Guidance notes - UAV legal issues - Additional notes
ANO excerpts – You are advised to note the Interpretation in Article 155 first, followed by the Exception in Article 164 (c)
ANO Article 164:
Exceptions from application of provisions of the Order for certain classes of aircraft
164 The provisions of this Order other than articles 68, 74, 96(1), 97, 98, 144(1)(b) and (c),
155(1) and (2) shall not apply to or in relation to:
(a) any small balloon;
(b) any kite weighing not more than 2 kg;
(c) any small aircraft; or
(d) any parachute including a parascending parachute.
ANO Article 68:
Grant of aerial application certificates
68 (1) An aircraft shall not be used for the dropping of articles for the purposes of agriculture, horticulture or forestry or for training for the dropping of articles for any of such purposes, otherwise than under and in accordance with the terms of an aerial application certificate granted to the operator of the aircraft under paragraph (2).
(2) The CAA:
(a) shall grant an aerial application certificate if it is satisfied that the applicant is a fit person to hold the certificate and is competent, having regard in particular to his previous conduct and experience, his equipment, organisation, staffing and other arrangements, to secure the safe operation of the aircraft specified in the certificate on flights for the purposes specified in paragraph (1);
(b) may grant such a certificate subject to such conditions as it thinks fit including, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, conditions for ensuring that the aircraft and any article dropped from it do not endanger persons or property in the aircraft or elsewhere.
(3) Every applicant for and holder of an aerial application certificate shall make available to the CAA upon application and to every member of his operating staff upon the certificate being granted, an aerial application manual.
(4) The manual shall contain all such information and instructions as may be necessary to enable the operating staff to perform their duties as such.
(5) The holder of an aerial application certificate shall make such amendments or additions to the manual as the CAA may require.
ANO Article 74:
Endangering safety of any person or property
74 A person shall not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property.
ANO Article 96 (1)
Power to prohibit or restrict flying
96 (1) Where the Secretary of State deems it necessary in the public interest to restrict or prohibit flying by reason of:
(a) the intended gathering or movement of a large number of persons;
(b) the intended holding of an aircraft race or contest or of a flying display; or
(c) national defence or any other reason affecting the public interest; the Secretary of State may make regulations prohibiting, restricting or imposing conditions on flights by aircraft specified in paragraph (2) flying in the circumstances specified in paragraph (2).
ANO Article 97
Balloons, kites, airships, gliders and parascending parachutes
97 (1) The provisions of this article shall apply only to or in relation to aircraft within the United Kingdom.
(2) A balloon in captive or tethered flight shall not be flown within 60 metres of any vessel, vehicle or structure except with the permission of the person in charge of any such vessel, vehicle or structure.
(3) Without the permission of the CAA:
(a) a glider or parascending parachute shall not be launched by winch and cable or by ground tow to a height of more than 60 metres above ground level;
(b) a balloon in captive flight shall not be flown within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome;
(c) a balloon in captive or tethered flight shall not be flown at a height measured to the top of the balloon of more than 60 metres above ground level;
(d) a kite shall not be flown at a height of more than 30 metres above ground level within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome;
(e) a kite shall not be flown at a height of more than 60 metres above ground level; and
(f) a parascending parachute shall not be launched by winch and cable or by ground tow within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome.
(4) An uncontrollable balloon in captive or released flight shall not be flown in airspace notified for the purposes of this paragraph without the permission of the CAA.
(5) A controllable balloon shall not be flown in free controlled flight:
(a) within airspace notified for the purposes of this paragraph; or
(b) within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome; except during the day and in visual meteorological conditions.
(6) A controllable balloon shall not be flown in tethered flight:
(a) within airspace notified for the purposes of this paragraph; or
(b) within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome; except with the permission of the appropriate air traffic control unit.
(7) A balloon when in captive flight shall be securely moored and shall not be left unattended unless it is fitted with a device which ensures its automatic deflation if it breaks free of its moorings.
(8) An airship with a capacity exceeding 3000 cubic metres shall not be moored, other than on a notified aerodrome except with the permission of the CAA.
(9) An airship with a capacity not exceeding 3000 cubic metres, unless it is moored on a notified aerodrome, shall not be moored:
(a) within 2km of a congested area; or
(b) within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome; except with the permission of the CAA.
(10) An airship when moored in the open shall be securely moored and shall not be left unattended.
(11) A person shall not cause or permit:
(a) a group of small balloons exceeding 1000 in number to be simultaneously released at a single site wholly or partly within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome unless that person has given to the CAA not less than 28 days previous notice in writing of the release;
(b) a group of small balloons exceeding 2000 but not exceeding 10000 in number to be simultaneously released at a single site:
(i) within airspace notified for the purposes of this sub-paragraph; or
(ii) within the aerodrome traffic zone of a notified aerodrome during the notified operating hours of that aerodrome; without the permission of the CAA;
(c) a group of small balloons greater than 10000 in number to be simultaneously released at a single site except with the permission of the CAA.
(12) For the purposes of this article:
(a) in paragraph (5) “day” means the time from half an hour before sunrise until half an hour after sunset (both times exclusive), sunset and sunrise being determined at surface level;
(b) the “notified operating hours” means the times notified in respect of an aerodrome during which rule 39 of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996 (a) applies;
(c) “simultaneously released at a single site” means the release of a specified number of balloons during a period not exceeding 15 minutes from within an area not exceeding 1 km square.
Article 98
Regulation of small aircraft
98 (1) A person shall not cause or permit any article or animal (whether or not attached to a parachute) to be dropped from a small aircraft so as to endanger persons or property.
