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40 1936

AIR NAVIGATION AND TRANSPORT ACT, 1936

PART VII.

Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions

Wreck and salvage.

57. —(1) Any services rendered in assisting, or in saving life from, or in saving the cargo or apparel of, an aircraft in, on, or over the sea or any tidal water, or on or over the shores of the sea or any tidal water, shall be deemed to be salvage services in all cases in which they would have been salvage services if they had been rendered in relation to a vessel; and where salvage services are rendered by an aircraft to any property or person, the owner of the aircraft shall be entitled to the same reward for those services as he would have been entitled to if the aircraft had been a vessel.

The preceding provisions of this sub-section shall have effect notwithstanding that the aircraft concerned is a foreign aircraft, and notwithstanding that the services in question are rendered elsewhere than within the limits of the territorial waters of Saorstát Eireann.

(2) The Executive Council may by order direct that any provisions of any Act for the time being in force which relate to wreck, to salvage of life of property, or to the duty of rendering assistance to vessels in distress shall, with such exceptions, adaptations, and modifications, if any, as may be specified in the order, apply in relation to aircraft as those provisions apply in relation to vessels and any such order shall have the force of law in Saorstát Eireann.

(3) For the purposes of this section, any provisions of an Act which relate to vessels laid by or neglected as unfit for sea service shall be deemed to be provisions relating to wreck, and the expression “Act” shall be deemed to include any local or special Act and any provisions of the Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Act, 1847, as incorporated with any local or special Act, whenever passed.

(4) Any order, made by virtue of section 11 of the Air Navigation Act, 1920, and in force in Saorstát Eireann immediately before the date of the passing of this Act shall be deemed to be made under this section and may accordingly be amended or revoked by an order made under this section and until so revoked and subject to any such amendment shall continue in force.

Application to seaplanes of certain provisions of the Merchant Shipping Acts, relating to collisions at sea and signals of distress.

58. —(1) The power conferred by sub-section (1) of section 418 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, to make regulations for the prevention of collisions at sea shall include power to make regulations for the prevention of collisions at sea—

(a) between seaplanes on the surface of the water, and

(b) between vessels and seaplanes on the surface of the water;

and accordingly the said section 418, and sections 419, 421 and 424 of the said Act, as amended by any subsequent enactment, shall apply in relation to seaplanes on the surface of the water as they apply in relation to ships or vessels, subject however to the following modifications, that is to say:—

(i) for the purpose of sub-section (2) of the said section 418, and for the purposes of the said section 424, sections 418, 419, 421, and 424 of the said Act shall be deemed to be the only provisions of Part V of the said Act relating to collision regulations or otherwise relating to collisions, and

(ii) any references in the said section 419 to the master or to the person in charge of the deck shall be construed as references to the pilot or other person on duty in charge of the seaplane.

(2) The power conferred by sub-section (1) of section 25 of the Merchant Shipping (Safety and Load Lines Conventions) Act, 1933 (No. 42 of 1933), to prescribe what signals shall be signals, of distress and urgency shall include power to prescribe what signals shall be signals of distress and urgency in the case of seaplanes on the surface of the water; and accordingly the said section 25 shall apply in relation to seaplanes on the surface of the water as it applies in relation to ships or vessels, subject however to the modification that the reference in sub-section (3) of the said section 25 to the master shall be construed as a reference to the pilot or other person on duty in charge of the seaplane.

(3) In this section the word “vessels” has the same meaning as in the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894.

(4) For the purposes of this and the next following section seaplanes taking off from, or alighting on, the water shall be deemed to be on the surface of the water while in contact therewith.

Power of conservancy and harbour authorities to make bye-laws for regulation of seaplanes when on the surface of the water.

59. —(1) Any enactment which confers or imposes on a conservancy authority or a harbour authority any power or duty to make bye-laws for the regulation of ships or vessels shall be construed and have effect as if the power or duty so conferred or imposed included a power or duty to make bye-laws for the regulation of seaplanes when on the surface of the water, and also a power to include in the bye-laws provisions authorising the harbour master or other officer of the authority to exercise, as respects seaplanes on the surface of the water, all or any of the functions which he is authorised by such enactment to exercise as respects ships or vessels, subject however to this restriction, namely, that such bye-laws shall not in any circumstances require, or authorise a harbour master or other officer to require, the dismantling of a seaplane or any part thereof or the making of any alteration whatever of the structure or equipment of a seaplane.

