- Latest available (Revised)
- Point in Time (01/02/1991)
- Original (As enacted)
Version Superseded: 31/01/1997
Point in time view as at 01/02/1991. This version of this Act contains provisions that are not valid for this point in time.
Carriage by Air Act 1961 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 30 August 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Changes and effects yet to be applied by the editorial team are only applicable when viewing the latest version or prospective version of legislation. They are therefore not accessible when viewing legislation as at a specific point in time. To view the ‘Changes to Legislation’ information for this provision return to the latest version view using the options provided in the ‘What Version’ box above.
(1)Subject to this section, the provisions of the Convention known as “the Warsaw Convention as amended at The Hague, 1955” as [F1further amended by provisions of protocols No. 3 and No. 4 signed at Montreal on 25th September 1975 and] set out in the First Schedule to this Act shall, so far as they relate to the rights and liabilities of carriers, carriers’ servants and agents, passengers, consignors, consignees and other persons, and subject to the provisions of this Act, have the force of law in the United Kingdom in relation to any carriage by air to which the Convention applies, irrespective of the nationality of the aircraft performing that carriage; and the M1Carriage by Air Act, 1932 (which gives effect to the Warsaw Convention in its original form), shall cease to have effect.
(2)If there is any inconsistency between the text in English in Part I of the First Schedule to this Act and the text in French in Part II of that Schedule, the text in French shall prevail.
(3)This section shall come into force on such day as Her Majesty may by Order in Council certify to be the day on which the Convention comes into force as regards the United Kingdom.
(4)This section shall not apply so as to affect rights or liabilities arising out of an occurrence before the coming into force of this section.
Textual Amendments
F1Words inserted (prosp. ) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 1
Marginal Citations
(1)Her Majesty may by Order in Council from time to time certify who are [F2, either generally or in respect of specified matters,]the High Contracting Parties to the Convention, in respect of what territories they are respectively parties and to what extent they have availed themselves of the provisions of the Additional Protocol at the end of the Convention as set out in the First Schedule to this Act.
(2)Paragraph (2) of Article 40A in the First Schedule to this Act shall not be read as extending references in that Schedule to the territory of a High Contracting Party (except such as are references to the territory of any State, whether a High Contracting Party or not) to include any territory in respect of which that High Contracting Party is not a party.
(3)An Order in Council under this section shall, except so far as it has been superseded by a subsequent Order, be conclusive evidence of the matters so certified.
(4)An Order in Council under this section may contain such transitional and other consequential provisions as appear to Her Majesty to be expedient.
Textual Amendments
F2Words inserted (prosp. ) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 2
References in section one of the M2Fatal Accidents Act, 1846, as it applies in England and Wales, and [F3in Article 3(1) of the Fatal Accidents (Northern Ireland) Order 1977] to a wrongful act, neglect or default shall include references to any occurrence which gives rise to a liability under [F4Article 17][F4Article 17(1)]in the First Schedule to this Act.
Textual Amendments
F3Words substituted by S.I. 1977/1251, Sch. 1.
F4Words “Article 17(1)”substituted (prosp. ) with saving for “Article 17”by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 3
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 3 amended with saving by Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (c. 30), s. 7(2), Sch. 1 para. 2(2)
Marginal Citations
(1)It is hereby declared that the limitations on liability in Article 22 [F5and Article 22A] in the First Schedule to this Act apply whatever the nature of the proceedings by which liability may be enforced and that, in particular—
[F6(a)those limitations apply where proceedings are brought by a tortfeasor to obtain a contribution from another tortfeasor, and]
(b)the limitation for each passenger in [F7paragraph (1)][F7paragraph (1)(a)] of the said Article 22 applies to the aggregate liability of the carrier in all proceedings which may be brought against him under the law of any part of the United Kingdom, together with any proceedings brought against him outside the United Kingdom.
