Balloons operations

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Regulation (EU) No 2018/395 lays down detailed rules for the operation of balloons.

Operators of balloons shall operate the balloon in accordance with the requirements set out in Subpart BAS of Annex II.

For commercial operations with balloons, there is no requirement to be certified (being holder of an AOC [Air Operator Certificate]) but those operators shall only be entitled to engage in such commercial operations after having declared to the competent authority (DAC)  their capacity and means to discharge the responsibilities associated with the operation of the balloon. They shall make that declaration and operate the balloon, in addition to the requirements set out in Subpart BAS, in accordance with the requirements set out in Subpart ADD of Annex II.

 

The structure of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395 is the following:

 

 

 

The subpart BAS which is applicable to both commercial and non-commercial balloon operations has the following sections:

 

 

The subpart ADD which is applicable to only to commercial balloons operations has the following sections:

 

Marginal activities

The term ‘marginal activity’ should be understood as representing a very minor part of the overall activity of an organisation, mainly for the purpose of promoting itself or attracting new students or members. An organisation intending to offer such flights as regular business activity is not considered to meet the condition of marginal activity. Also, flights organised with the sole intent to generate income for the organisation, are not considered to be a marginal activity.

According to AMC1 ARO.OPS.300, the following criteria are to be considered for marginal activities:

  • Activity which takes place less than 20 days per calendar year, and
  • Activity which does not generate profit distributed outside of the organisation.

When such activity takes place, the organisation should inform the DAC.

 

Declaration for commercial balloon operators

According to Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395, operators engaged in commercial operations with balloons shall declare to the DAC their capacity and means to discharge the responsibilities associated with the operation of the balloon.

The declaration to the DAC shall be made using the following template: Balloons Declaration Template

This step is further described on MyGuichet.

The operator shall include in the declaration all of the following information:

  • the name of the operator;
  • the place where the operator has its principal place of business;
  • the name and contact details of the accountable manager of the operator;
  • the starting date of the commercial operation and, where relevant, the date at which the change to an existing commercial operation takes effect;
  • in respect of all balloons used for the commercial operation, the balloon type, registration, main base, type of operation and continuing airworthiness management organisation.

The operator shall notify the DAC without delay of any changes in circumstances affecting its compliance with the applicable requirements as declared to the DAC.

The operator shall notify the DAC without delay when it is no longer engaged in commercial operations with balloons.

 

Additional information

In case of questions related to balloon operations, please consult our FAQ below or send an e-mail to ops@av.etat.lu.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I find the applicable requirements?

On EASA website: https://easa.europa.eu/regulations

Are the rules related to balloons included in Regulation (EU) No 965/2012?

No, the rules for balloon air operations have been removed from Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 and a dedicated regulation (Regulation (EU) No 2018/395) has been developed.

What is the definition of operator?

According to Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 216/2008, an operator shall mean any legal or natural person, operating or proposing to operate one or more aircraft.

What is a balloon?

According to Article 2 of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395, a balloon means a manned lighter-than-air aircraft which is not power-driven and sustains flight through the use of either a lighter-than-air gas or an airborne heater, including gas balloons, hot-air balloons, mixed balloons and, although power-driven, hot-air airships.

Do I need to have an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) in order to perform commercial operations with balloons?

No, according to Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395, the requirement of certification laid down therein shall not apply to operators engaged in commercial operations with balloons.

However, these operators shall only be entitled to engage in such commercial operations after having declared to the competent authority their capacity and means to discharge the responsibilities associated with the operation of the balloon.

To summarize, only a declaration is required, no AOC.

I am a private operator of balloons, which parts of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395 apply to me?

As non-commercial operator, the following parts are applicable to you:

  • Cover regulation (articles)
  • Annex I Part-DEF
  • Annex II Part-BOP – Subpart BAS

I am a commercial operator of balloons, which parts of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395 apply to me?

As a commercial operator, the following parts are applicable to you:

  • Cover regulation (articles)
  • Annex I Part-DEF
  • Annex II Part-BOP – Subpart BAS
  • Annex II Part-BOP – Subpart ADD

Does the subpart ADD apply for all the commercial operations?

According to Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 2018/395, the following operations with balloons do not require compliance with subpart ADD:

  • cost-shared operations by four individuals or less, including the pilot, provided that the direct costs of the flight of the balloon and a proportionate part of the annual costs incurred for the storage, insurance and maintenance of the balloon are shared by all those individuals;
  • competition flights or flying displays, provided that the remuneration or any other valuable consideration for such flights is limited to the recovery of the direct costs of the flight of the balloon and a proportionate part of the annual costs incurred for the storage, insurance and maintenance of the balloon and that any prizes gained do not exceed the value specified by the competent authority;
  • introductory flights with four individuals or less, including the pilot, and flights for the purposes of parachute dropping, performed either by a training organisation which has its principal place of business in a Member State and which has been approved in accordance with Regulation (EU) 1178/2011 or by an organisation created for the purposes of promoting aerial sport or leisure aviation, provided that the organisation operates the balloon on the basis of either ownership or a dry lease agreement, that the flight does not generate profits distributed outside of the organisation and that such flights represent only a marginal activity of the organisation;
  • training flights, performed by a training organisation which has its principal place of business in a Member State and which has been approved in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011.

Who is the competent authority as per requirement BOP.BAS.005?

The competent authority shall be the authority designated by the Member State where the operator has its principal place of business or, where the operator has no principal place of business, the place where the operator is established or resides.

For operators having their principal place of business or residing in Luxembourg, the DAC is the competent authority.

As balloon operator, are we subject to oversight from the competent authority?

Yes, you are. This is required by ARO.GEN.305 and the oversight programme shall include audits and inspections including ramp and unannounced inspections. As mentioned in BOP.BAS.005, the competent authority (DAC) is subject to the requirements of Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 in accordance with Article 1(7) of Regulation (EU) 2015/395.