Also known as aviation law or aeronautics law.
The law as it relates to the carriage of individuals or goods by aircraft.
The starting point for air law, or carriage by aircraft, is the general law of carriage, subject to statutes and international treaties. As stated in the Canadian Encyclopedic Digest, Title 23, "Carriers":
"Carriage by air is merely the newest form of carriage, and no new principles have been developed respecting the liability of a carrier by air in respect of passengers who are injured.
"Subject to the rules relating to international carriage by air, the law which governs carriers by air in respect of their liability for the loss of or damage to goods, and injuries to passengers, is the same as that which governs carriers by land or sea."
REFERENCES:
- Aeronautics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada 1985, Chapter A-2
- Duhaime, Lloyd, Legal Definition of Aircraft
- Duhaime, Lloyd, Legal Definition of Carriage
- Jones, M., editor, Canadian Encyclopedic Digest, online edition (2009), Title 23, "Carriers"