Shawcross & Beaumont: Air Law

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Commentary

Source Currency: Issue 194, September 2025. This issue updates the commentary to 31 July 2025. During a busy judicial and regulatory period, we highlight a compelling set of decisions under the Montreal Convention 1999, including the Canadian Federal Court of Appeal clarifying the 21-day baggage provision as a rebuttable presumption of loss, the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirming federal preemption of state-specific standards of care in negligence claims, and the English High Court confirming that the Convention's exclusive regime does not extend to claims for total non-performance. We also report on the Ontario Federal Court's key ruling regarding the distinction between a declared customs value and a special declaration of interest for carriage, as well as the court's decision on the ‘all reasonable measures’ defence in a delay claim, noting with satisfaction that S and B was cited with approval in several cases. Additionally, we cover several U.S. District Court cases related to the Montreal Convention of 1999. We also discuss recent case law from the CJEU clarifying the meaning of ‘free of charge’ travel and the absence of a temporal link for re-routing under Regulation 261/2004. This Issue also features significant pronouncements on aircraft finance and the Cape Town Convention, including the enforceability of acceleration clauses and the importance of the Convention's declaration system. The Commentary has been updated to include the European Council's agreement on a comprehensive revision of Regulation 261/2004. On the domestic side, this issue discusses, among other topics, the introduction of new UK regulations on a UK Airspace Design Service and UK SORA methodology for UAS operations, along with the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, the CAA's guidance on AI-enabled aviation, and numerous statutory instruments, consultations, and CAA CAPs. The next issue, updating the legislative and other material in the Appendices (volumes 2 to 4 of the printed edition), will appear in December 2025.

Contributors

Professor David McClean  Editor
George Leloudas  General editor
Daniel Wand  Editor
Augustus Hocking  Editor
 Andreas Ruehmkorf Editor
 Ingrid Koning Editor
 Michael Gill Editor
 Philip Chrystal Editor