Civil Aviation Act 1978

PART I Minor and Consequential Amendments

Civil Aviation Act 1949 (c. 67)

1 Section 9 of the [1949 c. 67.] Civil Aviation Act 1949 (control of aviation in United Kingdom or any portion thereof in time of war or emergency) shall be amended as follows:—

(a) in subsection (1), after the words " portion thereof" there shall be inserted the words " or over any area of sea specified in the order "; and

(b) in the proviso to subsection (3) (compensation not payable in respect of general order prohibiting flying in the United Kingdom or any part thereof), at the end there shall be added the words " or over any area of sea. ".

2 (1) That Act shall be further amended as follows.

(2) In section 26 (power to exercise control over land in the interests of civil aviation), references to any land, structures, works or apparatus vested in the Secretary of State or which he proposes to acquire or install shall include references to any land, structures, works or apparatus vested in a licensee or which a licensee proposes to acquire or install.

(3) Where the Secretary of State has made an order by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) above in relation to any land, or has under consideration the making of any such order, any person authorised in writing by the Secretary of State may at all reasonable times, on producing, if so required, evidence of his authority in that behalf, enter upon any of the land in order to make any survey which the Secretary of State or the licensee in question requires to be made for the purpose of any steps to be taken in consequence of the order:

Provided that admission shall not, by virtue of this sub-paragraph, be demanded as of right to any land which is occupied unless eight days' notice of the intended entry has been served on the occupier.

(4) Subsections (2) to (5) of section 29 (power of entry for purposes of survey) shall apply with any necessary modifications in relation to sub-paragraph (3) above as they apply in relation to subsection (1) of that section, but any proceedings for an offence under subsection (2) of that section, as so applied, may be instituted in England and Wales or Northern Ireland by the licensee in question without the consent required by subsection (3) of that section, and any compensation payable under subsection (5) of that section, as so applied, shall be paid by the licensee instead of by the Secretary of State.

(5) Save as aforesaid, section 29 shall not apply in relation to an order made by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) above.

(6) Where the Secretary of State gives a direction by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) above, being a direction the execution of which will involve the displacement of persons residing in premises on the land to which the direction relates, it shall be the duty of the licensee in question, in so far as there is no other residential accommodation available on reasonable terms to the persons who require it in consequence of the displacement, being residential accommodation suitable to the reasonable requirements of those persons, to secure the provision of such accommodation.

(7) The licensee in question shall secure the provision of the accommodation in advance of the displacement unless the Secretary of State is satisfied that for reasons of exceptional public importance it is essential that the displacement should be effected before such accommodation as aforesaid can be found.

(8) Section 31 (displacements from land) shall not apply in relation to a direction given by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) above.

(9) In the case of a direction given by virtue of sub-paragraph (2) above, it shall be for the licensee in question, instead of for the Secretary of State, to give the notices required by paragraph 1 of Schedule 3 (provisions relating to directions under section 26); and any compensation payable under that Schedule in consequence of a direction so given shall be paid by the licensee, instead of by the Secretary of State.

(10) In this paragraph " licensee " means licensee of an aerodrome licensed under an Order in Council made under section 8 of the said Act of 1949.

Tokyo Convention Act 1967 (c. 52)

3 In section 6(1)(b) of the [1967 c. 62.] Tokyo Convention Act 1967 (under which a document printed by Her Majesty's Stationery Office and purporting to be the publication "United Kingdom Air Pilot" or "Notam-United Kingdom" is evidence, or in Scotland sufficient evidence, of the matters appearing from the document), for the words "Her Majesty's Stationery Office" there shall be substituted the words " either Her Majesty's Stationery Office or the Civil Aviation Authority ".

Hovercraft Act 1968 (c. 59)

4 The enactments and instruments with respect to which provision may be made by Order in Council in pursuance of section 1(1)(h) of the [1968 c. 59.] Hovercraft Act 1968 (power to apply enactments and instruments in relation to hovercraft, etc.) shall include this Act and any instrument made under it.