(2) The person in charge of a small aircraft which weighs more than 7 kg without its fuel but including any articles or equipment installed in or attached to the aircraft at the commencement of its flight shall not fly such an aircraft:
(a) unless the person in charge of the aircraft has reasonably satisfied himself that the flight can safely be made;
(b) in Class A, C, D or E airspace unless the permission of the appropriate air traffic control unit has been obtained;
(c) within an aerodrome traffic zone during the notified hours of watch of the air traffic control unit (if any) at that aerodrome unless the permission of any such air traffic control unit has been obtained;
(d) at a height exceeding 400 feet above the surface unless it is flying in airspace described in sub-paragraph (b) or (c) and in accordance with the requirements thereof; or
(e) for aerial work purposes other than in accordance with a permission issued by the CAA
Article 144 (1) (b) & (c)
Power to prevent aircraft flying
144 (1) If it appears to the CAA or an authorised person that any aircraft is intended or likely to be flown:
(a) in such circumstances that any provision of article 3, 5, 6, 8, 25, 26, 43, 62, 69, 70 or 75(2) would be contravened in relation to the flight;
(b) in such circumstances that the flight would be in contravention of any other provision of this Order, of any regulations made thereunder or of Part 21, 145 or M and be a cause of danger to any person or property whether or not in the aircraft; or
(c) while in a condition unfit for the flight, whether or not the flight would otherwise be in contravention of any provision of this Order, of any regulations made thereunder or of Part 21, 145 or M;
the CAA or that authorised person may direct the operator or the commander of the aircraft that he is not to permit the aircraft to make the particular flight or any other flight of such description as may be specified in the direction, until the direction has been revoked by the CAA or by an authorised person, and the CAA or that authorised person may take such steps as are necessary to detain the aircraft.
Article 155 (1) & (2)
Interpretation
155 (1) In this Order:
'A Conditions' means the conditions so entitled set out in paragraph 1 of Part A of Schedule 3;
‘Accident prevention and flight safety programme' means a programme designed to detect and eliminate or avoid hazards in order to improve the safety of flight operations;
‘Aerial work' has the meaning assigned to it by article 157;
‘Aerial work aircraft' means an aircraft (other than a public transport aircraft) flying, or intended by the operator to fly, for the purpose of aerial work;
‘Aerial work undertaking' means an undertaking whose business includes the performance of aerial work;
‘Aerobatic manoeuvres' includes loops, spins, rolls, bunts, stall turns, inverted flying and any other similar manoeuvre;
‘Aerodrome' means any area of land or water designed, equipped, set apart or commonly used for affording facilities for the landing and departure of aircraft and includes any area or space, whether on the ground, on the roof of a building or elsewhere, which is designed, equipped or set apart for affording facilities for the landing and departure of aircraft capable of descending or climbing vertically, but shall not include any area the use of which for affording facilities for the landing and departure of aircraft has been abandoned and has not been resumed;
‘Aerodrome control service' means an air traffic control service for any aircraft on the manoeuvring area or apron of the aerodrome in respect of which the service is being provided or which is flying in, or in the vicinity of, the aerodrome traffic zone of that aerodrome by visual reference to the surface or any aircraft transferred from approach control in accordance with procedures approved by the CAA;
‘Aerodrome operating minima' in relation to the operation of an aircraft at an aerodrome means the cloud ceiling and runway visual range for take-off, and the decision height or minimum descent height, runway visual range and visual reference for landing, which are the minimum for the operation of that aircraft at that aerodrome;
‘Aerodrome traffic zone’ has the meaning assigned to it by article 156;
‘Aeronautical beacon' means an aeronautical ground light which is visible either continuously or intermittently to designate a particular point on the surface of the earth;
‘Aeronautical ground light' means any light specifically provided as an aid to air navigation, other than a light displayed on an aircraft;
‘Aeronautical radio station' means a radio station on the surface, which transmits or receives signals for the purpose of assisting aircraft;
‘Air control' means an aerodrome control service excluding that part of the aerodrome control service provided by ground movement control;
‘Air/ground communications service' means a service provided from an aerodrome to give information to pilots of aircraft flying in the vicinity of the aerodrome by means of radio signals and ‘air/ground communications service unit’ shall be construed accordingly;
‘Air traffic control service' means the giving of instructions, advice or information by means of radio signals to aircraft in the interests of safety;
‘Air traffic control unit' means a person appointed by a person maintaining an aerodrome or place to provide an air traffic control service;
‘Air traffic service equipment' means ground based equipment, including an aeronautical radio station, used or intended to be used in connection with the provision of a service to an aircraft in flight or on the ground which equipment is not otherwise approved by or under this Order but excluding:
(a) any public electronic communications network; and
(b) any equipment in respect of which the CAA has made a direction that it shall be deemed not to be air traffic service equipment for the purposes of articles 124 and 125;
‘Air transport undertaking’ means an undertaking whose business includes the undertaking of flights for the purpose of the public transport of passengers or cargo;
‘Alternate aerodrome' means an aerodrome to which an aircraft may proceed when it becomes either impossible or inadvisable to proceed to or to land at the aerodrome of intended landing;
‘Altitude hold and heading mode' means aircraft autopilot functions which enable the aircraft to maintain an accurate height and an accurate heading;
‘Annual costs' in relation to the operation of an aircraft means the best estimate reasonably practicable at the time of a particular flight in respect of the year commencing on the first day of January preceding the date of the flight, of the costs of keeping and maintaining and the indirect costs of operating the aircraft, such costs in either case excluding direct costs and being those actually and necessarily incurred without a view to profit;
‘Annual flying hours' means the best estimate reasonably practicable at the time of a particular flight by an aircraft of the hours flown or to be flown by the aircraft in respect of the year commencing on the first day of January preceding the date of the flight;
‘Approach control service' means an air traffic control service for any aircraft which is not receiving an aerodrome control service, which is flying in, or in the vicinity of the aerodrome traffic zone of the aerodrome in respect of which the service is being provided, whether or not the aircraft is flying by visual reference to the surface;
‘Approach to landing’ means that portion of the flight of the aircraft, when approaching to land, in which it is descending below a height of 1000 feet above the relevant specified decision height or minimum descent height;
