CS 25.809 Emergency exit arrangement

ED Decision 2015/019/R

(See AMC 25.809)

(a)     (1)     Each emergency exit, including a flight crew emergency exit, must be a movable door or hatch in the external walls of the fuselage, allowing unobstructed opening to the outside.

(2)     Each emergency exit, including a flight crew emergency exit, must have means to permit viewing of the conditions outside the exit when the exit is closed, in all ambient lighting conditions with the landing gears extended or in any condition of collapse. The viewing means may be on or adjacent to the exit provided no obstructions exist between the exit and the viewing means. (See AMC 25.809(a))

(3)     For non-over-wing passenger emergency exits, a means must also be provided to permit viewing of the likely areas of evacuee ground contact when the exit is closed with the landing gears extended or in any condition of collapse. Furthermore, the likely areas of evacuee ground contact must be viewable with the exit closed during all ambient lighting conditions when all landing gears are extended.

(b)     Each emergency exit must be openable from the inside and the outside except that sliding window emergency exits in the flight crew area need not be openable from the outside if other approved exits are convenient and readily accessible to the flight crew area. Inward opening doors may be used if there are means to prevent occupants from crowding against the door to an extent that would interfere with the opening of the door. Each emergency exit must be capable of being opened, when there is no fuselage deformation –

(1)     With the aeroplane in the normal ground attitude and in each of the attitudes corresponding to collapse of one or more legs of the landing gear; and

(2)     Within 10 seconds measured from the time when the opening means is actuated to the time when the exit is fully opened.

(3)     Even though persons may be crowded against the door on the inside of the aeroplane.

(c)      The means of opening emergency exits must be simple and obvious and may not require exceptional effort; and must be arranged and marked so that it can be readily located and operated, even in darkness. Internal exit opening means involving sequence operations (such as operation of two handles or latches or the release of safety catches) may be used for flight crew emergency exits if it can be reasonably established that these means are simple and obvious to crewmembers trained in their use.

(d)     If a single power-boost or single power-operated system is the primary system for operating more than one exit in an emergency, each exit must be capable of meeting the requirements of sub-paragraph (b) of this paragraph in the event of failure of the primary system. Manual operation of the exit (after failure of the primary system) is acceptable.

(e)     Each emergency exit must be shown by tests, or by a combination of analysis and tests, to meet the requirements of sub-paragraphs (b) and (c) of this paragraph.

(f)      Each door must be located where persons using them will not be endangered by the propellers when appropriate operating procedures are used.

(g)     There must be provisions to minimise the probability of jamming of the emergency exits resulting from fuselage deformation in a minor crash landing.

(h)     [Reserved]

(i)      Each emergency exit must have a means to retain the exit in the open position, once the exit is opened in an emergency. The means must not require separate action to engage when the exit is opened, and must require positive action to disengage.

[Amdt 25/4]

[Amdt 25/12]

[Amdt 25/14]

[Amdt 25/17]