(2)A court before which proceedings are brought to enforce a liability which is limited by the said Article 22 [F8or Article 22A] may at any stage of the proceedings make any such order as appears to the court to be just and equitable in view of the provisions of the said Article 22, and of any other proceedings which have been, or are likely to be, commenced in the United Kingdom or elsewhere to enforce the liability in whole or in part.
(3)Without prejudice to the last foregoing subsection, a court before which proceedings are brought to enforce a liability which is limited by the said Article 22 [F8or Article 22A]shall, where the liability is, or may be, partly enforceable in other proceedings in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, have jurisdiction to award an amount less than the court would have awarded if the limitation applied solely to the proceedings before the court, or to make any part of its award conditional on the result of any other proceedings.
[F9(4)The Minister of Aviation may from time to time by order made by statutory instrument specify the respective amounts which for the purposes of the said Article 22, and in particular of paragraph (5) of that Article, are to be taken as equivalent to the sums expressed in francs which are mentioned in that Article.]
(5)References in this section to the said Article 22 [F10and Article 22A]include, subject to any necessary modifications, references to that Article as applied by Article 25A.
Textual Amendments
F5Words inserted (prosp.) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 4(a)
F6S. 4(1)(a) repealed (E. W. N. I. ) by Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978 (c. 47, SIF 122:3), s. 9, Sch. 1 para. 5(1), Sch. 2 (subject to savings in s. 5 in relation to Her Majesty and the Duchy of Cornwall and in s. 7 in relation to debts due or damage occurring before the commencement of the Act)
F7Words “paragraph 1(a)"substituted (prosp.) with saving for “paragraph 1" by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 4(b)
F8Words inserted (prosp.) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c.28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 4(a)
F9S. 4(4) repealed (prosp.) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 6(4)(a), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 4(c)
F10Words inserted (prosp.) with saving by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 4(a)
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C2S. 4(2)(3) amended by Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 (c. 43), s. 3(1)
C3Functions of Minister of Aviation under this Act now exercisable by Secretary of State concurrently with Board of Trade: S.I. 1966/741 and 1970/1537
(1)In Article 26(2) the references to damage shall be construed as including loss of part of the baggage or cargo in question and the reference to the receipt of baggage or cargo shall, in relation to loss of part of it, be construed as receipt of the remainder of it.
(2)It is hereby declared, without prejudice to the operation of any other section of this Act, that the reference to Article 26(2) in the preceding subsection is to Article 26(2) as set out in Part I and Part II of the First Schedule to this Act.]
Textual Amendments
F11S. 4A inserted (with saving) by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), s. 2(1)(2)
(1)No action against a carrier’s servant or agent which arises out of damage to which the Convention relates shall, if he was acting within the scope of his employment, be brought after more than two years, reckoned from the date of arrival at the destination or from the date on which the aircraft ought to have arrived, or from the date on which the carriage stopped.
(2)Article 29 in the First Schedule of this Act shall not be read as applying to any proceedings for contribution between [F12tortfeasors], [F12persons liable for any damage to which the Convention relates][F13but no action shall be brought by a tortfeasor to obtain a contribution from a carrier in respect of a tort to which the said Article 29 applies after the expiration of two years from the time when judgment is obtained against the person seeking to obtain the contribution.]
(3)The foregoing provisions of this section and the provisions of the said Article 29 shall have effect as if references in those provisions to an action included references to an arbitration; and subsections (3) and (4) of [F14section thirty-four of the Limitation Act 1980], or, in Northern Ireland, [F15paragraphs (3) and (4) of Article 72 of the Limitation (Northern Ireland) Order 1989](which determine the time at which an arbitration is deemed to be commenced), shall apply for the purposes of this subsection.