‘Appropriate aeronautical radio station' means in relation to an aircraft an aeronautical radio station serving the area in which the aircraft is for the time being;
‘Appropriate air traffic control unit' means in relation to an aircraft either the air traffic control unit serving the area in which the aircraft is for the time being, or the air traffic control unit serving the area which the aircraft intends to enter and with which unit the aircraft is required to communicate prior to entering that area, as the context requires;
‘Apron' means the part of an aerodrome provided for the stationing of aircraft for the embarkation and disembarkation of passengers, for loading and unloading of cargo and for parking;
‘Area control centre' means an air traffic control unit established to provide an area control service to aircraft flying within a notified flight information region which are not receiving an aerodrome control service or an approach control service;
‘Area control service' means an air traffic control service for any aircraft which is flying neither in nor in the vicinity of an aerodrome traffic zone;
‘Area navigation equipment' means equipment carried on board an aircraft which enables the aircraft to navigate on any desired flight path within the coverage of appropriate ground based navigation aids or within the limits of that on-board equipment or a combination of the two;
‘Authorised person' means:
(a) any constable;
(b) in article 144(3) and (4) any person authorised by the Secretary of State (whether by name, or by class or description) either generally or in relation to a particular case or class of cases; and
(c) in article 144(1) and (2) and in any article other than article 144, any person authorised by the CAA (whether by name or by class or description) either generally or in relation to a particular case or class of cases;
(d) in article 144A any person authorised by the Secretary of State pursuant to regulation 5 of the Civil Aviation (Safety of Third-Country Aircraft) Regulations 2006;
‘Automated reservation system' means, in relation to an operator of an aircraft, the central reservation system of the operator which holds data relating to a flight booked by or on behalf of a passenger;
‘B Conditions' means the conditions so entitled set out in paragraph 2 of Part A of Schedule 3;
‘Basic EASA Regulation' means Regulation (EC) No. 1592/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 July 2002 on common rules in the field of civil aviation and establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency(a);
‘Beneficial interest' includes interests arising under contract and other equitable interests;
‘British protected person' has the same meaning as in section 50 of the British Nationality Act 1981;
‘Cabin crew' in relation to an aircraft means those persons on a flight for the purpose of public transport carried for the purpose of performing in the interests of the safety of passengers duties to be assigned by the operator or the commander of the aircraft but who shall not act as a member of the flight crew;
‘Captive balloon' means a balloon which when in flight is attached by a restraining device to the surface;
‘Captive flight' means flight by an uncontrollable balloon during which it is attached to the surface by a restraining device;
‘Cargo' includes mail and (for the avoidance of doubt) animals;
‘Certificate of airworthiness' includes in the case of a national certificate of airworthiness any flight manual, performance schedule or other document, whatever its title, incorporated by reference in that certificate relating to the certificate of airworthiness;
‘Certificate of maintenance review' has the meaning assigned to it by article 14(1)(b);
‘Certificate of release to service issued under Part 145' means a certificate of release to service issued in accordance with Part 145;
‘Certificate of release to service issued under this Order' means a certificate issued by a person specified in article 16(11) which conforms with article 16(10);
‘Certificate of revalidation' means a certificate issued in accordance with Section 2 of Part C of Schedule 8 for the purpose of maintaining the privileges of a flight crew licence;
‘Certificate of validation' means a certificate issued by the CAA rendering valid for the purposes of this Order a certificate of airworthiness or a permit to fly issued in respect of an aircraft registered elsewhere than in the United Kingdom or a flight crew licence granted under the law of a country other than the United Kingdom;
‘Certificate of validity' means a certificate issued under article 11(6)(d) for the purpose of maintaining the validity of a permit to fly issued by the CAA;
‘Certificated for single pilot operation' means an aircraft which is not required to carry more than one pilot by virtue of any one or more of the following:
(a) the certificate of airworthiness duly issued or rendered valid under the law of the country in which the aircraft is registered or the related flight manual;
(b) if no certificate of airworthiness is required to be in force, the certificate of airworthiness, if any, last in force in respect of the aircraft or the related flight manual;
(c) if no certificate of airworthiness is or has previously been in force but the aircraft is identical in design with an aircraft in respect of which such a certificate is or has been in force, the certificate of airworthiness which is or has been in force in respect of such an identical aircraft or the related flight manual; or
(d) in the case of an aircraft flying in accordance with the conditions of a permit to fly issued by the CAA, that permit to fly;
‘Class A airspace', ‘Class B airspace', ‘Class C airspace', ‘Class D airspace' and ‘Class E airspace' mean airspace respectively notified as such;
‘Class rating' in respect of aeroplanes has the meaning specified in paragraph 1.220 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 1;
‘Cloud ceiling' in relation to an aerodrome means the vertical distance from the elevation of the aerodrome to the lowest part of any cloud visible from the aerodrome which is sufficient to obscure more than one-half of the sky so visible;
‘Commander' in relation to an aircraft means the member of the flight crew designated as commander of that aircraft by the operator, or, failing such a person, the person who is for the time being the pilot in command of the aircraft;
‘the Commonwealth' means the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, the countries mentioned in Schedule 3 to the British Nationality Act 1981 and all other territories forming part of Her Majesty’s dominions or in which Her Majesty has jurisdiction and
‘Commonwealth citizen’ shall be construed accordingly;
‘Competent authority' means, subject to article 167, in relation to the United Kingdom, the CAA, and in relation to any other country the authority responsible under the law of that country for promoting the safety of civil aviation;
‘Conditional sale agreement' has the same meaning as in section 189 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974;
‘Congested area' in relation to a city, town or settlement, means any area which is substantially used for residential, industrial, commercial or recreational purposes;
‘Contracting State' means any State (including the United Kingdom) which is party to the Chicago Convention;
‘Controllable balloon' means a balloon, not being a small balloon, which is capable of free controlled flight;
