Aviation Authority

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

International civil aviation is governed by the Convention on International Civil Aviation (commonly known as the Chicago Convention). Under this Convention, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialised agency of the United Nations, sets the minimum Standards and Recommended Practices for international civil aviation. These standards are contained in 18 Annexes to the Convention. Individual States remain responsible for regulating their aviation industries but have to take into account the requirements of the Convention and the minimum standards established by ICAO.

The Annexes are:

Annex 1 deals with personnel licensing including flight crew.
Annex 2 Rules Of The Air.
Annex 3 Meteorological Service For International Air Navigation.
Annex 4 Aeronautical Charts.
Annex 5 Units Of Measurement To Be Used In Air And Ground Operations.
Annex 6 Operation Of Aircraft.
Annex 7 Aircraft Nationality And Registration Marks.
Annex 8 Airworthiness Of Aircraft.
Annex 9 Facilitation.
Annex 10 Aeronautical Telecommunications.
Annex 11 Air Traffic Control Service Flight Information Service Alerting Service.
Annex 12 Search And Rescue.
Annex 13 Aircraft Accident And Incident Investigation.
Annex 14 Aerodromes.
Annex 15 Aeronautical Information Services.
Annex 16 Environmental Protection.
Annex 17 Security Safeguarding International Civil Aviation Against Acts Of Unlawful Interference.
Annex 18 The Safe Transport Of Dangerous Goods By Air.

The responsibility for implementing Annexes 1 and 8 rests with the State of Registry, that is the State in which the aircraft is registered. The responsibility for implementing Annex 6 rests with the State of Operator, the State in which the airline is based. Often the State of Operator and the State of Registry will be the same, as airlines tend to operate aircraft registered in the State in which they are based. More information can be obtained from ICAO's website.