized signatures
The Initial Technical Inspection can be requested by submitting an application - downloadable here - to the ANAC. The cost of this inspection is BRL 400.
The process of booking the Aircraft Nationality and Registration Marks costs BRL 86,00.
Registration of Foreign Aircrafts
In the case of foreign aircrafts, that are already registered in another country before being moved to Brazil, its registry at the RAB can only be carried out after the registration applicant presents proof that the old foreign registry was cancelled or suspended. In order to register foreign aircrafts, it is necessary to provide the original Bill of Sale, with notarized signature and consular visa, to the ANAC when you make the booking application for the Aircraft Nationality and Registration Marks.
Helipads
It is also the responsibility of the ANAC to keep track and record of all helipads. In fact, no helipad can be constructed or renovated without previous authorization from the ANAC.
Application for Construction
Those who are interested in constructing or reforming a helipad must file a Pedido de Autorização Prévia para Construção de Aeródromo ou de Modificação de suas Características Físicas, which is Portuguese for Prior Authorization Request for Airfield Construction or Modification of its Physical Characteristics with the ANAC. A Liability Term must also be attached to the application. A notice advising that the helipad’s construction has been completed, must be handed to the ANAC accordingly once the works are finished. These documents are available here.
Furthermore, these documents must be accompanied by an ART, a Technical Responsibility Annotation, elaborated by an accredited Engineer. The applicant must also provide proof that they paid the GRU generated from this request, which is BRL 250. The ANAC has up to 90 days to give its answer to the application.
The ANAC states that two helipads must be separated by a vertical drop of at least 50m or by a minimum distance of 400m. Also, when applying for the construction of a helipad, the ANAC requires that a site plan be drawn up, showing all existing helipads within 500m and all existing airfields within 15km of the planned helipad.
Application for Registration
Likewise, documents for the registration of the helipad on the ANAC’s registry, describing all of the helipad’s features, must be filed. A model for this application can be found in this document, on pages 15 through 18.
For new helipads, the applicant must request an analysis from the Aeronautics Command stating that the helipad is located in a safe place for air transportation. It is necessary to request this analysis by one of COMAR’s offices. COMAR stands for Regional Air Command, and its different offices are:
- I COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Pará, Maranhão and Amapá
- II COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe, Bahia and Piauí
- III COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais
- IV COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul
- V COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul
- VI COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso, Tocantins and the Federal District
- VII COMAR - with jurisdiction over the states of Amazonas, Acre, Rondônia and Roraima
An ANAC employee may also visit the helipad in order to make sure that it is compliant with all requirements and features stated in the application.
The fees for registration of private helipads or for the modification of physical characteristics of private helipads are:
- Code 333 - Modification of physical characteristics of private helipad - BRL 250,22
- Code 355 - Registration of private helipad - BRL 1000
Each helipad’s registration is valid for 10 years and can be renewed for equal periods as long as it is kept in the technical conditions for which the helipad was authorized. The renewal of registration should be requested from the ANAC with a minimum of 60 days before the expiration date. The fee for renewing the registration is BRL 300,11.
The ANAC will have up to 120 days to analyze the registration application.