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Appendix 11 Aerial pipeline inspection
A11.1 General
In most countries periodic inspections of product pipelines are a requirement of national legislation, although the owner will usually wish to carry out inspections regardless of legislation. As well as checking for any signs of a leak from or damage to a pipeline, the inspection is to check that there is no danger to the integrity of the line from nearby construction or drainage work. The use of helicop-ters or fixed-wing aircraft is often the most effective way of achieving the task. Additional hazards are introduced by the need to operate at an altitude which is lower than optimum for normal opera-tions. These hazards can be managed by complying with the following guidance.
A11.2 General guidelines
a) Weather. i) All aerial survey/pipeline patrol operations should normally be conducted under Day Visual Flight Rules (VFR) conditions. ii) Minimum weather for Day VFR of 700-foot ceilings and 3 miles visibility.
b) Oil spill surveillance and other aerial surveillance operations using specialized IR/UV cam-eras may be conducted at night if all requirements for night flight (Appendix 5) are met.
c) Operations should be conducted at no less than the minimum safe altitude stipulated by
regulation or authorized by the local CAA (see item 11 below). d) Helicopters, when used, should not be operated within the avoid area of the height/velocity curve, as published in the helicopter’s approved flight manual, except during landing and takeoff.
A11.3 Single-engine aircraft
The use of a single-engine aircraft may offer some advantages for manoeuvrability and visibility. However, there are conditions that should be considered when making the decision on whether a single-engine aircraft would offer an acceptable risk. Those conditions are generally: terrain; avail-ability of safe landing area along the route to be flown; and ready access to professional search and rescue support (See Appendix 6 -weather planning document). When operating with a single- engine aircraft the following provisions must be in place and monitored for compliance:
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