Civil Aviation Act 1968 (c. 61)

5 In section 23(4) of the 1968 Act (extended meaning of accident in that section and in section 10 of the [1949 c. 67.] Civil Aviation Act 1949, being sections which relate to aircraft accidents), at the end there shall be added the words " and any other occurrence involving an aircraft which, for the purpose of giving effect to any amendment of an Annex to the Chicago Convention, is by virtue of this subsection designated an accident in regulations under the said section 10.

In this subsection " an Annex to the Chicago Convention " means any Annex to the Convention mentioned in subsection (1) of section 8 of the said Act of 1949 (being an Annex adopted in accordance with the Convention); and the power conferred by this subsection is without prejudice to the said section 8.".

Civil Aviation Act 1971 (c. 75)

6 (1) The 1971 Act shall be amended in accordance with the following provisions of this paragraph.

(2) In section 10(2) (power of Secretary of State to lend to Civil Aviation Authority), for the words " section 8(2)" there shall be substituted the words " section 8(1) or (2) ".

(3) In section 23(5) (revocation, suspension or variation of air transport licence not to take effect until expiration of period for appealing or the determination or abandonment of any appeal), at the beginning there shall be inserted the words " Subject to subsection (6) of this section, " ; and after the said subsection (5) there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

“(6) Notwithstanding anything in the preceding subsection, the Authority may—

(a) direct that so much of the variation of a licence as relates to any tariff provision of the licence ;

(b) with the consent of the holder of the licence, direct that so much of the variation of a licence as relates to any other matter,

shall to a specified extent take effect on a specified day earlier than is permitted by that subsection.

In this subsection ' tariff provision' means, in relation to any licence, any term of that licence being a term such as is mentioned in section 22(5)(b) of this Act.”.

(4) For section 29(3) (power of Secretary of State to impose limitations at designated aerodromes for the purpose of mitigating the effect of noise and vibration connected with the taking off and landing of aircraft) there shall be substituted the following subsections:—

“(3) If the Secretary of State considers it appropriate, for the purpose of avoiding, limiting or mitigating the effect of noise and vibration connected with the taking off or landing of aircraft at a designated aerodrome, to prohibit aircraft from taking off or landing, or limit the number of occasions on which they may take off or land, at the aerodrome during certain periods, he may by a notice published in the prescribed manner do all or any of the following:—

(a) prohibit aircraft of descriptions specified in the notice from taking off or landing at the aerodrome (otherwise than in an emergency of a description so specified) during periods so specified ;

(b) specify the maximum number of occasions on which aircraft of descriptions so specified may be permitted to take off or land at the aerodrome (otherwise than as aforesaid) during periods so specified ;

(c) determine the persons who shall be entitled to arrange for aircraft of which they are the operators to take off or land at the aerodrome during the periods specified under paragraph (b) above and, as respects each of those persons, the number of occasions on which aircraft of a particular description of which he is the operator may take off or land at the aerodrome during those periods ;

and subject to the following subsection and paragraphs (d) and (e) of subsection (4) below it shall be the duty of the person for the time being managing the aerodrome to secure that the prohibitions or restrictions relating to the aerodrome which are imposed by the notice are complied with.

(3A) Without prejudice to subsection (4)(e) below, a particular occasion or series of occasions on which aircraft take off or land at an aerodrome shall be disregarded for the purposes of any notice under subsection (3) above in respect of that aerodrome if—

(a) on that occasion or series of occasions the aircraft take off or land in circumstances specified for the purposes of this subsection in relation to that aerodrome by the Secretary of State in a notice published in the prescribed manner ; and

(b) the person for the time being managing the aerodrome, or a person authorised by him for the purpose, determines that that occasion or series of occasions should be so disregarded,

but it shall be the duty of the first-mentioned person to notify the Secretary of State in writing, within one week from its occurring, of any occasion (whether a single occasion or one of a series of occasions) to which this subsection applies.”.