Textual Amendments
F12Words substituted (E. W. N. I. ) by Civil Liability (Contribution) Act 1978 (c. 47, SIF 122:3), s. 9, Sch. 1 para. 5(2) (subject to savings in s. 5 in relation to Her Majesty and the Duchy of Cornwall and in s. 7 in relation to debts due or damage occurring before the commencement of the Act)
F13Words repealed (E.W.)(S.) with saving by Limitation Act 1963 (c. 47), ss. 4(4)(5), 10(5) and repealed and superseded (N.I.) by Limitation Act (Northern Ireland) 1946 (c. 1), s. 4(4)(b)
F14Words substituted by Limitation Act 1980 (c. 58, SIF 79), s. 40(2), Sch. 3 para. 5
F15Words substituted by the Limitation (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 S. I. 1989/1339 (N. I. 11), art. 76, Sch. 2 paras. 1, 6, 7, Sch. 3 para. 1
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C4S. 5 amended by Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 (c. 43, SIF 9), s. 3(2)
It is hereby declared that for the purposes of Article 21 in the First Schedule to this Act the M3Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945 (including that Act as applied to Scotland), and section two of the M4Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act (Northern Ireland) 1948, are provisions of the law of the United Kingdom under which a court may exonerate the carrier wholly or partly from his liability.
(1)Her Majesty may from time to time by Order in Council direct that this section shall apply, or shall cease to apply, to the United Kingdom or any other State specified in the Order.
(2)The Convention as set out in the First Schedule to this Act shall not apply to the carriage of persons, cargo and baggage for the military authorities of a State to which this section applies in aircraft registered in that State if the whole capacity of the aircraft has been reserved by or on behalf of those authorities.
Every High Contracting Party to the Convention who has not availed himself of the provisions of the Additional Protocol at the end of the Convention as set out in the First Schedule to this Act shall, for the purposes of any action brought in a court in the United Kingdom in accordance with the provisions of Article 28 in the said Schedule to enforce a claim in respect of carriage undertaken by him, be deemed to have submitted to the jurisdiction of that court, and accordingly [F16rules of court may provide][F16rules may be made under section seven of the M5Northern Ireland Act 1962, providing] for the manner in which any such action is to be commenced and carried on; but nothing in this section shall authorise the issue of execution against the property of any High Contracting Party.
Textual Amendments
F16Words “rules may" to “providing" substituted for words “rules of" to “provide" (N.I.) by Northern Ireland Act 1962 (c. 30), s. 7, Sch. 1 Pt. I
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C5S. 8 amended by Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 (c. 43), s. 3(3)
Marginal Citations
Valid from 22/10/1998
(1)If at any time it appears to Her Majesty in Council that Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom have agreed to a revision of the Convention, Her Majesty may by Order in Council [F18make such amendments of this Act, the Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 and section 5(1) of the Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979] as Her Majesty considers appropriate in consequence of the revision.
(2)In the preceding subsection “revision” means an omission from, addition to or alteration of the Convention and includes replacement of the Convention or part of it by another convention.
(3)An Order in Council under this section shall not be made unless a draft of the Order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.]
Textual Amendments
F17S. 8A inserted (22.10.1998) by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), s. 3(1); S.I. 1998/2562, art. 2
F18Words substituted by International Transport Conventions Act 1983 (c. 14, SIF 102), s. 9, Sch. 2 para. 1
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C6S. 8A amended (12.10.2000) by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), s. 6(1)(a); S.I. 2000/2768, art. 2
(1)Her Majesty may by Order in Council direct that this Act shall extend, subject to such exceptions, adaptations and modifications as may be specified in the Order, to—
(a)the Isle of Man;
(b)any of the Channel Islands;
(c)any colony or protectorate, protected state or United Kingdom trust territory.
The references in this subsection to a protectorate, to a protected state and to a United Kingdom trust territory shall be construed as if they were references contained in the M6British Nationality Act 1948.
(2)An Order in Council under this section may contain such transitional and other consequential provisions as appear to Her Majesty to be expedient, and may be varied or revoked by a subsequent Order in Council.
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C7S. 9 extended by Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 (c. 43), s. 5(1)
C8Ss. 9, 10 amended (12.10.2000) by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979(c. 28, SIF 9), s. 6(1)(a); S.I. 2000/2768, art. 2
Marginal Citations
(1)Her Majesty may by Order in Council apply the First Schedule to this Act, together with any other provisions of this Act, to carriage by air, not being carriage by air to which the Convention applies, of such descriptions as may be specified in the Order, subject to such exceptions, adaptations and modifications, if any, as may be so specified.
