Civil Aviation Act 1978

Miscellaneous

8 Power to make byelaws in relation to noise, vibration and pollution

(1) Each of the enactments specified in subsection (2) below shall have effect as if the power to make byelaws conferred by that enactment in relation to any aerodrome included power to make byelaws for controlling the operation of aircraft within or directly above the aerodrome for the purpose of limiting or mitigating the effect of noise, vibration and atmospheric pollution caused by aircraft using the aerodrome.

(2) The said enactments are—

(a) section 2 of the 1968 Act (byelaws made by the Secretary of State);

(b) section 3 of that Act (byelaws made by local authorities);

(c) section 4 of that Act (byelaws made by proprietors of certain private aerodromes);

(d) section 31 of the 1971 Act (byelaws made by Civil Aviation Authority);

(e) section 9 of the [1975 c. 78.] Airports Authority Act 1975 (byelaws made by British Airports Authority).

(3) The maximum amount which may be specified by byelaws made by virtue of this section for any fine for contravention of the byelaws shall be £500 instead of £100 (as laid down by section 5 of the said Act of 1968 in the case of byelaws made under section 2, 3 or 4 of that Act and by the said sections 31 and 9 in the case of byelaws made under those sections respectively).

(4) Where any person, other than the Secretary of State, has in relation to any aerodrome made any byelaw by virtue of this section, the Secretary of State may, after consultation with that person, by order—

(a) revoke or vary that byelaw if he considers it appropriate to do so by reason of his having designated the aerodrome an aerodrome to which section 29 of the 1971 Act (regulation of noise and vibration from aircraft) applies; or

(b) revoke or vary that byelaw to the extent that it appears to him to be inconsistent with the safety of persons or vehicles using the aerodrome, of aircraft or of the general public, or with any international obligation binding on the United Kingdom.

9 Fixing by reference to noise factors the charges for using aerodromes

(1) Without prejudice to any power of any aerodrome authority to enter into an agreement on such terms as it thinks fit, an aerodrome authority may, for the purpose of encouraging the use of quieter aircraft and of diminishing inconvenience from aircraft noise, fix its charges by reference, among other things, to any fact or matter relevant to—

(a) the amount of noise caused by the aircraft in respect of which the charges are made ; or

(b) the extent or nature of any inconvenience resulting from such noise.

(2) Without prejudice to section 8(2)(o) of the [1949 c. 67.] Civil Aviation Act 1949 (power by Order in Council to regulate charges at licensed aerodromes), the Secretary of State may by order direct specified aerodrome authorities to fix their charges in exercise of the power conferred by subsection (1) above; and any such order may contain directions as to the manner in which those charges are to be so fixed.

(3) An order under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(4) In this section—

• " aerodrome " means an aerodrome licensed under an Order in Council made under section 8 of the [1949 c. 67.] Civil Aviation Act 1949;

• " aerodrome authority " means, in relation to any aerodrome, the person owning or managing it; and

• " charges " means, in relation to an aerodrome authority, the charges the authority makes for the use of an aerodrome owned or managed by it.

10 General directions to Civil Aviation Authority in interests of national security

In section 4 of the 1971 Act (Secretary of State's power to give directions in national interest, etc.), after subsection (2) there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

“(2A) Without prejudice to section 3(2) of this Act or subsection (3)(a) of this section, the Secretary of State may, after consultation with the Authority, give it such directions of a general character as to the performance of its functions as he thinks it appropriate to give in the interests of national security; and in so far as any directions given in pursuance of this subsection conflict with the requirements of any provision of this Act, except subsection (1) of this section, those requirements shall be disregarded.”.

11 Contravention of air transport licence

In section 21(5) of the 1971 Act (offence of contravening a term of air transport licence when operator of aircraft or charterer, etc., knew or had reasonable cause to suspect that the term was likely to be contravened)—

(a) in paragraph (a), for the words " knew or had reason able cause to suspect" there shall be substituted the words " knew or ought to have known "; and

(b) in paragraph (b), for the words " knowing or having reasonable cause to suspect" there shall be substituted the words " when he knew or ought to have known ".

12 Pensions of staff of British Airways Board, its subsidiaries and predecessors

(1) Section 18 of the [1977 c. 13.] British Airways Board Act 1977 (pensions) shall cease to have effect and the following provisions of this section shall have effect instead.

(2) The Board may pay pensions, allowances or gratuities to or in respect of such of the persons to whom this section applies as may be determined by the Board, or may make arrangements for the making of such payments.

(3) Any such arrangements may provide for the establishment and maintenance of one or more schemes for making such payments and, until the contrary is provided by any such arrangements, the scheme in force under section 18 of the British Airways Board Act 1977 immediately before the appointed day (the existing scheme) shall be treated as having been established in pursuance of arrangements under this section and may be maintained accordingly.

(4) The persons to whom this section applies are—

(a) employees or former employees of any member of the group; and

(b) persons to whom the existing scheme applied immediately before the appointed day.

(5) Where a participant in a scheme maintained under this section—

(a) becomes, or has before that day become, a member of the Board or a director of any other member of the group; or

(b) has at any time before 1st April 1974 become a member of either of the corporations or a director of an undertaking which was a subsidiary or joint subsidiary of either of the corporations at the time when he became a director of it,

his service as such a member or director (including any service at any time before the appointed day) shall be treated for the purposes of the scheme as if it were service as an employee of the person in whose employment he was, or was treated for those purposes as being, when he became such a member or director.

(6) In this section—

• " appointed day " means the day appointed for the coming into force of this section ; " subsidiary " and

• " joint subsidiary " have the same meanings as they had in Part III of the 1971 Act; and other expressions have the same meanings as in the [1977 c. 13.] British Airways Board Act 1977.