ACE 2026 - The home of global charter.
The bimonthly news publication for aviation professionals.
Ask a group of 20 operations managers what exactly their job entails, and you will almost certainly receive 20 different answers. Sure, some of the key responsibilities are the same for everyone, but otherwise the role reflects the type of aircraft, operations and the structure and culture of the company itself.
For our survey we talked to a cross-section of ops managers of all shapes and sizes, some of them responsible for ground ops and some for aircraft or flight ops, but many for both, and spanning a range of fixed wing and rotary operations.
In larger organisations we found a director of flight operations, who is almost certainly accountable to aviation authorities, as a post holder and who oversees the efforts of managers with specific responsibilities. At the other end of the scale we talked to dedicated multi-tasking individuals taking care of virtually every aspect of flying, short of actually pushing the throttle. But all of our respondents had at least one thing in common – substantial experience of flight operations and a love of the work.
Ensuring the successful and safe conduct of commercial or private business flying is a responsible job, whatever the circumstances and one which all owners and operators take very seriously. But for AOC-holders (licensed to fly for commercial reward) this responsibility is laid down in regulation and must be allocated to at least one named individual.
Each AOC holder must have an accountable manager responsible for appointing and overseeing the named post holders required by EU-OPS 1.175(i), these being for flight operations, ground operations, training and maintenance. In smaller companies some of these roles can be combined.
Operations post holders take on responsibilities such as ensuring that every flight is conducted in accordance with the provisions of the operations manual, and that appropriate ground handling facilities are in place to ensure the safe handling of flights.
Minimum requirements for the post holder for ground operations simply involve demonstrating a thorough knowledge of procedures, but for flight operations these are much more specific. For this the nominated post holder or his deputy should hold a valid ATPL if the AOC includes aeroplanes certificated for a minimum crew of two pilots, or a CPL and instrument rating otherwise.
To bring their knowledge of EU-OPS into focus, and prepare for an aviation authority interview, prospective post holders can also undertake specific training. This might cover the latest regulatory issues, safety and quality management techniques, communication and procedures.
Thank you!
This month we were overwhelmed by the response to our Perspectives survey, and there was simply not enough time to call and chat with everyone. Operations managers are clearly eager to talk about their job. So, we are sorry if you were disappointed this time – but we hope to have the chance to speak with you on another occasion.
Operations manager responsibilities
Probably
Maybe
