A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register.
Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles, national aviation authorities typically regulate the following critical aspects of aircraft airworthiness and their operation:
Depending on the legal system of the jurisdiction, a CAA will derive its powers from an act of parliament (such as the Civil or Federal Aviation Act), and is then empowered to make regulations within the bounds of the act. This allows technical aspects of airworthiness to be dealt with by subject matter experts and not politicians.[1] [2]
A CAA may also be involved in the investigation of aircraft accidents, although in many cases this is left to a separate body (such as the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) in Australia or the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the United States), to allow independent review of regulatory oversight.[3]
A CAA will regulate the control of air traffic but a separate agency will generally carry out air traffic control functions.
In some countries a CAA may build and operate airports, including non-airside operations such as passenger terminals; the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines being among such authorities. In other countries, private companies or local government authorities may own and operate individual airports.
Civil aviation authorities do not regulate military aviation. Military aviation will typically have a completely separate personnel licensing system. In the United Kingdom, military aviation is regulated by the Military Aviation Authority.
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) refers to civil aviation authorities as National Airworthiness Authorities (NAA), particularly when referring to an authority in its capacity as an airworthiness authority; or sometimes as National Aviation Authorities (also NAA).[4] [5] [6] EASA refers to them as National Aviation Authorities.[7]
The independent development of CAAs resulted in differing regulations from country to country. This required aircraft manufacturers in the past to develop different models for specific national requirements (such as the BAe Jetstream 31), and impeded airline travel into foreign jurisdictions. The Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention) was signed in 1944 and addressed these issues. This then led to the establishment by the United Nations of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 1947 which now oversees member states, and works to implement regulatory changes to ensure that best practice regulations are adopted.[8]
The Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) was founded in 1970, for cooperation between European CAAs. It published the Joint Aviation Requirements (JAR), to create minimum standards across agencies. It was replaced by the European Aviation Safety Agency and disbanded in 2009.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) was created in 2003 as an agency of the European Union, replacing the Joint Aviation Authorities. It standardises aviation regulations across the European Union and the European Free Trade Association. Member states continue to have their own agencies, which implement EASA rules. EASA has working relationships with non-member states including Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. It was renamed the European Union Aviation Safety Agency in 2018.
This is a list of national and supra-national civil aviation authorities.
| Country | Authority name in English | Authority name in local language(s) (If the local language is not English) | Website | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| International Civil Aviation Organization | www.icao.int | |||
| Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation | د افغانستان اسلامی جمهوریت، د ترانسپورت او ملکي هوايي چلند وزارت | |||
| Albanian Civil Aviation Authority | Albanian: Autoriteti i Aviacionit Civil të Shqipërisë | |||
| Directorate of Civil Aviation and Meteorology | French: Établissement de Gestion de Services Aéroportuaires d'Alger (EGSA), French: Établissement Nationale de la Navigation Aérienne (ENNA) | |||
| National Civil Aviation Authority of Angola | Portuguese: Autoridade Nacional da Aviação Civil (ANAC) | |||
| National Civil Aviation Administration | Spanish; Castilian: Administración Nacional de Aviación Civil | |||
| General Department of Civil Aviation of Armenia | Armenian: Քաղաքացիական Ավիացիայի Գլխավոր Վարչություն | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Aruba | ||||
| Civil Aviation Safety Authority | ||||
| Austro Control | German: Österreichische Gesellschaft für Zivilluftfahrt | www.austrocontrol.at | ||
| State Civil Aviation Agency of Azerbaijan | Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Respublikasının Dövlət Mülki Aviasiya Agentliyi | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Bahamas | www.bahamas.gov.bs | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation Affairs | Arabic: شئون الطيران المدني | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh | Bengali: বেসামরিক বিমান চলাচল কর্তৃপক্ষ | |||
| Civil Aviation Department of Barbados | ||||
| Aviation Department of Belarus | Belarusian: Департамент по авиации | |||
| Federal Public Service Mobility and Transport | French: Service public fédéral Mobilité et Transports Dutch; Flemish: Federale overheidsdienst Mobiliteit en Vervoer | - French - Dutch | ||
| National Civil Aviation Agency | French: Agence Nationale de l'Aviation Civile du Bénin | |||
| Bermuda Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Bhutan Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Directorate General of Civil Aeronautics | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Bosnia and Herzegovina Directorate of Civil Aviation | Bosna i Hercegovina Direkcija za civilno zrakoplovstvo | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana | ||||
| National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil | Portuguese: Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC) | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Brunei | Malay: Jabatan Penerbangan Awam | |||
