General aviation in Europe
In 2003 the
Definitions
General aviation flights range from
The International Civil Aviation Organization defines general aviation as "an aircraft operation other than a commercial air transport operation or an aerial work operation." It defines commercial air transport (CAT) as "an aircraft operation involving the transport of passengers, cargo or mail for remuneration or hire", and aerial work as "an aircraft operation in which an aircraft is used for specialized services such as agriculture, construction, photography, surveying, observation and patrol, search and rescue, aerial advertisement, etc."[2]
Organisations in the United Kingdom (UK) describe GA in less restrictive terms that include elements of commercial aviation. The British Business and General Aviation Association interprets it to be "all aeroplane and helicopter flying except that performed by the major airlines and the Armed Services".[3] The General Aviation Awareness Council applies the description "all Civil Aviation operations other than scheduled air services and non-scheduled air transport operations for remuneration or hire".[4] For the purposes of a strategic review of GA in the UK, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) defined the scope of GA as "a civil aircraft operation other than a commercial air transport flight operating to a schedule", and considered it necessary to depart from the ICAO definition and include aerial work and minor CAT operations.[5] The major part of the General Aviation is the Sport and Recreational Aviation.
UK
Facts 2005: 26,000 GA aircraft registered. between 1.25 and 1.35 million hours flown. 28,000
There are an estimated 27,000 civil aircraft registered in the UK, 96 per cent of which are engaged in GA activities.
In 2005 the GA fleet comprised 9,000 fixed-wing aircraft, 4,100 microlights, 1,300 helicopters, 1,800 airships/balloons, 2,500 gliders and some 7,000 hang gliders.
Estimates put the number of foreign-registered GA aircraft based in the UK at 900.[6]
Regulation
The objective of regulation is to "promote high standards of safety in all aspects of aviation". Efforts focus on assuring appropriate standards of airworthiness, pilot licensing, the rules for the movement of aircraft and equipment to be carried.
In 2003 the
The EASA launched a working group to update of the regulation. This MDM.032 working group was tasked with developing a concept for better regulation in General Aviation.
European Light Aircraft (ELA).
The main focus is on standards of airworthiness and pilot licensing, and the objective is to promote high standards of safety. At the lighter end of the GA spectrum some regulatory authority is devolved to representative bodies, with gliding currently in transition from a self-regulatory model to more formal governance by EASA.
Airspace regulation necessary to protect an increasing number of commercial air transport (CAT) operations has reduced the area in which GA flights can be freely conducted. The growth in CAT is also making access to larger airports more difficult for the GA sector, and smaller aerodromes are vulnerable to closure and re-development for more profitable uses. The UK planning system has no remit to consider the national significance of GA public transport operations, and generally does not favour the development of smaller aerodromes catering to the GA market.
Evolution of the activity
The single most common class of aircraft is the fixed-wing
GA Safety in Europe
About three accidents per day are reported in Europe. As the reporting of every GA accidents and incidents is not mandatory everywhere, these figures may be higher. However, most major accidents are likely to be reflected due to involvement of outside authorities. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the civil aviation authorities of each country support and encourage the collection of light aircraft accident data in order to provide more in-depth statistics and analysis.
In the UK, there were 27 fatal accidents involving GA aircraft in 2007, resulting in the loss of 48 lives. These compare with 16 accidents claiming a total of 19 lives the previous year, and although the 2007 statistics are higher than average, they are not exceptional.[8]
European General Aviation associations
Flag |
Member States |
National Aero Clubs |
Micro-light associations |
Gliding associations |
Link |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
EU-28 | Europe-airsports.fai.org | EMF | * | .eu | |
Austria | Austrian Aero Club | -- | -- | .at | |
Belgium | Koninklijke Belgische Aëroclub/Aero Club Royal de Belgique | -- | -- | .be | |
Bulgaria | - | Bulgarian Association of Light Aviation | -- | .bg | |
Cyprus | Cyprus Airsports Federation | -- | -- | .cy | |
Czech Republic | Aero Club of the Czech Republic | Light Aircraft Association of the Czech Republic | -- | .cz | |
Denmark | Denmark Royal Danish Aero Club | Danish Ultra Light Union (DULFU) | -- | .dk | |
Estonia | - | -- | -- | .ee | |
Finland | Finnish Aeronautical Association | Experimental ja Ultrakevyt Toimikunta (EUT) Finland | -- | .fi | |
France | Fédération Française Aéronautique | Fédération Française de Planeur Ultra-léger Motorisé | -- | .fr | |
Germany | German Aero Club | Deutscher Ultraleichtflugverband e.V. | -- | .de | |
Greece | Hellenic Aeronautical and Airsports Federation | -- | -- | .gr | |
Hungary | Hungarian Aeronautical Association | -- | -- | .hu | |
Ireland | National Aero Club of Ireland | -- | -- | .ie | |
Italy | Aero Club of Italy | -- | -- | .it | |
Latvia | Latvian Aero Club | -- | -- | .lv | |
Lithuania | Lithuanian Aero Club (LAK) | ULOPF, Ultralengvų orlaivių pilotų federacija | Lithuanian Gliding Sport Federation | .lt | |
Luxembourg | Luxemburg Aeronautic Federation | -- | -- | .lu | |
Malta | - | -- | -- | .mt | |
Netherlands | KNVvL, Royal Netherlands Aeronautical Association | -- | -- | .nl | |
Norway | Norwegian Air sports Association | -- | -- | .no | |
Poland | Aero Club of Poland | -- | -- | .pl | |
Portugal | Aero Club de Portugal (AeCP) | Associação Portuguesa de Aviação Ultraleve (APAU) | -- | .pt | |
Romania | Romanian Aeroclub | - | -- | .ro | |
Serbia | Aeronautical Union of Serbia | -- | -- | .rs | |
Slovakia | Slovak National Aeroclub | -- | -- | .sk | |
Slovenia | -- | -- | .si | ||
Spain | Royal Aero Club of Spain | -- | -- | .es | |
Sweden | Swedish Airsports Association | -- | -- | .se | |
United Kingdom | Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom | British Microlight Aircraft Association | -- | .uk |
See also
- General aviation
- General aviation in the United Kingdom
- European Aviation Safety Agency
References
- CAA. July 2006. pp. 52–53, paras. 5.18–5.24. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
- CAA. 2006-07-06. pp. 3–1 (section 3.1) and p. D-1 (Annex D). Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-03.
- ^ "What is General Aviation?". British Business and General Aviation Association. Archived from the original on 2008-12-18. Retrieved 2008-06-03.
- ^ "What is General Aviation?". General Aviation Awareness Council. 2006-07-06. Retrieved 2008-06-03.
- CAA. July 2006. p. i, paras. 9–10. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-04. This article uses the CAA description to define the scope of general aviation in the UK, on the basis that this organisation is the regulatory body for aviation in the UK and the publisher of a key source.
- CAA. July 2006. pp. iii–iv, paras. 17, 19 & 20. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
- CAA. July 2006. pp. 52–53, paras. 5.18–5.24. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-04.
- CAA. June 2008. p. 49. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2009-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-22.