(5) In section 29(4) (provisions supplementary to subsection (3))—

(a) for the words " the preceding subsection ", wherever occurring, there shall be substituted the words " subsection (3) above ";

(b) in paragraph (a), for " (b) " there shall be substituted " (c) ";

(c) in paragraph (c), for the word " limitations " there shall be substituted the words " any prohibition or restriction ";

(d) after paragraph (c) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(cc) if it appears to a person authorised for the purpose by the person for the time being managing the relevant aerodrome that an aircraft is about to take off in contravention of any prohibition or restriction imposed in pursuance of subsection (3) above, then, without prejudice to paragraph (c) above or the powers mentioned therein, the first-mentioned person. or a person authorised by him for the purpose, may detain the aircraft for such period as the first-mentioned person considers appropriate for preventing the contravention, and may for the purpose of detaining the aircraft enter upon any land ;”; and

(e) in paragraph (e)—

(i) for the words " in writing served in the prescribed manner on " there shall be substituted the words " given in the prescribed manner to "; and

(ii) for the words " on which an aircraft takes off or lands " there shall be substituted the words " or series of occasions on which aircraft take off or land ".

(6) In section 29(5) (power of Secretary of State to give directions for purpose of limiting or mitigating effect of noise and vibration connected with taking off and landing of aircraft), after the words " for the purpose of " there shall be inserted the word " avoiding, ".

(7) In section 29(11) (interpretation of section 29), for the words " or subsection (3)" there shall be substituted the words " , (3) or (3A) ".

(8) In section 29A (which was inserted by the [1975 c. 78.] Airports Authority Act 1975 in connection with the consolidation of the [1965 c. 16.] Airports Authority Act 1965 and certain related enactments), after subsection (6) there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

“(6A) Any statutory instrument made under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.”.

(9) Section 36 (1imitations on disclosure of information furnished to Authority or Secretary of State) shall be amended as follows:—

(a) in subsection (1) (prohibition of disclosure of information except in specified circumstances), after paragraph

(b) there shall be inserted the following paragraph:—

“(bb) that person is an individual who is dead, or is a body corporate that has ceased to exist or, whether an individual or a body corporate, cannot be found after all reasonable inquiries have been made, and the Secretary of State determines that the information may be disclosed ; or”;

(b) in subsection (1)(c), for the words from " after " onwards there shall be substituted the words " made a determination in pursuance of paragraph (b) or (bb) above. ";

(c) after subsection (1), there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

“(1A) For the purposes of subsection (1) above, all reasonable inquiries to find a body corporate shall be deemed to have been made if—

(a) in the case of a company within the meaning of the Companies Act 1948 or the Companies Act (Northern Ireland) 1960, inquiries have been made at its registered office ; or

(b) in the case of a company incorporated outside the United Kingdom and having a place of business within the United Kingdom, inquiries have been made at every address registered in respect of that company for the purposes of section 407(1)(c) of the said Act of 1948, or section 356(1)(c) of the said Act of 1960 (address for service of oversea companies).”; and

(d) in subsection (2) (disclosures to which subsection (1) does not apply)—

(i) for the words " the preceding subsection" there shall be substituted the words " subsection (1) above "; and

(ii) after paragraph (d) there shall be inserted the following paragraph:—

“(dd) by the Authority for the purpose of complying with any duty imposed on the Authority by section 27(2) of this Act;”.

(10) In section 63(4), for the words " sections 15 and 29A " there shall be substituted the words " section 15 ".

Airports Authority Act 1975 (c. 78)

7 (1) The [1975 c. 78.] Airports Authority Act 1975 shall be amended as follows.

(2) In section 2(3) (power of Authority to do anything to facilitate discharge of its duties under that Act), at the end there shall be added the words " or of any duty imposed on it by virtue of section 29 or 29A of the Civil Aviation Act 1971 ".

(3) In Schedule 2 (byelaws)—

(a) paragraph 2(a) (intention to apply for confirmation to be published in London Gazette or Edinburgh Gazette), shall be omitted ;

(b) in paragraph 4, for the words " 2 ½ p " (being the maximum price per one hundred words of a copy supplied before confirmation), there shall be substituted the words " 5p "; and

(c) in paragraph 6, for the words " 5p " (being the maximum price for every copy supplied after confirmation) there shall be substituted the words " 10p ".

British Airways Board Act 1977 (c. 13)

8 In section 21(3) of the [1977 c. 13.] British Airways Board Act 1977, the words from " (excluding " to " that section) " (by virtue of which the power to make different provisions for different circumstances or to make such supplementary or incidental provisions as the Secretary of State considers appropriate is not included in the emergency powers of the Secretary of State under section 20 of that Act) shall be omitted.