The Air Force Act 1955 (Part 1) (Amendment) Regulations 2008

Amendment to regulation 3

3.  For regulation 3 substitute—

“Competent air-force authority

3.— (1) In addition to the Defence Council and the Air Force Board, the competent air- force authority shall be—

(a) for the purpose of section 9 of the 1955 Act(1) (postponement of discharge or transfer to the reserve), the Air Secretary;

(b) subject to paragraph (2), for the purpose of section 11(3) of the 1955 Act (discharge of an airman), the officer specified in column (b) of Schedule 1 to these Regulations;

(c) for the purpose of designating a person on his transfer to the Air Force Reserve as a person to whom paragraph 16 of Schedule 8 to the Reserve Forces Act 1980(2) (permanent call out of air force reserve) applies, the Air Secretary.

(2) The officer specified in column (b) of Schedule 1 may only give an order authorising the discharge of an airman for the corresponding reason or in the corresponding circumstances specified in column (a).

(3) Where section 18(1)(b) of the 1955 Act (invalid attestation or enlistment) applies, the Air Secretary is authorised to discharge an airman.

(4) Subject to paragraph (5), every reference in this regulation and in Schedule 1 to—

(a) the Commander-in-Chief shall have effect as if it also included a reference to an Air Officer Commanding a Group or other Formation or, if authorised in writing by the Commander-in-Chief, to a Commanding Officer not below the rank of Group Captain;

(b) the Air Secretary, the Commandant RAF College and Director of Recruitment (RAF) or a Commanding Officer shall have effect as if it included a reference to any member of the staff of that officer who has been duly authorised by him to act on his behalf.

(5) The reference to the Commander-in-Chief authorising the discharge of an airman for the reason specified at item 5(d) of Schedule 1 shall have effect as if it included a reference to any member of the staff of the Commander-in-Chief who has been duly authorised by him to act on his behalf.”.

(1)

Section 9 was amended by section 126 of, and Schedule 7 to, the Reserve Forces Act 1996 c.14 “the 1996 Act”. Section 9(1A) was inserted by section 126 of, and paragraph 5 of Schedule 7 to “the 1996 Act”. It applies to airmen (principally those enlisting on or after 1st April 1997) to whom section 9(3) and 9(4) do not apply. Section 9(3) and 9(4), which were repealed and replaced by section 126 of and Schedule 7 to the 1996 Act, continue to apply by virtue of those provisions to the category of airmen defined in paragraph 6 of Schedule 7, principally those who were in service immediately before 1st April 1997.

(2)

1980 c.9.