‘Controlled airspace' means airspace which has been notified as Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D or Class E airspace;
‘Control area’ means controlled airspace which has been further notified as a control area and which extends upwards from a notified altitude or flight level;
‘Control zone' means controlled airspace which has been further notified as a control zone and which extends upwards from the surface;
‘Co-pilot' in relation to an aircraft means a pilot who in performing his duties as such is subject to the direction of another pilot carried in the aircraft;
‘Country' includes a territory;
‘Crew' means a member of the flight crew, a person carried on the flight deck who is appointed by the operator of the aircraft to give or to supervise the training, experience, practice and periodical tests required in respect of the flight crew under article 42(3) or a member of the cabin crew;
‘Critical power unit' means the power unit whose failure would most adversely affect the performance or handling qualities of an aircraft;
‘Danger area' means airspace which has been notified as such within which activities dangerous to the flight of aircraft may take place or exist at such times as may be notified;
‘Decision height' in relation to the operation of an aircraft at an aerodrome means the height in a precision approach at which a missed approach must be initiated if the required visual reference to continue that approach has not been established;
‘Declared distances' has the meaning which has been notified;
‘Departure control system' means, in relation to an operator of an aircraft, the system used by the operator to check passengers onto a flight;
‘Designated required navigation performance airspace' means airspace which has been notified, prescribed or otherwise designated by the competent authority for the airspace as requiring specified navigation performance capabilities to be met by aircraft flying within it;
‘Direct costs' means, in respect of a flight, the costs actually and necessarily incurred in connection with that flight without a view to profit but excluding any remuneration payable to the pilot for his services as such;
‘Director' has the same meaning as in section 53(1) of the Companies Act 1989;
‘Disidentification' means removing from reports submitted all personal details pertaining to the reporter and technical details which might lead to the identity of the reporter, or of third parties, being inferred from the information;
‘EASA' means the European Aviation Safety Agency;
‘EASA aircraft' means an aircraft which is required by virtue of the Basic EASA Regulation and any implementing rules adopted by the Commission in accordance with that Regulation to hold an EASA certificate of airworthiness, an EASA restricted certificate of airworthiness or an EASA permit to fly;
‘EASA certificate of airworthiness' means a certificate of airworthiness issued in respect of an EASA aircraft under and in accordance with subpart H of Part 21;
‘EASA permit to fly' means a permit to fly issued in respect of an EASA aircraft under and in accordance with subpart H of Part 21;
‘EASA restricted certificate of airworthiness' means a restricted certificate of airworthiness issued in respect of an EASA aircraft under and in accordance with subpart H of Part 21;
‘European Aviation Safety Agency' means the Agency established under the Basic EASA Regulation;
‘Flight' and ‘to fly' have the meanings respectively assigned to them by paragraph (2);
‘Flight check' means a check carried out by an aircraft in flight of the accuracy and reliability of signals transmitted by an aeronautical radio station;
‘Flight crew' in relation to an aircraft means those members of the crew of the aircraft who respectively undertake to act as pilot, flight navigator, flight engineer and flight radiotelephony operator of the aircraft;
‘Flight data monitoring programme' means a programme of analysing recorded flight data in order to improve the safety of flight operations;
‘Flight information service' means:
(a) in the case of an aerodrome:
(i) the giving of information by means of radio signals to aircraft flying in or intending to fly within the aerodrome traffic zone of that aerodrome; and
(ii) the grant or refusal of a permission under Rule 35 or 36(2) of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996;
(b) in the case of an area control centre, the giving of information by means of radio signals to aircraft; and ‘aerodrome flight information service' shall be construed accordingly;
‘Flight information service unit' means a person appointed by the CAA or by any other person maintaining an aerodrome or area control centre and ‘aerodrome flight information service unit’ shall be construed accordingly;
‘Flight level' means one of a series of levels of equal atmospheric pressure, separated by notified intervals and each expressed as the number of hundreds of feet which would be indicated at that level on a pressure altimeter calibrated in accordance with the International Standard Atmosphere and set to 1013.2 hectopascals;
‘Flight manual' means a document provided for an aircraft stating the approved limitations within which the aircraft is considered airworthy as defined by the appropriate airworthiness requirements, and additional instructions and information necessary for the safe operation of the aircraft;
‘Flight recording system' means a system comprising either a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder or both;
‘Flight simulator' means apparatus by means of which flight conditions in an aircraft are simulated on the ground;
‘Flight visibility' means the visibility forward from the flight deck of an aircraft in flight;
‘Flying display' means any flying activity deliberately performed for the purpose of providing an exhibition or entertainment at an advertised event open to the public;
‘Flying machine' means an aeroplane, a powered lift tilt rotor aircraft, a self-launching motor glider, a helicopter or a gyroplane;
‘Free balloon' means a balloon which when in flight is not attached by any form of restraining device to the surface;
‘Free controlled flight' means flight during which a balloon is not attached to the surface by any form of restraining device (other than a tether not exceeding 5 metres in length which may be used as part of the take-off procedure) and during which the height of the balloon is controllable by means of a device attached to the balloon and operated by the commander of the balloon or by remote control;
‘General lighthouse authority' has the same meaning as in section 193 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995;
‘Glider' means:
(a) a non-power-driven heavier-than-air aircraft, deriving its lift in flight chiefly from aerodynamic reactions on surfaces which remain fixed under given conditions of flight;
(b) a self-sustaining glider; and
(c) a self-propelled hang-glider; and a reference in this Order to a glider shall include a reference to a self-sustaining glider and a self-propelled hang-glider;
‘Government aerodrome' means any aerodrome in the United Kingdom which is in the occupation of any Government Department or visiting force;
‘Ground movement control' means that part of an aerodrome control service provided to an aircraft while it is on the manoeuvring area or apron of an aerodrome;
‘Hire-purchase agreement' has the same meaning as in section 189 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974;
‘Holding' means, in respect of an aircraft approaching an aerodrome to land, a manoeuvre in the air which keeps that aircraft within a specified volume of airspace;
