Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2021)

2.   Interpretation

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   (1)   In this Act, and any regulation made pursuant to this Act,

“accident” means an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft which takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight until such time as all such persons have disembarked, in which-

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   (a)     a person suffers a fatal or serious injury as a result of –

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      (i)     being in or upon the aircraft,

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      (ii)     being in direct contact with any part of the aircraft, including parts which have become detached from the aircraft, or

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      (iii)     direct exposure to jet blast, except when the injuries are from natural causes, self-inflicted or inflicted by other persons, or when the injuries are to stowaways hiding outside the areas normally available to the passengers and crew; or

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   (b)     the aircraft sustains damage or structural failure which-

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      (i)     adversely affects the structural strength, performance or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and

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      (ii)     would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component, except for engine failure or damage, when the damage is limited to the engine, its cowlings or accessories, or for damage limited to propellers, wing tips, antennas, tyres, brakes, fairings, small dents or puncture holes in the aircraft skin; or

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   €     the aircraft is missing or is completely inaccessible; “accredited representative” means a person designated by a State, on the basis of his or her qualification, for the purpose of articipating in an aircraft accident investigation conducted by another State;

“aerodrome” means any area of land, water or other supporting surface used, designed, prepared, equipped or set apart for use or designated either in whole or in part for the arrival, departure and surface movement of aircraft and includes any buildings, installations and equipment situated thereon or associated therewith;

“aeronautical product” includes any aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or subassembly, appliance, material, part, or component to be installed on an aircraft;

“Agreement” means the agreement establishing the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority made on the 21^st day of October, 2003, the text of which is set out in the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Agreement Act;

“air operator” means any person who has been issued a civil aviation document authorizing the use of an aircraft for air transport, aerial work or flight training operations;

“aircraft” means any machine that is capable of deriving support in the atmosphere from reactions of the air, other than a machine designed to derive support in the atmosphere from reactions against the earth's surface of air expelled from the machine, and includes a rocket or such machine to travel into outer space;

“airport” means an aerodrome that has been certificated as an airport pursuant to regulations made under this Act;

“air operator certificate (AOC)” means a certificate authorizing an operator to carry out specified commercial air transport operations;

“authorized search” means a search carried out in such manner and under such circumstances as may be prescribed by regulations made under the authority of this Act;

“Annexes to the Chicago Convention” means the documents issued by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) containing the Standards and Recommended Practices applicable to civil aviation;

“Authority” means the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority established by Article 3 of the Agreement;

“aviation occurrence” means an event with an effect on aviation safety which may include any accident or incident;

“aviation security officer” means a person who has received training pursuant to regulations made under this Act and appointed a security officer by the Minister and a member of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force when assigned airport security duties;

“Chicago Convention” means the International Civil Aviation Convention signed at Chicago on 7^th December 1944 and the protocols amending the Convention;

“citizen of Saint Lucia” means:

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   (a)     an individual who is a citizen of Saint Lucia;

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   (b)     a partnership of which each member is a citizen of Saint Lucia;

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   €     a corporation or association established under the laws of Saint Lucia in which the majority of the shares is held by citizens of Saint Lucia;

“civil aircraft” means any aircraft other than a state or public aircraft;

“civil aviation document” means any licence, permit, accreditation, certificate or other document issued by the Director-General under this Act with respect to any person or in respect of any aeronautical product, aerodrome, facility or service;

“commercial air service” means any use of aircraft for hire or reward;

“communication record” means the whole or any part of any record, recording, copy, transcript or substantial summary of any type of communications respecting air traffic control or related matters that take place between any of the following persons, namely, air traffic controllers, crew members, airport vehicle operators, flight service station specialists and persons who relay messages respecting air traffic control or related matters;

“controlled item” means those items designated as dangerous to aviation security and set out in the Aviation Security Standards;

“court” means the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court;

“dangerous goods” means articles or substances which are capable of posing significant risks to health, safety or property when transported by air;

“Director General” means the Director-General of Civil Aviation appointed under Article 10 of the Agreement;

“flight crew member” means a licensed crew member charged with duties essential to the operation of an aircraft during flight;

“general aviation operation” means all civil aviation operations other than scheduled air services and non-scheduled air transport operations for remuneration or hire;

“goods” means anything that may be taken or placed on board an aircraft as personal belongings, baggage, cargo, or mail;

“hire or reward” means any payment, consideration, gratuity or benefit, directly or indirectly charged, demanded, received or collected by any person for the use of an aircraft; either scheduled or non-scheduled;

“ICAO” means the International Civil Aviation Organisation;

“ICAO Conventions” means the Chicago Convention 1944, the Tokyo Convention 1963, the Montreal Convention 1971 and any enactment giving effect to the said Conventions;

“Implementing Standards” means mandatory standards prescribed by the Director General for compliance with any Regulations made thereunder;

“inspector” means a person appointed by the Director General under section 13 for the purposes of administering this Act and any Regulations made thereunder;

“incident” means:

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   (a)     any occurrence, other than an accident, associated with the operation of an aircraft, which affects or could affect aviation safety; or

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   (b)     any situation or condition that the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe could, if left unattended, contribute to an accident or incident described in paragraph (a);

“Investigator” means a person assigned, due to his or her qualification and expertise, to conduct aircraft occurrence investigations;

“Investigator-in-charge” means an investigator charged, on the basis of his or her qualifications, with the responsibility for the organization, and control of an aircraft occurrence investigation;

“Member State” has the same meaning assigned to it under the Treaty establishing the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) signed at Basseterre on 18^th June 1981 or under the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas establishing the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy signed at Nassau, The Bahamas, on 5^th July 2001;

“Minister” means the Minister responsible for the regulation of Civil Aviation;

“pilot-in-command” means, the pilot designated by the operator, or in the case of general aviation, the owner, as being in command and charged with the safe conduct of a flight;

“public aircraft” means an aircraft used exclusively in the service of any government of any political jurisdiction thereof, but not including any government owned aircraft engaged in operations which meet the definition of commercial air services;

“Saint Lucia aircraft” means an aircraft registered in Saint Lucia;

“screening” means the control, identification, observation, inspection or search of persons and goods to prevent access to security restricted areas and air transport in contravention of this Act or any regulations made thereunder;

“search” means a search carried out under this Act for the purpose of aviation security in such a manner and such circumstances as may be prescribed by regulations;

“Security officer” includes a member of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force assigned airport duties, a security officer, a customs officer and an immigration officer, as may be designated by the Minister to be a security officer for the purposes of this Act;

“Security restricted area” means any area of an airport, or navigation facility or an area of such facility when the facility is not located at an airport, into which access is controlled to ensure security of civil aviation;

“State aircraft” means any aircraft used exclusively in military, state or government service.