INTERNATIONAL

AVIATION LAW

INTRODUCTION

Dr Anna Konert
 AVIATION LAW

1. PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL AIR LAW

2. PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL AIR LAW
 PUBLIC LAW
It examines the relevant principles and rules
of international law that affect the use of air
space and aeronautics.
 PUBLIC LAW
1. jurisdiction over persons, territory and
airspace, law of treaties, settlement of
international disputes, law of international
organisations etc. (CHICAGO Convention
1944, ICAO)
2. safety, security, air navigation, airports,
and the environment
3. aircraft accident investigation
 PRIVATE LAW
• Unification of law of liability

LIABILITY IN CASE OF AIR CRASH

AF 447
Air carrier liability in case of air
crash…

Air France Flight 447 was a scheduled

commercial flight from Rio de Janeiro to
Paris, that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean
on 1 June 2009, killing all 216 passengers
and 12 crew members…
AF 447
 33 different nationalities on
board…
FR – 72
PL – 2
ES - 2
USA – 2
 AF 4590
Concord crash
 Flight 4590
Air France Flight 4590 was a Concorde
flight operated by Air France which was
scheduled to run from CDG near Paris, to
JFK in New York City. On 25 July 2000, it
crashed in Gonesse, France. All one
hundred passengers and nine crew members
on board the flight died. On the ground, four
people were killed with one left injured…
 LIABILITY
1. Civil liability for passenegrs (their
families) – contract
( Passengers damages laibility)

2. Civil liability for third parties for damages

on the ground – no contract
(Surface damage liability)
 Liability
1) INTERNATIONAL LAW

2) EUROPEAN LAW

3) NATIONAL LAWS
Passengers damages liability
 INTERNATIONAL LAW –
„Warsaw-Montreal System”
• The Warsaw Convention of 1929
• The Hague Protocol of 1955
• The Guadalajara Supplementary
Convention of 1961
• The Guatemala City Protocol of 1971
• .Montreal Protocols 1, 2,3 and 4 of 1975
• Montreal Convenion of 1999
 EUROPEAN LAW
• Regulation (EC) No 889/2002 of The
European Parliament and of the Council of
13 May 2002 amending Council Regulation
(EC) No 2027/97 on air carrier liability in
the event of accidents
 NATIONAL LAWS
1. National Air Law (Aviation Code, Civil
Code or other regulations)
2. All the EU States = EU Regulation
Surface damage liability
9/11
 National law

- Compensation to parties on the ground for

bodily injury and property damage
sustained is governed by the law of the
state where the damage occurs
- National laws vary…
 International law
1. The 1952 Rome Convention applies
• to damage caused to third parties on the
territory of a contracting state by an
aircraft registered in another contracting
state.

• only to the damage sustained on the

ground as a result of an air
 International law
2. The 1978 Montreal Protocol
3. Modernization of the Rome Convention:
• Proposal to modernize in September 2000
• The idea moved forward after 9/11
 Syllabus of the cours
1. Introduction
2. National Air Law (presentations –
introduction, statistics, air code, air
regulations, airports, national airlines etc.)
3. Public law – Chicago Convention 1944
and ICAO overviews
4. Public law – Investigation of Air accidents
(+ presentation national regulations)
 Syllabus of the cours
5. Private law – Introduction (Warsaw –
Montreal system)
6. Air carrier liability for passengers
(International and European law)
7. Air carrier liability for bagages/cargo
Air carrier liability for delayed flights,
cancelled flights and overbooking
8. Surface damage liability
 Books
1. Paul Stephen Dempsey and Michael Milde,
International Air Carrier Liability: The
Montreal Convention of 1999
2. Paul Stephen Dempsey, Public
International Air Law (2008)
3. Anna Konert, Odpowiedzialność
przewoźnika lotniczego (2010)
 Articles
1. Anna Konert, Indian Journal of
International Law vol. 50 no. 4 2010
“Operations of embarking and
disembarking as a condition of air carrier
liability under Warsaw/Montreal
Convention”, New Delhi
 Articles
2. Anna Konert, Indian Journal of
International Law vol. 50 no. 2 2010 “Air
carrier liability under Polish Air Law”, New
Delhi
3. Anna Konert, Annals of Air and Space
Law, Vol.XXIV 2009 “Are non pecuniary
damages recoverable in Europe?- A
comparison”, Montreal
 Articles
4. Anna Konert, Air and Space Law, Kluwer
Law International 2008, “Disabled persons
in the EU, Canada and in the US” , The
Hague/London
5. Anna Konert, Revista Derecho y Cambio
Social, numero 13, ano 5, 2008 “Derechos
de los pasajeros aereos”, Lima - Peru
 Articles
6. Anna Konert, International Journal of
Private Law (IJPL), Volume 4 - Issue 2 –
2011, Air carrier liabilities for passengers.