Checklist - RPAS, Marine and ARFF (Conditional Modules)

This category audits three conditional modules: RPAS Program (remotely piloted aircraft), Marine Firefighting Program (vessels and shipboard fire) and Airport Rescue and Firefighting Program (ARFF at an aerodrome). Each module is switched on or off in the Program Profile Worksheet (01 Program Profile Worksheet Part B and Part C modules 20, 28 and 29).

Module switched off rule. If the Profile Worksheet marks a module Not applicable, the auditor records the reason and the review date in the finding column of that module’s first item, checks the dispatch data for the last three years for any response that contradicts the decision, and scores nothing in that section. A contradicted “Not applicable” is itself a finding against the Profile Worksheet, reported under the Assessment category. A module marked Conditional is scored on the awareness-level items only (marked “Cond.” in the stage column) unless the department has chosen to run the full program.

The audit method, auditor independence, sampling and reporting rules are in 01 Audit Program; the category taxonomy and the roll-up are in 02 Audit Checklist Master Index.

The items below are drawn from the following standards and law. Confirm each section number against the current official text before the first audit.

• RPAS: Canadian Aviation Regulations Part IX as amended in 2025, including pilot certificates, registration, site survey, pre-flight, records, altitude, emergency-scene restrictions and fitness (Canadian Aviation Regulations [CA], 2026, Part IX ss. 901.19, 901.23, 901.26, 901.29, 901.47 to 901.49); the Level 1 Complex Operations certificate and the RPAS Operator Certificate added by the 2025 amendments, SOR/2025-70 (Canadian Aviation Regulations [CA], 2026, Part IX); NFPA 2400 organizational program, pilot qualifications and maintenance (NFPA 2400, 2024); wildland air operations coordination (NFPA 1140, 2022); privacy under the applicable municipal access-to-information and privacy statute (J10 Privacy and Health Information).
• Marine: vessel construction (NFPA 1925, 2018); in-service inspection and testing (NFPA 1910, 2024); crewing and certificates (Marine Personnel Regulations [CA], 2026); safety equipment and approved flotation (Small Vessel Regulations [CA], 2026); marine firefighter qualifications (NFPA 1010, 2024); shipboard fire guidance (NFPA 1405, 2021); confined spaces (CSA Z1006:23); flotation within 3 m of water (MLITSD, n.d., GN 6-2).
• ARFF: aircraft firefighting at airports and aerodromes, category, training, PPE and the annual response time test (Canadian Aviation Regulations [CA], 2026, Subpart 303); aerodrome emergency plan (Canadian Aviation Regulations [CA], 2026, s. 302.202 ff.); Advisory Document 343 and TP 312 (Transport Canada, n.d.-a; Transport Canada, n.d.-b); ARFF qualifications (NFPA 1010, 2024); ARFF services and proficiency (NFPA 460, 2024); vehicles and maintenance (NFPA 1900, 2024; NFPA 1910, 2024); PFAS foam phase-out (Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2025 [CA], 2026); aircraft hazards (MLITSD, n.d., GN 6-21).
• All three: incident management, accountability and risk management (NFPA 1550, 2024); the applicable provincial or territorial OHS statute and regulations, or the federal regime where it applies instead (J01 OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement; see Jurisdiction requirements).
• Accreditation crosswalk: the marine items answer Criterion 5J (CC 5J.1 deployment objectives for marine and shipboard incidents; CC 5J.2 annual appraisal); the ARFF items answer Criterion 5I (CC 5I.1 deployment objectives including extinguishing agent; CC 5I.2 annual appraisal); the RPAS items answer 11A.2 (reporting and addressing hazards and unsafe practices) and 11A.8 (risk management during emergency operations); all three answer 11A.5 (OHS training), 11A.8 and 11A.12 (accountability at every risk event) (CPSE, 2019). The criteria are paraphrased here; the auditor reads the manual’s own text when preparing an accreditation file.

0 not in place; 1 documented, not implemented; 2 implemented, not verified effective; 3 implemented and effective with evidence. Score each module separately; the module score is the mean of its scored items. Never report the three modules as one number and never average a switched-off module into anything. Items marked S1 must score 3 before a module can be reported at Stage 1; S2 items are scored but not required until Stage 2. The accountability-loop item and the psychological-safety item in each module are reported on their own line in the audit report, as 01 Audit Program requires. Every finding below 3 becomes an entry in the Corrective Action Register with an owner and a due date.

These cannot be answered from documents. Observation or interview only; record who was observed or interviewed by role.

RPAS

1. Watch a pre-flight. Does the pilot run the site survey and checklist from the card, check the airspace and NOTAMs, and brief the visual observer, or is it done from memory?
2. Ask the last pilot in command at a multi-agency incident how they knew where the helicopter was. Does the answer match the deconfliction procedure?
3. Ask a visual observer what they would do if they thought the flight should stop. Does the answer include a phrase, an expected reply from the pilot, and a belief it would be welcomed?

Marine

1. Stand at the dock during a launch. Is every person within 3 m of the edge wearing an approved flotation device, fastened, and is the crew count spoken aloud?
2. Ask an operator what the wind and sea limit is for this vessel today and what happens if the incident commander wants them out past it. Does the answer match the manual and the go/no-go rule?
3. Ask a crew member what they would do if told to go below on a burning vessel before the CO2 was confirmed locked out. Does the answer include stopping, saying why, and an expectation of being heard?

ARFF

1. Watch the daily check. Is the foam proportioner setting, the agent quantity and the complementary agent pressure actually read and recorded, or is the sheet signed in the bay?
2. Ask a driver/operator to describe the response route to the farthest runway midpoint at night and what they do if the tower does not answer. Does the answer match the procedure and the test record?
3. Ask an ARFF firefighter what they would do with a burned composite airframe after the fire is out. Does the answer include SCBA, wet-down, bagging PPE and an exposure report?

This chapter relies on the following legal requirements, which differ by province and territory. Check your jurisdiction’s section on each topic page before adopting it.

Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development [MLITSD]. (n.d.). Firefighter guidance notes (Section 21 Advisory Committee; individual notes revised to 2026). https://www.ontario.ca/document/firefighter-guidance-notes

Transport Canada. (n.d.-a). Advisory Document 343: Complementing regulations and standards respecting aircraft fire fighting at airports and aerodromes. https://tc.canada.ca/en/corporate-services/acts-regulations/list-regulations/canadian-aviation-regulations-sor-96-433/standards/advisory-document-343-complementing-regulations-standards-respecting-aircraft-fire-fighting-airports-aerodromes-0

Transport Canada. (n.d.-b). Aerodromes standards and recommended practices (TP 312, 5th ed.). https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/publications/aerodromes-standards-recommended-practices-tp-312