145.A.55 Record-keeping

(a)     Maintenance records

(1)     The organisation shall record the details of the maintenance work that is carried out within the scope of its approval. As a minimum, the organisation shall retain all the records that are necessary to prove that all the requirements have been met for the issue of the certificate of release to service, including, if any, subcontractor's release documents.

(2)     The organisation shall provide a copy of each certificate of release to service to the operator or customer, together with copies of the detailed maintenance records that are associated with the work carried out and that are necessary to demonstrate compliance with point M.A.305 of Annex I (Part-M) or ML.A.305 of Annex Vb (Part-ML), as applicable.

(3)     The organisation shall retain a copy of all detailed maintenance records (including certificates of release to service) and of any associated maintenance data for 3 years from the date when the aircraft or component to which the work relates was issued with a certificate of release to service.

(4)     If an organisation terminates its operation, it shall transfer all the retained maintenance records that cover the last 3 years to the last customer or owner of the respective aircraft or component, or shall store them in the manner specified by the competent authority.

(b)     Airworthiness review records

(1)     If an organisation has the privilege referred to in point 145.A.75(f), it shall retain a copy of each airworthiness review certificate that it has issued, together with all the supporting documents, and shall make those records available, upon request, to the owner of the aircraft.

(2)     The organisation shall retain a copy of all the records referred to in point (1) for 3 years after the issue of the airworthiness review certificate.

(3)     If an organisation terminates its operation, it shall transfer all the retained airworthiness review records that cover the last 3 years to the last owner or operator of the respective aircraft, or shall store them in the manner specified by the competent authority.

(c)      Management system, contracting and subcontracting records

The organisation shall ensure that the following records are retained for a minimum period of 5 years:

(i)      records of management system key processes referred to in point 145.A.200;

(ii)      contracts, both for contracting and subcontracting, referred to in point 145.A.205.

(d)     Personnel records

(1)     The organisation shall ensure that the following records are retained:

(i)      records of the qualifications, training and experience of the personnel involved in maintenance, compliance monitoring and safety management;

(ii)     records of the qualifications, training and experience of all airworthiness review staff.

(2)     The records of all airworthiness review staff shall include details of any appropriate qualifications held, together with a summary of their relevant continuing airworthiness experience and training, and a copy of the airworthiness review authorisation issued to that staff by the organisation.

(3)     The records of all the certifying staff and support staff shall include the following:

(i)      the details of any aircraft maintenance licence held under Annex III (Part-66) or equivalent;

(ii)     the scope of the certification authorisations that were issued to that staff, where relevant;

(iii)     the particulars of the staff that held limited or one-off certification authorisations referred to in point 145.A.30(j).

(4)     Personnel records shall be kept for as long as a person works for the organisation, and shall be retained for at least 3 years after the person has left the organisation, or after an authorisation issued to that person has been withdrawn.

(5)     The organisation shall give to the staff referred to in points (2) and (3), upon their request, access to their personnel records as detailed in those points. In addition, upon their request, the maintenance organisation shall furnish each of them with a copy of their personnel records on leaving the organisation.

(e)     The organisation shall establish a record-keeping system that allows adequate storage and reliable traceability of all its activities.

(f)      The format of the records shall be specified in the organisation’s procedures.

(g)     The records shall be stored in a manner that ensures that they are protected from damage, alteration and theft.