‘Hostile environment', for the purposes of sub-paragraphs 5(15)(b)(ix) and (xvii) of Schedule 4, means an environment in which:
(a) a safe forced landing cannot be accomplished because the surface is inadequate; or
(b) the helicopter occupants cannot be adequately protected from the elements; or
(c) search and rescue response and capability is not provided consistent with anticipated exposure; or
(d) there is an unacceptable risk of endangering persons or property on the ground;
‘Instructor’s rating' means a flying instructor’s rating, an assistant flying instructor’s rating, a flight instructor rating (aeroplane), a flight instructor rating (helicopter), a type rating instructor rating (multi-pilot aeroplane), a type rating instructor rating (helicopter), a class rating instructor rating (single pilot aeroplane), an instrument rating instructor rating (aeroplane) or an instrument rating instructor rating (helicopter);
‘Instrument approach procedure' means a series of predetermined manoeuvres by reference to flight instruments, with specified protection from obstacles, from a specified point to a point from which a landing can be completed and thereafter, if a landing is not completed, to a position at which holding or other obstacle clearance criteria apply;
‘Instrument Flight Rules' means Instrument Flight Rules prescribed by Section VI of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996;
‘Instrument Landing System' means a ground-based radio system designed to transmit radio signals at very high frequency and ultra high frequency that allow the pilot of an aircraft to accurately determine the aircraft's position relative to a defined approach path whilst carrying out an approach to land;
‘Instrument Meteorological Conditions' means weather precluding flight in compliance with the Visual Flight Rules;
‘International headquarters' means an international headquarters designated by Order in Council under section 1 of the International Headquarters and Defence Organisations Act 1964;
‘International safety standards' means the safety standards contained in the Chicago Convention as in force from time to time;
‘JAA' means the Joint Aviation Authorities, an associated body of the European Civil Aviation Conference;
‘JAA Full Member State' means a State which is a full member of the JAA;
‘JAA licence' means a flight crew licence granted under JAR-FCL 1 or 2 by the competent authority of a JAA Full Member State in accordance with a procedure which has been assessed as satisfactory following an inspection by a licensing and a medical standardisation team of the JAA;
‘JAR-FCL 1' means the Joint Aviation Requirement of the JAA bearing that title including Amendment 5 adopted by the JAA on 1st March 2006;
‘JAR-FCL 2' means the Joint Aviation Requirement of the JAA bearing that title including Amendment 3 adopted by the JAA on 1st September 2003;
‘JAR-FCL licence' means a licence included in Section 2 of Part A of Schedule 8;
‘JAR-OPS 1' means the Joint Aviation Requirement of the JAA bearing that title including Amendment 10 adopted by the JAA on 1st March 2006;
‘JAR-OPS 3' means the Joint Aviation Requirement of the JAA bearing that title including Amendment 3 adopted by the JAA on 1st April 2004 and the Corrigendum adopted by the JAA on 1st July 2004;
‘Kg' means kilogramme or kilogrammes as the context requires;
‘Km' means kilometre or kilometres as the context requires;
‘To land' in relation to aircraft includes alighting on the water;
‘Landing Decision Point' means the latest point in the course of a landing at which, following recognition of a power unit failure, the helicopter will be able to safely abort the landing and perform a go-around;
‘Large rocket’ means a rocket of which the total impulse of the motor or combination of motors is more than 10,240 Newton-seconds;
‘Legal personal representative’ means the person so constituted executor, administrator, or other representative, of a deceased person;
‘Let down' means, in respect of an aircraft approaching an aerodrome to land a defined procedure designed to enable an aircraft safely to descend to a point at which it can continue the approach visually;
‘Licence’ in relation to a flight crew licence includes any certificate of competency or certificate of validity or revalidation issued with the licence or required to be held in connection with the licence by the law of the country in which the licence is granted;
‘Licence for public use’ has the meaning assigned to it by article 128(2);
‘Licensed aerodrome’ means an aerodrome licensed under this Order;
‘Lifejacket’ includes any device designed to support a person individually in or on the water;
‘Log book’ in the case of an aircraft log book, engine log book or variable pitch propeller log book, or personal flying log book, includes a record kept either in a book, or by any other means approved by the CAA in the particular case;
‘Maintenance' means in relation to an aircraft any one or combination of overhaul, repair, inspection, replacement, modification or defect rectification of an aircraft or component, with the exception of pre-flight inspection;
‘Manoeuvring area’ means the part of an aerodrome provided for the take-off and landing of aircraft and for the movement of aircraft on the surface, excluding the apron and any part of the aerodrome provided for the maintenance of aircraft;
‘Maximum approved passenger seating configuration' means:
(a) in the case of an aircraft to which article 38 applies the maximum approved passenger seating configuration specified in the operations manual of the aircraft; and
(b) in any other case, the maximum number of passengers which may be carried in the aircraft under and in accordance with its certificate of airworthiness , its flight manual and this Order;
‘Maximum total weight authorised’ in relation to an aircraft means the maximum total weight of the aircraft and its contents at which the aircraft may take off anywhere in the world, in the most favourable circumstances in accordance with the certificate of airworthiness in force in respect of the aircraft;
‘Medical attendant’ means a person carried on a flight for the purpose of attending to any person in the aircraft in need of medical attention, or to be available to attend to such a person;
‘Medium intensity steady red light' means a red light which complies with the characteristics described for a medium intensity Type C light as specified in Volume 1 (Aerodrome Design and Operations) of Annex 14 (Fourth Edition July 2004) to the Chicago Convention;
‘Microlight aeroplane’ means an aeroplane designed to carry not more than two persons which has:
(a) a maximum total weight authorised not exceeding:
(i) 300 kg for a single seat landplane, (or 390 kg for a single seat landplane in respect of which a permit to fly or certificate of airworthiness issued by the CAA was in force prior to 1st January 2003);
(ii) 450 kg for a two seat landplane; (iii) 330 kg for a single seat amphibian or floatplane; or
(iv) 495 kg for a two seat amphibian or floatplane; and
(b) a stalling speed at the maximum total weight authorised not exceeding 35 knots calibrated airspeed;
‘Microwave Landing System' means a ground-based radio system designed to transmit radio signals at super high frequency that allow the pilot of an aircraft to accurately determine the aircraft's position within a defined volume of airspace whilst carrying out an approach to land;
‘Military aircraft’ means the naval, military or air force aircraft of any country and:
