7.5 Raft Drill (Wet or Dry)

7.5.1 Equipment Criteria

  1. The raft drill shall be conducted using life saving equipment that is identical to that installed in the aircraft with respect to weight, dimensions, appearance, features and operation.
     
  2. Rafts may be substituted where they are much the same with respect to weight, dimensions, appearance, features and operations and differences training have been provided.

7.5.2 Performance Criteria

  1. Each trainee shall perform the following:
     
    1. Access the raft compartment, experience the difficulty associated with moving the weight of a packaged raft within a space representative of the aircraft aisle;
    2. Examine all features a fully inflated raft;
    3. Board raft(s), assist persons into raft;
    4. Access the inflation lanyard (dinghy);
    5. Access the raft release mechanism while verbally describing the procedure to release the life raft from the aircraft; and
    6. Examine the life raft survival kit and review the operation of all components.
  2. Each trainee shall participate in the following:
     
    1. Launching, inflating and disconnecting raft(s) either actual or by video;
    2. Righting overturned rafts (if applicable), either actual or by video;
    3. Effective raft management (e.g. distribution of passengers, deploying sea anchor, etc);
    4. Erecting the raft canopy;
    5. Raft maintenance (e.g. leak stoppers/clamps, topping up buoyancy chambers, etc.);
    6. Distribution of duties to passengers; and
    7. Discuss the hazards associated with moving a packaged life raft through the cabin to an exit (e.g. inadvertent inflation, passenger movement and panic).