(2) Where any enactment, whether by virtue of the immediately preceding sub-section or otherwise, confers or imposes on a conservancy authority or a harbour authority a power or duty to make bye-laws for the regulation of seaplanes when on the surface of the water, or to include in the bye-laws any such provisions as are mentioned in the said sub-section, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) in case such enactment does not provide that the bye-laws shall not come into force unless they have been confirmed or approved by some Minister and does not provide that the bye-laws shall be allowed or approved by a court or judge, any such bye-laws made after the date of the passing of this Act in relation to seaplanes shall not come into force unless and until they have been confirmed by the Minister;

(b) in case such enactment provides that the bye-laws shall not come into force unless they have been allowed or approved by a court or judge, the conservancy authority or harbour authority shall, before making application to that court or judge for the allowance of the bye-laws, forward a copy thereof to the Minister, and the court or judge shall, before allowing or approving the bye-laws, take into consideration any representations made with respect thereto by or on behalf of the Minister;

(3) In this section—

the expression “enactment” includes any provisional order for the time being in force (whether or not it has been confirmed by an Act);

the word “bye-laws” includes rules and regulations.

Investigation of accidents.

60. —(1) The Minister may by order make regulations providing for the investigation of any accident arising out of or in the course of air navigation and occurring in or over Saorstát Eireann or to Saorstát Eireann aircraft elsewhere.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions of the immediately preceding sub-section, regulations under this section may contain provisions—

(a) requiring notice to be given of any such accident as aforesaid in such manner and by such persons as may be specified in the regulations;

(b) applying, with or without modification, for the purpose of investigations held with respect to any such accidents any of the provisions of section 3 of the Notice of Accidents Act, 1894;

(c) prohibiting, pending investigation, access to or interference with aircraft to which an accident has occurred, and authorising any person, so far as may be necessary for the purposes of an investigation, to have access to, examine, remove, take measures for the preservation of, or otherwise deal with any such aircraft;

(d) authorising or requiring the cancellation, suspension, endorsement, or surrender of any licence or certificate granted under this Act or any order made thereunder, where it appears on an investigation that the licence ought to be cancelled, suspended, endorsed, or surrendered, and for the production of any such licence for the purpose of being so dealt with.

(3) Nothing in this section shall limit the powers of any authority under sections 530 to 537, inclusive, of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, or any enactment (including this Act) amending those sections.

(4) If any person acts in contravention (whether by omission or commission) of any regulations under this section, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds or, at the discretion of the court, imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months.

(5) Any regulations made by the Minister under section 12 of the Air Navigation Act, 1920, and in force immediately before the date of the passing of this Act, shall be deemed to be made under this section and may be amended or revoked by regulations made under this section, and until so revoked and subject to any such amendment shall continue in force.

Infringement of patents.

61. —(1) Where it is alleged by any person interested that a foreign aircraft making a passage through or over Saorstát Eireann infringes in itself or in any part of it any invention, design or model which is entitled to protection in Saorstát Eireann, it shall be lawful, subject to and in accordance with Rules of Court, to detain such aircraft until the owner thereof deposits or secures in respect of the alleged infringement a sum (in this section called the deposited sum), and thereupon the aircraft shall not, during the continuance or in the course of the passage, be subject to any lien, arrest, detention or prohibition, whether by order of a court or otherwise, in respect or on account of the alleged infringement.

(2) The deposited sum shall be such a sum as may be agreed between the parties interested, or in default of agreement shall be fixed by the Minister or some person duly authorised on his behalf, and payment thereof shall be made or secured to him in such manner as he shall approve, and the deposited sum shall be dealt with by such tribunal and in accordance with such procedure as may be appointed by Rules of Court, and such rules may provide generally for carrying this section into effect.

(3) In this section—

the word “owner” shall include the actual owner of an aircraft, and any person claiming through or under him;

the word “passage” shall include all reasonable landings and stoppages in the course of a passage.

Jurisdiction.

62. —(1) Any offence under this Act or under an order or regulations made thereunder, and any offence whatever committed on a Saorstát Eireann aircraft, shall, for the purpose of conferring jurisdiction, be deemed to have been committed in any place where the offender may for the time being be.

(2) The Minister for Justice may by order make provision as to the courts in which proceedings may be taken for enforcing any claim under this Act, or any other claim in respect of aircraft, and in particular may provide for conferring jurisdiction in any such proceedings on any court exercising Admiralty jurisdiction and applying to such proceedings any rules of practice or procedure applicable to proceedings in Admiralty.

(3) The Minister for Justice may by order under this sub-section revoke or amend any order made by him under this section including an order under this sub-section.

(4) The Minister for Justice shall before making any order under this section consult with the Chief Justice in regard thereto.

(5) Any order made under sub-section (2) of section 14 of the Air Navigation Act, 1920, and in force in Saorstát Eireann immediately before the date of the passing of this Act shall be deemed to be made under this section and may accordingly be revoked or amended by an order under this section, and until so revoked and subject to any such amendment shall continue in force.

Detention of aircraft.