(a) any aircraft being constructed for the naval, military or air force of any country under a contract entered into by the Secretary of State; and
(b) any aircraft in respect of which there is in force a certificate issued by the Secretary of State that the aircraft is to be treated for the purposes of this Order as a military aircraft;
‘Military rocket’ means:
(a) any rocket being constructed for the naval, military or air force of any country under a contract entered into by the Secretary of State; and
(b) any rocket in respect of which there is in force a certificate issued by the Secretary of State that the rocket is to be treated for the purposes of this Order as a military rocket;
‘Minimum descent height’ in relation to the operation of an aircraft at an aerodrome means the height in a non-precision approach below which descent may not be made without the required visual reference;
‘Multi-crew co-operation’ means the functioning of the flight crew as a team of cooperating members led by the pilot in command;
‘National certificate of airworthiness' means a certificate of airworthiness issued under and in accordance with Part 3 of this Order and which is not an EASA certificate of airworthiness;
‘National permit to fly' means a permit to fly issued under and in accordance with Part 3 of this Order and which is not an EASA permit to fly;
‘Nautical mile’ means the International Nautical Mile, that is to say, a distance of 1852 metres;
‘Night’ means the time from half an hour after sunset until half an hour before sunrise (both times inclusive), sunset and sunrise being determined at surface level;
‘Non-EASA aircraft' means an aircraft which is not required by virtue of the Basic EASA Regulation and any implementing rules adopted by the Commission in accordance with that Regulation to hold an EASA certificate of airworthiness, an EASA restricted certificate of airworthiness or an EASA permit to fly; and a non-EASA balloon, a non-EASA glider and a non-EASA kite shall be construed accordingly;
‘Non-precision approach’ means an instrument approach using non-visual aids for guidance in azimuth or elevation but which is not a precision approach;
‘Non-revenue flight’ means:
(a) in the case of a flight by an aeroplane, any flight which the holder of a United Kingdom Private Pilot’s Licence (Aeroplanes) may undertake under paragraph (2)(a) and (b) of the privileges of that licence set out in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8;
(b) in the case of a flight by a helicopter, any flight which the holder of a United Kingdom Private Pilot’s Licence (Helicopters) may undertake under paragraph (2)(a) and (b) of the privileges of that licence set out in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8; and
(c) in the case of a flight by a gyroplane, any flight which the holder of a United Kingdom Private Pilot’s Licence (Gyroplanes) may undertake under paragraph (2)(a) and (b) of the privileges of that licence set out in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8;
‘North Atlantic Minimum Navigation Performance Specificaton airspace’ means the airspace prescribed as such;
‘Notified’ means set out with the authority of the CAA in a document published by or under an arrangement entered into with the CAA and entitled ‘United Kingdom Notam’ or ‘Air Pilot’ and for the time being in force;
‘Notified aerodrome' means an aerodrome which is notified for the purposes of rule 39 of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996;
‘Obstacle limitation surfaces’ has the same meaning as in the document entitled ‘CAP 168 Licensing of aerodromes’ published by the CAA in May 2004;
‘Occurrence' means an operational interruption, defect, fault or other irregular circumstance that has or may have influenced flight safety and that has not resulted in an accident or serious incident as those terms are defined in regulation 2 of the Civil Aviation (Investigation of Air Accidents and Incidents) Regulations 1996;
‘Offshore service’ means an air traffic control service for any aircraft flying to or from offshore oil and gas installations and for other aircraft operating in the vicinity of these aircraft in airspace specified for this purpose in the manual of air traffic services;
‘Operating staff' means the servants and agents employed by an operator of an aircraft, whether or not as members of the crew, to ensure that flights of the aircraft are conducted in a safe manner, and includes an operator who himself performs those functions;
‘Operational position’ means a position provided and equipped for the purpose of providing a particular type of air traffic control service;
‘Operator’ has the meaning assigned to it by paragraph (3);
‘Parascending parachute’ means a parachute which is towed by cable in such a manner as to cause it to ascend;
‘Part 21' means the annex so entitled to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1702/ 2003;
‘Part 66' means annex III so entitled to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2042/2003;
‘Part 145' means annex II so entitled to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2042/2003;
‘Part 147' means annex IV so entitled to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2042/2003;
‘Part M' means annex I so entitled to Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2042/2003;
‘Passenger’ means a person other than a member of the crew;
‘Performance Class 1 operations' means flights where, in the event of the failure of a power unit, the helicopter will be able to safely continue the flight and land at an appropriate landing area unless the power unit failure recognition occurs during takeoff at or prior to reaching the take-off decision point in which case the helicopter will be able to safely land back within the area from which it has taken off;
‘Performance Class 2 operations' means flights where, in the event of the failure of a power unit, the helicopter will be able to safely continue the flight to an appropriate landing area or, where the failure occurs at a point during the take-off manoeuvre or the landing manoeuvre when it cannot do so, the helicopter will be able to carry out a forced landing;
‘Performance Class 3 operations' means flights where, in the event of the failure of a power unit at any time during the flight, the helicopter will be required to carry out a forced landing;
‘Period of duty’ means the period between the commencement and end of a shift during which an air traffic controller performs, or could be called upon to perform, any of the functions specified in respect of a rating included in his licence;
‘Pilot in command’ in relation to an aircraft means a person who for the time being is in charge of the piloting of the aircraft without being under the direction of any other pilot in the aircraft;
‘Police air operator's certificate' means a certificate granted by the CAA under article 7(4);
‘Police authority' means a Chief Officer of police for any area of England or Wales, a Chief Constable for any area of Scotland and the Chief Constable of the Northern Ireland Police Service;
‘Police officer’ means any person who is a member of a police force or of the Northern Ireland Police Service (including, for the avoidance of doubt, the Northern Ireland Police Service Reserve), and any special constable;
‘Pre-flight inspection' means the inspection carried out before flight to ensure that the aircraft is fit for the intended flight;
‘Precision approach’ means an instrument approach using an Instrument Landing System, Microwave Landing System or Precision Approach Radar for guidance in both azimuth and elevation;
