Flights to and from the UK if there’s no Brexit deal

1. NO BREXIT DEAL
SCENARIO
Impact on Flights To/From UK
Summary of official notice by the UK government
© Naveed Kapadia

2. PURPOSE • to inform air passengers, the aviation industry and the public of
the UK government actions.
• To suggest actions that the industry and its customers should
consider.
© Naveed Kapadia
Source: GOV.UK. (2018). Flights to and from the UK if there’s no Brexit deal. [online] Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/flights-to-and-from-the-uk-if-theres-no-brexit-deal/flights-
to-and-from-the-uk-if-theres-no-brexit-deal [Accessed 24 Sep. 2018].

3. BEFORE MARCH 29TH
Flights to and from within the
EU
• UK is part of the internal market for air services.
• EU approved airlines can operate within Europe without prior
permission of local national authorities.
• The International Air Services Transit Agreement (ASA)
establishes the rights for airlines to operate air services over
EU or UK territory.
Flights to and from Rest of the
World
• The UK has independently negotiated 111 bilateral ASAs with
countries all over the world.
• There are a further 17 non-EU countries with which air services to
the UK are provided for by our EU membership, for example, USA
and Canada
© Naveed Kapadia

4. AFTER MARCH 29TH
EU Airlines
• Airlines will have to seek individual permissions to operate
from the respective states.
• EU-licensed airlines will need two associated permissions
in order to operate to the UK:
1. A foreign carrier permit
2. A UK safety authorisation from the UK Civil Aviation
Authority, a “UK Part-TCO (Third Country Operator)”
• The CAA will consider each application for UK Part-TCO
on a case by case basis, but in principle, an airline that
holds a valid EASA Air Operator Certificate (AOC)will be
accepted.
UK Airlines
• Airlines will have to seek individual permissions to operate
from the respective states.
• EU-licensed airlines would need two associated
permissions in order to operate to the UK:
1. A foreign carrier permit
2. A safety authorisation from EASA TCO
• EASA is yet to provide details on the process to obtain the
TCO for the UK airlines.
© Naveed Kapadia

5. AFTER MARCH 29TH
Rest of the World Airlines
• Eligibility dependent on the ASA between the respective countries.
• Countries with bilateral agreements, no change.
• UK will aim to have an agreement in place with countries among the 17 non-EU countries with whom EU has an understanding.
• Foreign airlines will still need to apply to the UK CAA for a Foreign Carrier Permit in the usual way.
• Existing Part-TCO safety authorisations from EASA would be accepted by the UK CAA.
© Naveed Kapadia

6. OPERATING
AND ROUTE LICENCES
• All UK airlines would be required to hold a route licence from the CAA.
• Route licences already issued to UK airlines will remain after the UK has left the EU.
• EU airlines must be majority owned and effectively controlled by EU nationals.
• The UK would not impose nationality restrictions on the conditions for an operating licence.
• EU-licensed airlines would need to review if they had significant investment / ownership by UK nationals.
• UK operating licences issued before exit would remain in place by virtue of the EU Withdrawal Act.
© Naveed Kapadia

7. SLOT ALLOCATION
No Change:
• Rules for the allocation of slots at UK airports would remain unchanged.
• The EU regulation for slot allocation would be retained by the EU Withdrawal Act.
• The process for allocation of slots at EU airports will remain the same.
© Naveed Kapadia

8. AIR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT
• There would be no disruption to the UK’s provision of air navigation services.
• Recommended practices set by ICAO under the Chicago Convention will still apply.
• The rights for airlines to operate air services over EU or UK territory are established by the International Air Services Transit
Agreement.
• The UK would remain a full member of EUROCONTROL, which is independent of our EU membership.
• The UK’s air navigation service provider (NATS) will continue to provide services principally through the UK’s EUROCONTROL
membership.
• The UK would no longer be able to directly participate in the EU’s Single European Sky (SES) initiative.
• The Withdrawal Act would preserve existing EU safety, airspace, and interoperability regulations in domestic law.
© Naveed Kapadia

9. PASSENGER RIGHTS
No Change
• For air passengers on a flight departing the UK, no change.
• EU passenger rights legislation will be retained in domestic law by the Withdrawal Act.
• Passengers subject to denied boarding, delay or cancellation, would be entitled to assistance and compensation, no change.
• Passengers with reduced mobility would still be entitled to the same assistance from airports and airlines
• UK consumer protection in the event of an insolvency of a travel provider would continue to apply
NB: Passengers should examine and ensure that they understand the terms and conditions of their booking. Passengers are responsible for
ensuring that their insurance and ticket terms and conditions are sufficient to cover possible disruption, and should not expect government
assistance in this situation.
© Naveed Kapadia

10. REFERENCES
© Naveed Kapadia
GOV.UK. (2018). Flights to and from the UK if there’s no Brexit
deal. [online] Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/flights-to-and-
from-the-uk-if-theres-no-brexit-deal/flights-to-and-from-
the-uk-if-theres-no-brexit-deal [Accessed 24 Sep. 2018].
Caa.co.uk. (2018). EU exit | UK Civil Aviation Authority. [online]
Available at: https://www.caa.co.uk/our-work/about-us/eu-
exit/ [Accessed 25 Sep. 2018].