| Civil Aviation Administration (Bulgaria) | Bulgarian: Главна дирекция "Гражданска въздухоплавателна администрация | |||
| Secretariat of State for Civil Aviation | Central Khmer: រដ្ឋលេខាធិការដ្ឋានអាកាសចរស៊ីវិល | |||
| Cameroon Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Transport Canada Civil Aviation Directorate (Transport Canada Civil Aviation) | French: Transports Canada Direction générale de l'aviation civile | - English - French | ||
| Civil Aviation Authority of the Cayman Islands | ||||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Administration of China | Chinese: 中国民用航空局 | |||
| Clipperton Island | Clipperton Department of Civil Aviation | DCA Clipperton | ||
| Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics | Spanish; Castilian: Unidad Administrativa Especial de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Costa Rica | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aviación Civil de Costa Rica | |||
| Croatian Civil Aviation Agency | Croatian: Hrvatska agencija za civilno zrakoplovstvo | |||
| Institute of Civil Aeronautics of Cuba | Spanish; Castilian: Instituto de Aeronáutica Civil de Cuba | www.cubagob.cu | ||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Cyprus | Spanish; Castilian: Τμήμα Πολιτικής Αεροπορίας | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of the Czech Republic | Czech: Úřad pro civilní letectví Česká republika | |||
| Danish Transport Authority | Danish: Trafikstyrelsen | |||
| Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation | Spanish; Castilian: Instituto Dominicano de Aviación Civil | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Ecuador | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aviación Civil | |||
| Ministry of Civil Aviation of Egypt | Arabic: وزارة الطيران المدني | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of El Salvador | Spanish; Castilian: Autoridad de Aviación Civil | |||
| Estonian Civil Aviation Administration | Estonian: Lennuamet | |||
| Eswatini Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority | Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ሲቪል ኤቪዬሽን ባለሥልጣን | |||
| European Aviation Safety Agency | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Fiji | ||||
| Finnish Transport and Communications Agency | Finnish: Liikenne- ja viestintävirasto Swedish: Transport- och kommunikationsverket | |||
| Directorate General for Civil Aviation | French: Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile | |||
| National Civil Aviation Agency | French: Agence Nationale de l'Aviation Civile (ANAC) | |||
| Gambia Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Georgian Civil Aviation Administration | Georgian: საქართველოს სამოქალაქო ავიაციის სააგენტო | |||
| Federal Aviation Office | German: [[Luftfahrt-Bundesamt]] (LBA) | |||
| Ghana Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority | Greek, Modern (1453-);: Υπηρεσία Πολιτικής Αεροπορίας (ΥΠΑ) | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Guatemala | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| and | Office of the Director of Civil Aviation | |||
| Guyana Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Civil Aviation Department | Chinese: 民航處 | |||
| Ministry of Construction and Transport | Hungarian: Építési és Közlekedési Minisztérium | |||
| Icelandic Transport Authority | Icelandic: Samgöngustofa | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation | ||||
 Indonesia | Directorate General of Civil Aviation | Indonesian: Direktorat Jenderal Perhubungan Udara | ||
| Iran Civil Aviation Organization | ||||
| Iraq Civil Aviation Authority | Arabic: سلطة الطيران المدني العراقي | |||
| Irish Aviation Authority | Irish: Údarás Eitlíochta na hÉireann | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority | Hebrew: רשות התעופה האזרחית | |||
| Isle of Man Aircraft Registry | ||||
| National Agency for Civil Aviation | Italian: Ente nazionale per l'aviazione civile | Italian: https://www.enac.gov.it/Home/ | ||
| Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Japan Civil Aviation Bureau | Japanese: 航空局 | |||
| Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission of Jordan | ||||
| Civil Aviation Committee | Kazakh: Азаматтық авиация комитеті | |||
| Kenya Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Civil Aviation Administration of Korea | Korean: 조선민항 | |||
| Korea Office of Civil Aviation | Korean: 대한민국 국토교통부 항공정책실 | |||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Kosovo | Albanian: Autoriteti i Aviacionit Civil të Kosovës | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation | Arabic: الإدارة العامة للطيران المدني | |||
| Civil Aviation Agency of Kyrgyz Republic | Kirghiz; Kyrgyz: Агентство Гражданской Авиации Кыргызской Республики | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Laos | Lao: ກົມການບິນພົນລະເຮືອນແຫ່ງ ສປປ ລາວ | |||
| Civil Aviation Agency of Latvia | Latvian: Civilās aviācijas aģentūra | |||
 Lebanon | Lebanese Civil Aviation Authority | Arabic: مصلحة الطيران المدني اللبناني | ||
 Lesotho | Department of Civil Aviation of Lesotho | |||
| Libyan Civil Aviation Authority | Arabic: مصلحة الطيران المدني | www.lycaa.org | ||
| Office of Civil Aviation of Liechtenstein | ||||
| Transport Competence Agency | Lithuanian: Transporto Kompetencijų Agentūra | |||
| Directorate of Civil Aviation of Luxembourg | Luxembourgish; Letzeburgesch: Direction de l'Aviation Civile | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority | Chinese: 民航局 Portuguese: Autoridade de Aviação Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia | Malay: Pihak Berkuasa Penerbangan Awam Malaysia | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Malawi | ||||
| Civil Aviation Department of the Maldives | ||||
| Civil Aviation Directorate of Malta | Maltese: Direttorat tal-Avjazzjoni Ċivili | |||
| Directorate of Civil Aviation of the Marshall Islands | ||||
| Department of Civil Aviation of Mauritius | ||||
