ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses safety oversight of civil aviation in the field of air navigation, explains legal issues relating to the other areas which affect the safety of international civil aviation. At the time of writing the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) had decided to convene an international conference for Directors General of Civil Aviation to review the ICAO Safety Oversight Programme and to consider its expansion in Montreal, from 10 to 12 November 1999. The compelling need for higher standards in aviation safety was formally recognized when the ICAO Council adopted ICAO’s Strategic Action Plan on 7 February 1997. The basic strategic objective of the plan is to further the safety, security and efficiency of international civil aviation. One of the core elements of ICAO activity on safety, according to its Strategic Action Plan, is assessment by teams of experts of the capacity of participating States to control the level of safety for which they have responsibility.
