Civil Aviation Authority (United Kingdom)

The CAA directly or indirectly regulates all aspects of aviation in the UK. In some aspects of aviation it is the primary regulator. Prior to the UK's departure from the European Union, some areas, where the responsibility for regulation has passed to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the CAA acted as EASA's local office, implementing the regulations. Representatives from the CAA used to sit on EASA's advisory bodies, taking part in the Europe-wide regulation process. Following the end of the tranistion period, on the 1st Jan. 2021, the UK is no longer an EASA participant; whilst there are some elements of continuity follow the UK-EU trade agreement, they do not constitute a replication of the UK’s regulatory arrangements as part of the EASA/EU framework. [1]

The UK government requires that the CAA's costs are met entirely from its charges on those whom it regulates. Unlike many other countries, there is no direct government funding of the CAA's work. It is classed as a public corporation, established by statute, in the public sector. The connection it has with the government is via the machinery of government and the Standards Group of the Cabinet Office.

The CAA regulates (approximately):

• Active professional and private pilots (50,000)
• Licensed aircraft engineers (12,400)
• Air traffic controllers (2,350)
• Airlines (206)
• Licensed aerodromes (241)
• Organisations involved in the design, production and maintenance of aircraft (950)
• ATOL holders (2,400)
• Aircraft registered in the UK (19,000)
• Alternative Dispute Resolution providers

The CAA also oversees the Air Travel Organisers' Licensing (ATOL).

By law, every UK travel company which sells air holidays and flights is required to hold an ATOL, which stands for Air Travel Organiser's Licence.

If a travel company with an ATOL ceases trading, the ATOL scheme protects customers who had booked holidays with the firm. It ensures they do not get stranded abroad or lose money.

The scheme is designed to reassure customers that their money is safe, and will provide assistance in the event of a travel company failure.

Before 1972, regulation of aviation was the responsibility of the Air Registration Board.

The CAA was established in 1972, under the terms of the Civil Aviation Act 1971, following the recommendations of a government committee chaired by Sir Ronald Edwards.[2] The CAA has been a public corporation of the Department for Transport since then.[3]

The Civil Aviation Act 1982 was an Act of Parliament to address evolving conditions, and currently governs air flight in the UK.

Responsibility for air traffic control in the UK passed to NATS in the run-up to the establishment of its public-private partnership in 2001.

The priorities of the chair, as recorded by letter upon the accession to government of the Cameron–Clegg coalition were, chief amongst others:[4]

• to continue to develop UK State Safety Programme to meet ICAO requirements
• to set a cross-industry agenda in order to address potential safety risks
• to take action to foster a risk-based and proportionate safety management capability
• to work with European and International partners in order to drive global standards in safety improvement

From 1 April 2014, the CAA took over a number of aviation security functions from the Department for Transport. The new Directorate of Aviation Security within the CAA now manages rule-making and compliance to deliver proportionate and focussed regulation for UK aviation to ensure the highest standards of security across the civil aviation sector. Air Safety Support International, a subsidiary of the CAA, is responsible for air safety in the British Overseas Territories.[5] The CAA also manages all national security vetting for the aviation industry.

Before the end of the Brexit transition period, the CAA is a member of the EASA; as such, it sends representatives to the EASA Management Board.[6]

After the end of the transition period, the CAA will no longer be a member of the EASA:

• The official position of EASA on Brexit was in 2019 partially that "The withdrawal will significantly alter EASA’s cooperation with UK authorities and will not leave EASA’s stakeholders untouched."[7]
• The official position of transport secretary was "As you would expect from an independent nation, we can’t be subject to the rules and laws made by somebody else, so we can’t accept rules from the EU commission and we can’t accept rulings in terms of court cases from the European court of justice or anybody else, any more than the US would".[8]

The CAA head office is located in Aviation House on the grounds of Gatwick Airport in Crawley, Sussex. The Authority relocated from its previous London head office in early 2019, moving its head office functions to its existing office at Aviation House, as well as opening a new London branch office at Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf by that July.[14]

General aviation is an official category that covers a wide range of unscheduled air activity such as flying clubs and training establishments. In 2013 the CAA announced a new approach to regulating GA which will be more proportionate. A new dedicated GA unit was established in 2014 www.caa.co.uk/ga

CAA Flying Unit

Preserved de Havilland Dove aircraft G-ALFU of CAA at Duxford Airfield, EGSU

The CAA was also responsible for the calibration of navigation and approach aids until the Flight Calibration Services group was privatised and sold to Flight Precision Ltd in 1996.

The history of the Civil Aviation Flying Unit (CAFU) can be traced back to the Air Ministry's Civil Operations Fleet founded in 1944. The CAA and its predecessors have operated 49 aircraft of 13, primarily British, aircraft types including de Havilland Tiger Moths, Avro Ansons, Airspeed Consuls, Percival Princes, de Havilland Doves,[15] Hawker Siddeley HS 748s[16][17] and Hawker Siddeley HS 125s.[18][19]

The roles performed by CAFU aircraft included:

• Calibration and testing of radio/radar navigational aids in the UK and overseas
• Flight testing of candidates for the initial issue of commercial pilots' licences, instrument ratings and instructor ratings
• Training and testing of authorised instrument and type-rating examiners
• Carriage of Government Ministers, MEPs and other officials
• Charter flights for Dan-Air Services Ltd
• Radar target flying for the College of Air Traffic Control
• Ordnance Survey photographic flights
• Airport lighting inspections
• Aerodrome categorisation and evaluation flights
• Trials of new equipment and procedures, e.g. Microwave Landing Systems, ground proximity warning systems, Extended Range Twin-engine Operations (ETOPS)
• Refresher flying for Flight Operations Inspectors and other staff
• Educational flights for local schools,[20][21][22]

Beyond the privatisation of the calibration service in 1996, the Civil Aviation Authority operated two HS 125-700 aircraft successively up until 2002, providing conversion and continuation flying for professional CAA pilots, conducting radar trials for National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and serving the CAA, NATS and Highlands & Islands Airports Ltd (HIAL) in the communications role.

Previous to the privatisation, Stansted Airport had been the home of Flight Calibration; however, in 1996 the department was moved to Teesside Airport in the North East of England with the photographic laboratory services contracted out to a local company, HighLight Photographics.

• Air Accidents Investigation Branch
• Air safety
• Civil Aviation Department (Hong Kong)
• Military Aviation Authority
• Pilot licensing in the United Kingdom
• Strasser Scheme

• Official website
• ATOL