CPL Air Law flashcards

39 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Chicago Convention Article 1

Every State has complete and exclusive sovereignty over the airspace above its territory, including territorial waters, establishing the foundational principle of international aviation law.

Freedoms of the air

Commercial and transit privileges granted between States by treaty, including overflight, technical stops, and carriage of traffic; they are not automatic rights under the Chicago Convention.

ICAO Standard

Any specification for physical characteristics, configuration, material, performance, personnel or procedure whose uniform application is recognised as necessary for the safety of international air navigation.

Montreal Convention 1999

Treaty governing carrier liability for international carriage, using a two-tier strict liability system with a revised SDR limit for passenger death or injury.

CPL minimum age

An applicant for a commercial pilot licence must be at least 18 years of age and hold a valid Class 1 medical certificate.

CPL flight experience

ICAO Annex 1 requires at least 200 hours total flight time, including up to 100 hours in an approved simulator, with specified PIC and cross-country hours.

Instrument rating recency

To maintain IFR privileges, a pilot must complete specified instrument approaches, holding procedures and intercepting or tracking within the preceding six months.

Class rating

A rating that permits operation of a class of aircraft with similar characteristics, such as single-engine land or multi-engine land aeroplanes.

Right-of-way converging

When two aircraft of the same category converge at approximately the same altitude, the aircraft on the right has right-of-way and the other must give way.

Overtaking rule

An aircraft overtaking another must pass on the right and keep clear of the overtaken aircraft, which retains right-of-way throughout the manoeuvre.

VMC minima above 10,000 ft

In Class C-E airspace above 3,050 m, flight visibility must be at least 8 km with 1,500 m horizontal and 300 m vertical cloud clearance.

Minimum safe altitude

Flight must be at least 300 m above the highest obstacle within 600 m radius in congested areas, or 150 m elsewhere, except during take-off and landing.

Airspace Class A

Class A airspace permits IFR flights only; ATC provides separation between all aircraft, and VFR operations are not permitted.

Airspace Class G

Uncontrolled airspace where IFR and VFR flights are permitted; ATC provides no separation service and pilots are responsible for their own separation.

Emergency squawk codes

Standard international transponder codes: 7500 for unlawful interference, 7600 for radio failure, and 7700 for a general emergency.

Transition altitude

The altitude at or below which an aircraft's altimeter is set to the local QNH, and above which it is set to standard pressure 1013.25 hPa.

Minimum equipment list

A document approved for an aircraft type that permits dispatch with specified equipment inoperative, subject to stated conditions and procedures.

VFR fuel reserve

A VFR flight must carry fuel to reach the destination plus a reserve of at least 30 minutes at holding speed at 1,500 ft above the destination.

Supplemental oxygen

Crew must use supplemental oxygen when cabin pressure altitude exceeds 10,000 ft, and passengers must be provided oxygen above 15,000 ft cabin altitude.

Weight and balance

The aircraft must be loaded within certified maximum take-off and landing weights and within the centre of gravity envelope throughout the flight.

Duty period

The period from when a crew member reports for duty until the end of duty, including pre-flight, flight, ground and post-flight tasks.

Pilot-in-command authority

The PIC has final authority over the aircraft and may deviate from rules to the extent necessary in an emergency to preserve safety.

Fatigue risk management

A data-driven system approved as an alternative to prescriptive flight time limitations, using monitoring and mitigation to control crew fatigue.

Crew alcohol limit

Flight crew must not perform duties under the influence of alcohol; many States set a blood alcohol concentration limit of 0.02% or lower.

Certificate of airworthiness

A document issued when an aircraft complies with applicable airworthiness requirements; it remains valid only if the approved maintenance programme is followed.

Airworthiness directive

A mandatory requirement issued by an authority to correct an unsafe condition; compliance within the stated time is required and must be recorded.

Maintenance release

A certification that maintenance has been completed in accordance with approved data, issued by an authorised person or organisation before the aircraft returns to service.

Pre-flight airworthiness check

The pilot-in-command must ensure the aircraft is airworthy before flight, record any defects, and confirm that required maintenance has been certified.

Runway holding position

Markings of two solid and two dashed yellow lines; an aircraft must stop before the solid lines unless it has an explicit ATC clearance to proceed.

Aerodrome lighting colours

Runway edge lights are white, threshold lights green, runway end lights red, taxiway edge lights blue, and taxiway centreline lights green.

Marshalling signal stop

A marshaller's raised arms indicate stop; arms extended horizontally indicate proceed, and standard signals are defined in ICAO Annex 2.

Accident definition

An occurrence in aircraft operation involving fatal or serious injury, substantial aircraft damage or structural failure, or the aircraft being missing or inaccessible.

Investigation objective

The sole objective of an accident or incident investigation is the prevention of future occurrences, not the apportionment of blame or liability.

State of Occurrence

The State in whose territory an accident or incident occurs; it is responsible for instituting the investigation and may invite other States to participate.

Safety recommendation

A proposal issued by an investigation authority to prevent recurrence, addressed to States, operators or manufacturers, and not an enforcement action.

State of Registry jurisdiction

The State of Registry has jurisdiction over aircraft on its register and may enforce its regulations wherever those aircraft operate.

Enforcement action

Measures taken by an authority for regulatory violations, including licence suspension or revocation, fines and prosecution, subject to national law and appeal rights.

Reportable occurrence

An accident, serious incident or other occurrence that must be reported to the appropriate authority within the time and manner prescribed by national regulations.

Authority inspection powers

Regulatory authorities may inspect aircraft, records and crew documents without prior notice, and refusal to cooperate can result in enforcement action.