An air operator's certificate (AOC) is the approval granted by a civil aviation authority (CAA) to an

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial air transport purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets and systems in place to ensure the safety of its employees and of the flying public. The certificate lists the approved aircraft types, each registration number approved to fly, the approved flying purpose, and in what area the holder may operate (such as specific airports or geographic region).

Requirements

The requirements for obtaining an AOC vary from country to country, but are generally defined as: * Sufficient personnel with the required experience for the type of operations requested. * Airworthy aircraft, suitable for the type of operations requested. * Acceptable systems for the training of crew and the operation of the aircraft (Operations Manual). * A quality system to ensure that all applicable regulations are followed. * The appointment of key accountable staff, who are responsible for specific safety critical functions such as training, maintenance and operations. * Carriers Liability Insurance (for Airlines) – Operators are to have sufficient insurance to cover the injury or death of any passenger carried. * Proof that the operator has sufficient finances to fund the operation. * The operator has sufficient ground infrastructure, or arrangements for the supply of sufficient infrastructure, to support its operations into the ports requested. * The certificate is held by a

legal person In law, a legal person is any person or legal entity that can do the things a human person is usually able to do in law – such as enter into contracts, lawsuit, sue and be sued, ownership, own property, and so on. The reason for the term "''le ...

who resides in the country or region of application (for

EASA The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is an agency of the European Commission with responsibility for civil aviation safety in the European Union. It carries out certification, regulation and standardisation and also performs inve ...

International variations

An AOC is referred to as an Air Carrier Operating Certificate in the United States and as an Air Operator Certification in New Zealand.

New Zealand

The

Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand The Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand (CAA) ( Māori: ''Te Mana Rererangi Tūmatanui o Aotearoa'') is the government agency tasked with establishing civil aviation safety and security standards in New Zealand. The CAA also monitors adhere ...

's Part 119 establishes ''Air Operator Certification rules for Air Transport Operations (ATO) and Commercial Transport Operations (CTO)''. They provide two levels of certification: (a) AOC for air operations in all sizes of aircraft; (b) general aviation AOC for air operations in helicopters and aircraft with nine or less passenger seats.

United States

In the United States, two certifications are required to operate an airline. Economic certification is obtained from the Department of Transportation, whereas operational/safety certification is obtained from the FAA. Both are required to operate an airline. According to the

United States Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the president of the United States a ...

, the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

(FAA) is to maintain an airline air carrier's operating certificate in the category of fitness. An air carrier must maintain the following three standards: adequate financing, competent management, a willingness to comply with applicable laws and regulations. At least 75 percent of airlines controlling voting equity must be held by US citizens.

Transfer

An AOC is valuable. It shows the relevant CAA's acceptance of the operator's personnel, infrastructure and procedures. In most jurisdictions an AOC may be sold or acquired to avoid the arduous process of gaining regulator acceptance for a new AOC. To this end, a failed airline can be sold as a

going concern A going concern is an accounting term for a business that is assumed will meet its financial obligations when they become due. It functions without the threat of liquidation for the foreseeable future, which is usually regarded as at least the n ...

and then changed into another business. For example,

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines (often abbreviated as NWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 until it Delta Air Lines–Northwest Airlines merger, merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010. The merger made Delta the largest airline ...

bought FLYi airline's AOC to start Compass Airlines, now a feeder airline for

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...

marketed as

Delta Connection Delta Connection is a brand name under which Delta Air Lines has air service agreements with domestic regional air carriers that feed traffic to their network by serving passengers primarily in small and medium-sized cities in the domestic mark ...

. Likewise

Strategic Airlines Strategy (from Greek στρατηγία ''stratēgia'', "troop leadership; office of general, command, generalship") is a general plan to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty. In the sense of the "art o ...

purchased the AOC, staff and routes of the failed OzJet airlines.

References

External links

CAA UK – List of UK AOC HoldersFAA USE – Searchable Database of Certificate Holders
{{DEFAULTSORT:Air Operators Certificate Aviation licenses and certifications Aviation safety Civil aviation