(2)An Order in Council under this section may be made to apply to any of the countries or places mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subsection (1) of the last foregoing section.
(3)An Order in Council under this section may contain such transitional and other consequential provisions as appear to Her Majesty to be expedient, and may confer any functions under the Order on a Minister of the Crown in the United Kingdom or on any Governor or other authority in any of the countries or places mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subsection (1) of the last foregoing section, including a power to grant exemptions from any requirements imposed by such an Order.
(4)An Order in Council under this section may be varied or revoked by a subsequent Order in Council.
(5)An Order in Council under this section shall not be made unless a draft of the Order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament:
Provided that this subsection shall not apply to an Order which applies only to the Isle of Man or all or any of the Channel Islands.
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C9Ss. 9, 10 amended (12.10.2000) by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979(c. 28, SIF 9), s. 6(1)(a); S.I. 2000/2768, art. 2
C10S. 10 extended by Carriage by Air (Supplementary Provisions) Act 1962 (c. 43), s. 5(2)
In the application of this Act to Scotland—
(a)there shall be substituted—
(i). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F19
(ii)for any reference to a tortfeasor, a reference to a person who has been or might be held liable for loss or damage arising from any such act or omission;
(iii). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(iv)for any reference to the issuing of execution, a reference to the execution of diligence;
(v)for any reference to an arbitrator, a reference to an arbiter; and
(vi)for any reference to a plaintiff, a reference to a pursuer;
(b)for section three there shall be substituted the following section—
The reference in [F20Article 17][F20Article 17(1)] in the First Schedule to this Act to the liability of a carrier for damage sustained in the event of the death of a passenger shall be construed as including liability to such persons as are entitled, apart from this Act, to sue the carrier (whether for patrimonial damage or solatium or both) in respect of the death.”;
(c)in section five, subsection (1) shall have effect notwithstanding anything in [F21section 17 of the M7Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973]; and in subsection (3), for the words from “and subsections (3) and (4)" to the end of the subsection there shall be substituted the words “and for the purpose of this subsection an arbitration shall be deemed to be commenced when one party to the arbitration serves on the other party or parties a notice requiring him or them to appoint an arbiter or to agree to the appointment of an arbiter, or, where the arbitration agreement provides that the reference shall be to a person named or designated in the agreement, requiring him or them to submit the dispute to the person so named or designated."
Textual Amendments
F19s. 11 (a)(i)(iii) repealed by Limitation Act 1963 (c. 47), s. 10(5)
F20Words “Article 17(1)" substituted (prosp. ) with saving for “Article 17" by Carriage by Air and Road Act 1979 (c. 28, SIF 9), ss. 1(2)(3), 7(2), Sch. 2 para. 3
F21Words substituted by Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 52), Sch. 4 Pt. II
Marginal Citations
In the application of this Act to Northern Ireland any reference to an enactment of the Parliament of Northern Ireland, or to an enactment which that Parliament has power to amend, shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended by any Act of that Parliament, whether passed before or after this Act, and to any enactment of that Parliament passed after this Act and re-enacting the said enactment with or without modification.
This Act shall bind the Crown.
(1)This Act may be cited as the Carriage by Air Act 1961.
(2)In this Act the expression “court” includes (in an arbitration allowed by the Convention) and arbitrator.
(3)On the date on which section one of this Act comes into force the Acts specified in the Second Schedule to this Act shall be repealed to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule:
Provided that, without prejudice to section thirty-eight of the M8Interpretation Act 1889 (which relates to the effect of repeals), this subsection shall not affect any rights or liabilities arising out of an occurrence before that date.
Marginal Citations
M81889 63.
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Point in Time: This becomes available after navigating to view revised legislation as it stood at a certain point in time via Advanced Features > Show Timeline of Changes or via a point in time advanced search.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: