Air Navigation (Air Operator Certificates) Order, 1993

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 325/1993
• Year: 1993

S.I. No. 325 of 1993.

AIR NAVIGATION (AIR OPERATOR CERTIFICATES) ORDER, 1993.

I, BRIAN COWEN, Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 5 , 9 and 11 of the Air Navigation and Transport Act, 1946 (No. 23 of 1946) (as amended by section 9 of the Air Navigation and Transport Act, 1950 (No. 4 of 1950)), and the Tourism, Transport and Communications (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order, 1993 ( S.I. No. 17 of 1993 ), hereby order as follows: 1. This Order may be cited as the Air Navigation (Air Operator Certificates) Order, 1993, and shall come into operation on the 1st day of December, 1993. 2. In this Order—

"air service" means a flight or a series of flights by one or more aircraft carrying passengers, cargo or mail;

"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;

"the Minister" means the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications;

"operator" means an undertaking engaged in or offering to engage in an aircraft operation and who or which, in relation to any particular aircraft, has at the relevant time responsibility for the management of that aircraft;

"type", in relation to an aircraft, means the make and model of that aircraft;

"undertaking" means any natural person, any legal person, whether profit-making or not, or any official body whether having its own legal personality or not. 3. (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of this Article, an air service or air services shall not be operated by an undertaking established in the State unless the undertaking operating the air service or air services is the holder of an air operator's certificate.

(2) Paragraph (1) of this Article shall not apply to the following air services:

( a ) air services operated for any purpose other than trade or business (including the trade or business of the person operating the service), and

( b ) air services consisting of non-scheduled flights to, from or within the territory of the State by aircraft not exceeding 30,000 lbs (13,620 kgs) maximum total weight authorised and not operated for the carriage of passengers, cargo or mail for reward.

(3) The Minister may, in addition to the air services referred to in paragraph (2) of this Article, specify other categories of air services to which paragraph (1) of this Article shall not apply. 4. (1) ( a ) Subject to sub-paragraph (b) of this paragraph, where the Minister is satisfied, on application to him by an undertaking, that the undertaking:—

(i) is eligible for the grant of an operating licence or a Class B authorisation within the meaning of the Air Navigation and Transport Act, 1965 (Section 8) Regulations, 1993 ( S.I. No. 323 of 1993 ) or the (Section 8) (No. 2) Regulations, 1993 ( S.I. No. 324 of 1993 ), and

(ii) possess the necessary technical and operational competency for the safe operation of an air service or air services whether generally or of a particular class or description to which the application relates, he may, on receipt of the appropriate fee referred to in Article 6 of this Order, grant to that undertaking an air operator's certificate in the form specified in Schedule 1 to this Order (or in a form to the like effect) in respect of the operation, upon and subject to such conditions as may be specified in the certificate (including conditions relating to the type, number and registration of the aircraft and the geographical location and duration of the operation) by that undertaking of such air service or services.

( b ) The Minister may, on application to him by the holder of an air operator's certificate and on receipt of the appropriate fee referred to in Article 6 of this Order, renew or amend the certificate so as to extend its application to additional aircraft of the type or types to which the certificate applies or aircraft of another type or category where he is satisfied that the undertaking possesses the requisite technical and operational competency for the safe operation of the aircraft in question, and the Minister may either record the amendment on the certificate or replace the certificate with a new certificate incorporation the amendment.

( c ) Without prejudice to the generality of subparagraphs (a) and (b) of this paragraph, the Minister, in deciding whether to grant an air operator's certificate under the said subparagraph (a) or whether to renew or amend any such certificate under the said subparagraph (b) shall have regard to the safety record of the undertaking concerned and to any contravention by that undertaking of section 13 (duty of operator of aircraft to comply with directions by Minister in relation to security and safety of aircraft), section 14 (duty of operator of aircraft to report to Minister on measures taken in compliance with section 13) or section 18 (duty not to...