‘Precision approach radar' means radar equipment designed to enable an air traffic controller to determine accurately an aircraft's position whilst it is carrying out an approach to land so that the air traffic controller can provide instructions and guidance to the pilot to enable him to manoeuvre the aircraft relative to a defined approach path;
‘Pressurised aircraft’ means an aircraft provided with means of maintaining in any compartment a pressure greater than that of the surrounding atmosphere;
‘Private aircraft’ means an aircraft which is neither an aerial work nor a public transport aircraft;
‘Private flight’ means a flight which is neither for the purpose of aerial work nor public transport;
‘Proficiency check’ has the meaning specified in paragraph 1.001 of Section 1 of JAR– FCL 1 in respect of aeroplanes and paragraph 2.001 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 2 in respect of helicopters;
‘Public electronic communications network’ has the same meaning as in section 151 of the Communications Act 2003;
‘Public transport’ has the meaning assigned to it by article 157;
‘Public transport aircraft’ means an aircraft flying, or intended by the operator of the aircraft to fly, for the purpose of public transport;
‘Record’ has the same meaning as in section 81(6) of the Transport Act 2000;
‘Reduced vertical separation minimum airspace’ means any airspace between flight level 290 and flight level 410 inclusive designated by the relevant competent authority as being airspace within which a vertical separation minimum of 1000 feet or 300 metres shall be applied;
‘Released flight’ means flight by an uncontrollable balloon during which it is not attached to the surface by any form of restraining device;
‘Relevant overseas territory’ means any colony and any country or place outside Her Majesty’s dominions in which for the time being Her Majesty has jurisdiction;
‘Replacement’ in relation to any part of an aircraft or its equipment includes the removal and replacement of that part whether or not by the same part, and whether or not any work is done on it, but does not include the removal and replacement of a part which is designed to be removable solely for the purpose of enabling another part to be inspected, repaired, removed or replaced or cargo to be loaded;
‘Rocket’ means a device which is propelled by ejecting expanding gases generated in its motor from self-contained propellant and which is not dependent on the intake of outside substances and includes any part of the device intended to become separated during operation;
‘Runway visual range’ in relation to a runway means the distance in the direction of take-off or landing over which the runway lights or surface markings may be seen from the touchdown zone as calculated by either human observation or instruments in:
(a) the vicinity of the touchdown zone; or
(b) where this is not reasonably practicable, in the vicinity of the midpoint of the runway;
and the distance, if any, communicated to the commander of an aircraft by or on behalf of the person in charge of the aerodrome as being the runway visual range shall be taken to be the runway visual range for the time being;
‘Scheduled journey’ means one of a series of journeys which are undertaken between the same two places and which together amount to a systematic service;
‘Seaplane’ has the same meaning as in section 97 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982;
‘Sector’ means part of the airspace controlled from an area control centre or other place;
‘Self-launching motor glider’ means an aircraft with the characteristics of a nonpower-driven glider, which is fitted with one or more power units and which is designed or intended to take off under its own power;
‘Self-propelled hang-glider' means an aircraft comprising an aerofoil wing and a mechanical propulsion device which:
(a) is foot launched;
(b) has a stall speed or minimum steady flight speed in the landing configuration not exceeding 35 knots calibrated airspeed;
(c) carries a maximum of two persons;
(d) has a maximum fuel capacity of 10 litres; and
(e) has a maximum unladen weight, including full fuel, of 60 kg for single place aircraft and 70 kg for two place aircraft;
‘Self-sustaining glider’ means an aircraft with the characteristics of a non-powerdriven glider which is fitted with one or more power units capable of sustaining the aircraft in flight but which is not designed or intended to take off under its own power;
‘Simple single engine aeroplane’ means for the purposes of the National Private Pilot’s Licence a single engine piston aeroplane with a maximum take-off weight authorised not exceeding 2000 kg and which is not a microlight aeroplane or a selflaunching motor glider;
‘Skill test’ has the meaning specified in paragraph 1.001 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 1 in respect of aeroplanes and paragraph 2.001 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 2 in respect of helicopters;
‘SLMG’ means a self-launching motor glider;
‘Small aircraft’ means any unmanned aircraft, other than a balloon or a kite, weighing not more than 20 kg without its fuel but including any articles or equipment installed in or attached to the aircraft at the commencement of its flight;
‘Small balloon’ means a balloon not exceeding 2 metres in any linear dimension at any stage of its flight, including any basket or other equipment attached to the balloon;
‘Small rocket’ means a rocket of which the total impulse of the motor or combination of motors does not exceed 10,240 Newton-seconds;
‘Special tasks service’ means an air traffic control service:
(a) for any aircraft flying for the purposes of research and development of aircraft, aircraft equipment or aircraft systems which is not flying in accordance with normal aviation practice; and
(b) for other aircraft in the vicinity of any such aircraft;
‘Special VFR flight’ means a flight which is a special VFR flight for the purposes of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996;
‘State aircraft’ means an aircraft engaged in military, customs, police or similar services;
‘State of design’ means the State having jurisdiction over the organisation responsible for the type design of an aircraft;
‘State of the operator’ means the State in which the operator of an aircraft has his principal place of business or, if he has no such place of business, his permanent residence, in circumstances where:
(a) that aircraft is registered in another Contracting State;
(b) the operator is operating that aircraft under an agreement for its lease, charter or interchange or any similar arrangement;
(c) the State in which that aircraft is registered has, by agreement with the State in which the operator of the aircraft has his principal place of business or, if he has no such place of business, his permanent residence, agreed to transfer to it its functions and duties as State of registry in respect of that aircraft in relation to, in the case of article 8(1), airworthiness, in the case of article 20(1), aircraft radio equipment, in the case of article 26(3), flight crew licensing or, in the case of article 55(1), radio licensing; and (d) the agreement has been registered with the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation or the existence and scope of the agreement have been directly communicated to the CAA;
‘Take-off decision point' means the latest point in the take-off at which, following recognition of a power unit failure, the helicopter will be able to carry out a rejected take-off;
‘Technical log' means a record containing the information specified in paragraph 1.915 of Section 2 of JAR-OPS 1.
