Definition
The authorizations, conditions, and limitations associated with an Air Operator Certificate, prescribed by the State that issued the certificate, governing how the operator may conduct its flight operations.
Plain English
A formal document attached to an airline or commercial operator's certificate that spells out exactly what kinds of flying they are allowed to do, where they can do it, and under what rules and limits.
Context Anchor
Seen in international commercial aviation, operator approval, and oversight discussions.
Derivation
From Latin operatio (a working) and specificare (to make specific). Together, the term simply means 'spelled-out details of how operations may be conducted.' The [ICAO] tag means this is the international civil aviation definition, which may differ slightly from the FAA's domestic version.
Why Pilots Care
Operations Specifications define the legal boundaries of the flying you can do for your employer. Routes, airports, equipment, minimums, and procedures all flow from this document. Operating outside what your Ops Specs allow is a regulatory violation, even if the flight itself was safe.
Intuition Check
Do not read “specifications” here as general equipment details or design measurements. In this context, Operations Specifications are official operating permissions and limits.
Example Sentence 1
The charter company's Operations Specifications limited them to daytime VFR flights within the contiguous United States.
Example Sentence 2
Before dispatching the first revenue flight, the chief pilot verified that all required procedures were listed in the Operations Specifications.