| Federal Civil Aviation Agency | Spanish; Castilian: Agencia Federal de Aviación Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Administration of Moldova | Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: Autoritatea Aeronautică Civilă a Republicii Moldova | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Mongolia | Mongolian: Иргэний Нисэхийн Ерөнхий Газар | |||
| Monaco Civil Aviation Authority | French: Service de l'Aviation Civile du Principauté de Monaco | |||
| Civil Aviation Agency of Montenegro | Agencija za civilno vazduhoplovstvo | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation | French: Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile | https://www.aviationcivile.gov.ma/ | ||
| Civil Aviation Institute of Mozambique | Portuguese: Instituto de Aviação Civil de Moçambique | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation | Burmese: ေလေၾကာင္းပို႔ေဆာင္ေရးၫႊန္ၾကားမႈဦးစီးဌာန | |||
| Namibia Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal | Nepali: नेपाल नागरिक उड्डयन प्राधिकरण | |||
| Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate | Dutch; Flemish: Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport (ILT) | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand | ||||
| Nicaraguan Institute of Civil Aviation | Spanish; Castilian: Instituto Nicaragüense de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Civil Aviation Agency of North Macedonia | Macedonian: Агенција за цивилно воздухопловство | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Norway | Norwegian: Luftfartstilsynet | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority- Sultanate of Oman | Arabic: هیئه الطیران المدنی-سلطنة عمان | |||
| Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Panama | Spanish; Castilian: Autoridad Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Papua New Guinea Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Directorate National of Civil Aeronautics | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Peru | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines | Filipino; Pilipino: Pangasiwaan sa Abyasyong Sibil ng Pilipinas | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority | Polish: Urząd Lotnictwa Cywilnego | www.ulc.gov.pl | ||
| National Authority of Civil Aviation of Portugal | Portuguese: Autoridade Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC) | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Qatar | Arabic: للهيئة العامة للطيران المدني | |||
| Romanian Civil Aeronautical Authority | Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: Autoritatea Aeronautică Civilă Română | |||
| Federal Air Transport Agency | Russian: Федеральное агентство воздушного транспорта | |||
| Rwanda Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| San Marino Civil Aviation and Maritime Authority | Italian: Autorità per l'Aviazione Civile e la Navigazione Marittima | |||
| General Authority of Civil Aviation | Arabic: للهيئة العامة للطيران المدني | www.gaca.gov.sa | ||
| National Civil Aviation Agency of Senegal | French: Agence Nationale de l'Aviation Civile du Sénégal | |||
| Civil Aviation Directorate | Serbian: Директорат Цивилног Ваздухопловства | |||
| Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore | Malay: Penguasa Penerbangan Awam Singapura | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of the Slovak Republic | Slovak: Letecký úrad Slovenskej republiky | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of the Slovenian Republic | Slovenian: Javna agencija za civilno letalstvo Republike Slovenije | |||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Somali Civil Aviation and Meteorology Authority | Somali: Hay'adda Duulista Rayidka & Saadaasha Hawada Soomaaliyeed | |||
| South African Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Spanish Aviation Safety and Security Agency | Spanish; Castilian: Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea (AESA) | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka | Sinhala; Sinhalese: ශ්‌රී ලංකා සිවිල් ගුවන් සේවා අධිකාරිය | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Sudan | ||||
| Civil Aviation Department of Suriname | ||||
| Swedish Transport Agency | Northern Sami: Transportstyrelsen | |||
| Federal Office for Civil Aviation | ||||
| Syrian Civil Aviation Authority | Arabic: المؤسسة العامة للطيران المدني | |||
| Civil Aeronautics Administration | Chinese: 交通部民用航空局 | |||
| Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority | Swahili: Mamlaka ya Usafiri wa Anga Tanzania | |||
| The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand | Thai: สำนักงานการบินพลเรือนแห่งประเทศไทย | |||
| Civil Aviation Division of Timor-Leste | ||||
| Civil Aviation Agency of Togo | French: Agence Nationale de l'Aviation Civile du Togo (ANAC-TOGO) | www.anac-togo.tg | ||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Office of Civil Aviation and Airports | French: Office de l'aviation civile et des aéroports | |||
| Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Turkey | Turkish: Sivil Havacılık Genel Müdürlüğü | |||
| Turks and Caicos Islands Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Uganda | Swahili: Ekitongole kya Uganda ekikola ku by'ennyonyi | |||
| State Aviation Administration of Ukraine | Ukrainian: Державна авіаційна служба України (Державіаслужба) | |||
| General Civil Aviation Authority | Arabic: هيئة الطيران المدني | |||
| Civil Aviation Authority | ||||
| Federal Aviation Administration | ||||
| National Civil Aviation and Aviation Infrastructure Direction | Spanish; Castilian: Dirección Nacional de Aviación Civil e Infraestructura Aeronáutica | |||
| Pacific Aviation Safety Office | ||||
| National Institute of Civil Aviation | Spanish; Castilian: Instituto Nacional de Aviación Civil | |||
| Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam | Vietnamese: Cục Hàng không Việt Nam | |||
| Civil Aviation and Meteorological Authority of Yemen | Arabic: الهيئة العامة للطيران المدني و الأرصاد | |||
| Department of Civil Aviation | ||||
| Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe |