The Re-marked Aircraft and the Invalid C of A
A Piper PA-34 Seneca is bought by a South African owner from a German seller. The aircraft is currently on the German register with marks D-GABC. The South African owner wants to import it and place it on the South African register. The seller delivers the aircraft to Johannesburg on the German register with a German certificate of airworthiness valid for another four months. The South African owner's maintenance organisation inspects the aircraft and finds that the German certificate was issued on the basis of an annual inspection that is now 13 months old, although the certificate itself has not expired. The aircraft's marks have been partially removed in anticipation of South African registration, leaving only the German marks on the fuselage. The owner plans to fly the aircraft locally for training before completing the import. A South African flight school has already booked students.
1. Can the aircraft be flown locally for training while still on the German register and with partially removed marks? Identify the Annex 7 and Article 20 issues.
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No. Article 20 of the Chicago Convention requires every aircraft engaged in international navigation to bear its appropriate nationality and registration marks. Annex 7 sets out the marking requirements, including that the marks be displayed in the specified locations and that they be clearly visible. Partial removal of the German marks means the aircraft no longer displays the marks appropriate to its register, so it cannot be flown as a German-registered aircraft.
Local flying does not escape the problem. Once the aircraft is operated in South African airspace, South African law governs the flight, and the aircraft must either be validly on the German register with correct marks, or validly on the South African register with South African marks. There is no lawful middle state.
The owner must choose: restore the German marks fully and complete the import process, or complete the South African registration and apply the new marks. Training flights before registration are not permissible. The flight school should be told that the bookings cannot proceed until the registration is complete.
2. The German certificate of airworthiness is unexpired, but the underlying annual inspection is 13 months old. Does the certificate remain valid, and what must South Africa do?
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Under Article 31, the certificate of airworthiness is issued or rendered valid by the State of registry. Its validity depends on compliance with the continuing airworthiness requirements of that State. If German rules require an annual inspection within 12 months as a condition of continued validity, then the certificate's validity is compromised even though the printed expiry date has not passed. The owner must obtain confirmation from the German authority or the approved maintenance organisation.
South Africa, as the importing State, is not obliged to accept the German certificate for operations on the South African register. Under Article 33, certificates of airworthiness issued by one State must be recognised as valid by other States, but that recognition applies to aircraft engaged in international navigation, not to the process of placing an aircraft on the South African register. South Africa may require its own inspection and certificate.
The practical answer is that the aircraft should not be flown until the maintenance status is clarified and a South African certificate of airworthiness is issued. The owner should arrange the inspection, correct any overdue items, and complete the registration before any training flight.
3. What registration and marking steps must be completed before the first South African training flight?
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The owner must apply to the South African Civil Aviation Authority for registration, providing evidence of ownership, the certificate of deregistration from Germany, and the export certificate of airworthiness or equivalent. On registration, South Africa will allocate nationality and registration marks under Annex 7, using the ZS prefix.
The marks must be affixed in the specified locations and sizes, and the German marks removed. The aircraft's data plate and any fireproof identification plate must be consistent with the new registration. The owner must obtain a South African certificate of airworthiness, and the maintenance organisation must certify that the aircraft meets the applicable continuing airworthiness requirements.
Only then may the flight school operate the aircraft. The operator should also confirm that the insurance covers South African operations and that the pilots hold appropriate licences. The sequence is deregistration, registration, re-marking, certificate of airworthiness, insurance and crew qualification; any flight before all steps are complete is unlawful.