63. —The Executive Council may by order provide for the detention of aircraft to secure compliance with any of the provisions of this Act or any order or regulation made under or by virtue of this Act, or to prevent aircraft from flying when unfit to fly and every such order shall have the force of law in Saorstát Eireann.

Enforcing detention of aircraft.

64. —(1) Where under this Act an aircraft is to be or may be detained, any authorised person may detain such aircraft.

(2) If an aircraft, after detention or after service on the pilot of any notice or order for detention, takes off or attempts to take off before it is released by competent authority, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the pilot and also the owner and any person who causes the aircraft to take off, or to attempt to take off shall each severally be guilty of an offence under this section;

(b) if such aircraft when so taking off has on board in the execution of his duty an authorised officer, the owner and pilot of such aircraft shall each severally be guilty of an offence under this section, and shall, if guilty of such offence, also be liable to pay to the Minister all expenses of and incidental to such officer being so taken on such aircraft.

(3) Where a person charged with an offence under this section is not the pilot of the aircraft in respect of which such offence is alleged to have been committed, it shall be a good defence for such person to prove that on the occasion on which such offence is alleged to have been committed he was not a party nor privy to the taking off or attempted taking off of such aircraft.

(4) Any expenses payable to the Minister under sub-section (2) may be recovered by the Minister as a simple contract debt in a court of competent jurisdiction.

(5) Every person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable on summary (conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.

(6) Each of the following shall be an authorised officer for the purposes of this section, that is to say:—

(a) a commissioned officer of the Defence Forces of Saorstát Eireann;

(b) an officer of the Minister;

(c) an officer of customs and excise;

(d) any person authorised by the Minister in that behalf.

Other provisions in relation to detained aircraft.

65. —(1) Where under this Act or any order or regulation made thereunder an aircraft is to be detained, an officer of customs and excise shall, and where under this Act an aircraft may be detained, an officer of customs and excise may refuse to clear that aircraft outwards or to grant a transire to such aircraft.

(2) Where any provision of this Act or any order or regulation made thereunder provides that an aircraft may be detained until any document is produced to the proper officer of customs and excise, the proper officer shall mean, unless the context otherwise requires, the officer able to grant a clearance or transire to such aircraft.

Information as to air transport undertakings and use of customs aerodromes.

66. —(1) The Minister may by order make regulations in relation to all or any of the following matters, that is to say:—

(a) subject to the provisions of sub-section (1) of this section, for requiring any person—

(i) who carries on the business of carrying passengers or goods in aircraft for hire or reward on such journeys or classes of journeys (whether beginning and ending at the same point or at different points) as may be specified in such regulations, or

(ii) who is the holder of a licence in respect of a customs aerodrome,

to furnish to such authorities as may be specified in such regulations such information relating to the use of aircraft for the purposes of his said business and to the persons employed in connection with that use or, as the case may be, relating to the use of the aerodrome and to the persons employed in aircraft arriving thereat or departing therefrom as may be prescribed by such regulations;

(b) for requiring the owner, or the pilot or other person in charge, of any aircraft arriving at, or departing from, any customs aerodrome to furnish to the holder of the licence in respect of that aerodrome such information as may be necessary to enable the holder of the said licence to comply with such provisions of such regulations as relate to him;

(c) for prescribing the times at which, and the form and manner in which any information required under such regulations is to be furnished.

(2) A person carrying on any such business as is mentioned in clause (i) of paragraph (a) of the immediately preceding sub-section shall not be required by regulations made under this section to furnish information relating to the use of aircraft on journeys wholly outside Saorstát Eireann or relating to persons exclusively employed outside Saorstát Eireann unless the person carrying on the business is—

(i) a citizen of Saorstát Eireann resident in Saorstát Eireann, or

(ii) a person who is exempted from the application of the Aliens Act, 1935 (No. 14 of 1935), by virtue of an order made under section 10 of the said Act, and is resident in Saorstát Eireann, or

(iii) a body corporate incorporated under the law of Saorstát Eireann.

(3) If any person contravenes (whether by omission or commission) any regulation made under this section, such person shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds and in the case of a continuing offence a further fine not exceeding five pounds for each day during which the offence is continued.

(4) In this section the expression “customs aerodrome” means an aerodrome for the time being approved, in pursuance of an order made under Part II of this Act and for the time being in force, as a place of landing and departure of aircraft for the purposes of the enactments relating to customs.

Conveyance of mails.

67. —Section 2 of the Conveyance of Mails Act, 1893, shall apply to every service by air for the public carriage of passengers and goods carried on by any person, subject to the following modifications, that is to say:—

(a) references to a tramway company shall be construed as references to any such person,

(b) references to a tramway shall be construed as references to any such service,

(c) references to carriage shall be construed as references to aircraft,

(d) the references in the said section 2 to the Railway and Canal Commission shall be construed as references to the Railway Tribunal.