‘Terminal control service’ means an air traffic control service for any aircraft flying in, departing, or intending to fly within a terminal control area while it is in the terminal control area or any sector adjacent thereto and is specified for this purpose in the manual of air traffic services;
‘Tethered flight’ means flight by a controllable balloon throughout which it is flown within limits imposed by a restraining device which attaches the balloon to the surface;
‘Third-country aircraft' means any aircraft, other than a State aircraft, which is not used or operated under the control of the competent authority of a member State;
‘Touring motor glider’ has the meaning specified in paragraph 1.001 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 1;
‘Type rating’ in respect of aeroplanes has the meaning specified in paragraph 1.215 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 1;
‘Type rating’ in respect of helicopters has the meaning specified in paragraph 2.215 of Section 1 of JAR–FCL 2;
‘Uncontrollable balloon’ means a balloon, not being a small balloon, which is not capable of free controlled flight;
‘United Kingdom licence’ means a licence included in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8;
‘United Kingdom licence for which there is a JAR–FCL equivalent’ means the following licences included in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8: Private Pilot’s Licence (Aeroplanes); Commercial Pilot’s Licence (Aeroplanes); Airline Transport Pilot’s Licence (Aeroplanes); Private Pilot’s Licence (Helicopters); Commercial Pilot’s Licence (Helicopters and Gyroplanes); Airline Transport Pilot’s Licence (Helicopters and Gyroplanes);
‘United Kingdom licence for which there is no JAR–FCL equivalent’ means any licence included in Section 1 of Part A of Schedule 8 other than any such licence which is a United Kingdom licence for which there is a JAR–FCL equivalent;
‘United Kingdom reduced vertical separation minimum airspace’ means United Kingdom airspace which has been notified as reduced vertical separation minimum airspace for the purposes of article 58;
‘Valuable consideration’ means any right, interest, profit or benefit, forbearance, detriment, loss or responsibility accruing, given, suffered or undertaken under an agreement, which is of more than a nominal nature;
‘Visiting force’ means any such body, contingent or detachment of the forces of any country as is a visiting force for the purpose of the provisions of the Visiting Forces Act 1952:
(a) which apply to that country by virtue of paragraph (a) of section 1(1) of that Act; or
(b) which from time to time apply to that country by virtue of paragraph (b) of the said section 1(1) and of any Order in Council made or hereafter to be made under the said section 1 designating that country for the purposes of all the provisions of that Act following section 1(2) of that Act;
‘Visual Flight Rules’ means Visual Flight Rules prescribed by Section V of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1996;
‘Visual Meteorological Conditions’ means weather permitting flight in accordance with the Visual Flight Rules.
‘With the surface in sight' means with the flight crew being able to see sufficient surface features or surface illumination to enable the flight crew to maintain the aircraft in a desired attitude without reference to any flight instrument and ‘when the surface is not in sight' shall be construed accordingly;
(2) An aircraft shall be deemed to be in flight:
(a) in the case of a piloted flying machine, from the moment when, after the embarkation of its crew for the purpose of taking off, it first moves under its own power until the moment when it next comes to rest after landing;
(b) in the case of a pilotless flying machine, or a glider, from the moment when it first moves for the purpose of taking off until the moment when it next comes to rest after landing;
(c) in the case of an airship, from the moment when it first becomes detached from the surface until the moment when it next becomes attached thereto or comes to rest thereon;
(d) in the case of a free balloon, from the moment when the balloon, including the canopy and basket, becomes separated from the surface until the moment it next comes to rest thereon; and
(e) in the case of a captive balloon, from the moment when the balloon, including the canopy and basket, becomes separated from the surface, apart from a restraining device attaching it to the surface, until the moment when it next comes to rest thereon;
and the expressions ‘a flight’ and ‘to fly’ shall be construed accordingly.
Article 157
Public transport and aerial work - general rules
157 (1) Subject to the provisions of this article and articles 158 to 163, aerial work means any purpose (other than public transport) for which an aircraft is flown if valuable consideration is given or promised in respect of the flight or the purpose of the flight.
(2) If the only such valuable consideration consists of remuneration for the services of the pilot the flight shall be deemed to be a private flight for the purposes of Part 3 of this Order.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this article and articles 158 to 163, an aircraft in flight shall for the purposes of this Order be deemed to fly for the purposes of public transport:
(a) if valuable consideration is given or promised for the carriage of passengers or cargo in the aircraft on that flight;
(b) if any passengers or cargo are carried gratuitously in the aircraft on that flight by an air transport undertaking, not being persons in the employment of the undertaking (including, in the case of a body corporate, its directors and, in the case of the CAA, the members of the CAA), persons with the authority of the CAA either making any inspection or witnessing any training, practice or test for the purposes of this Order, or cargo intended to be used by any such passengers as aforesaid, or by the undertaking; or
(c) for the purposes of Part 3 of this Order (other than articles 19(2) and 20(2)), if valuable consideration is given or promised for the primary purpose of conferring on a particular person the right to fly the aircraft on that flight (not being a singleseat aircraft of which the maximum weight authorised does not exceed 910 kg) otherwise than under a hire-purchase or conditional sale agreement.
(4) Notwithstanding that an aircraft may be flying for the purpose of public transport by reason of paragraph (3)(c), it shall not be deemed to be flying for the purpose of the public transport of passengers unless valuable consideration is given for the carriage of those passengers.
(5) A glider shall not be deemed to fly for the purpose of public transport for the purposes of Part 3 of this Order by virtue of paragraph (3)(c) if the valuable consideration given or promised for the primary purpose of conferring on a particular person the right to fly the glider on that flight is given or promised by a member of a flying club and the glider is owned or operated by that flying club.
(6) Notwithstanding the giving or promising of valuable consideration specified in paragraph (3)(c) in respect of the flight or the purpose of the flight it shall:
(a) subject to sub-paragraph (b), for all purposes other than Part 3 of this Order; and
(b) for the purposes of articles 19(2) and 20(2);
be deemed to be a private flight.
(7) Where under a transaction effected by or on behalf of a member of an association of persons on the one hand and the association of persons or any member thereof on the other hand, a person is carried in, or is given the right to fly, an aircraft in such circumstances that valuable consideration would be given or promised if the transaction were effected otherwise than aforesaid, valuable consideration shall, for the purposes of this Order, be deemed to have been given or promised, notwithstanding any rule of law as to such transactions.
(8) For the purposes of:
(a) paragraph (3)(a), there shall be disregarded any valuable consideration given or promised in respect of a flight or the purpose of a flight by one company to another company which is:
(i) its holding company;
(ii) its subsidiary; or
(iii) another subsidiary of the same holding company;
(b) this article “holding company” and “subsidiary” have the meanings respectively specified in Section 736 of the Companies Act 1985(a).