CASA EX186/15 - Exemption — side-facing seats on aircraft not occupied for take-off or landing

Administered by Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts

Legislation au F2015L01906 Not in force Legislative Instrument

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Explanatory Statement

Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998

Exemption — side-facing seats on aircraft not occupied for take-off or landing

 

Purpose

The purpose of this instrument is to modify the scope of regulation 90.120 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) in relation to safety standards for side‑facing seats on aircraft.

 

Legislation — side-facing seats

Section 98 of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 (the Act) empowers the Governor-General to make regulations for the Act and the safety of air navigation.

 

Under subregulations 90.120 (1) and (3) of CASR 1998, the registered operator of an aircraft to which Subpart 90.B of CASR 1998 applies, commits a strict liability offence if he or she operates the aircraft, or permits it to be operated, in breach of a requirement in subregulation 90.120 (2) dealing with safety standards for side-facing seats.

 

Subpart 90.B of CASR 1998 applies to aircraft other than balloons, airships, sailplanes, powered sailplanes and aircraft with certain special certificates of airworthiness, experimental certificates, special flight permits and provisional certificates of airworthiness.

 

Subregulation 90.120 (2) of CASR 1998 specifically provides that a side-facing seat must be equipped with an approved lap belt and an energy-absorbing rest that would support the occupant’s arms, shoulders, head and spine in an emergency landing or, alternatively, an approved safety harness that would prevent the occupant’s head being injured by striking an object during an emergency landing.

 

Legislation — exemptions

Under subregulation 11.160 (1) of CASR 1998, CASA may, by instrument, grant an exemption from compliance with a provision of CASR 1998. Under subregulation 11.160 (2), CASA may grant an exemption to a person or a class of persons. Under subregulation 11.205 (1), CASA may impose on an exemption any condition necessary in the interests of the safety of air navigation.

 

Background

The safety standards set out in regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998 are designed for seats that are to be occupied during an aircraft’s take-off or landing. However, they are unnecessarily stringent for side-facing seats that would be temporarily occupied only during cruising flight (for example lounge seats, or seats for observers on search and rescue aircraft) and that would be vacated for take-off or landing.

 

Before regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998 took effect on 1 December 2010, registered operators of relevant aircraft were subject to Airworthiness Directive (AD) AD/General/64, Amdt 2 – Side Facing (SF) Seats – Improved Occupant Restraint – 9/201 DM. This required occupant restraint systems of side-facing seats to be modified to schemes approved by CASA. Part 90 of CASR 1998 has now expressly legislated the specific standards consistent with those under the United States of America Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR 25).

 

However, the former AD made it clear that where seats were not to be occupied during take-off or landing, and had a placard with an appropriate prohibition, the modified restraint standards did not apply.

 

In the preparation of regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998, this limitation on the scope of safety standards for side-facing seats was overlooked with the consequence that high standards apply also to side-facing seats that are not intended for occupancy during take‑off or landing.

 

Exemption

It is expected that regulation 90.120 will be amended to exclude from its scope side‑facing seats that are not intended to be occupied during take-off or landing.

 

In the meantime, however, it is necessary for CASA to use its exemption powers to, in effect, exempt such seats from the unintended scope of regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998.

 

The exemption, therefore, applies to the registered operator of an aircraft to which Subpart 90.B of CASR 1998 applies (that is, excluding the types of aircraft mentioned above). The registered operator is exempt from regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998.

 

The exemption is subject to conditions. The exemption applies to a side‑facing seat of an aircraft only if the registered operator requires the seat to be unoccupied during take‑off and landing, and only if the seat has a prominent placard prohibiting occupancy during take-off and landing.

 

Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (the LIA)

For subsection 98 (5A) of the Act, CASA may, by instrument, grant an exemption from compliance with a provision of the Regulations. An instrument issued under paragraph 98 (5A) (a) of the Act is a legislative instrument if the instrument is expressed to apply to a class of persons or aircraft. The exemption applies to a class of persons and a class of aircraft. The exemption is, therefore, a legislative instrument and is subject to tabling and disallowance in the Parliament under sections 38 and 42 of the LIA.

 

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

A Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is at Attachment 1.

 

Consultation

The exemption relieves relevant registered operators of an obligation whose original scope was wider than intended. It renews a previous instrument, CASA EX175/12, which expires at the end of November 2015. In these circumstances, CASA is satisfied that no consultation under section 17 of the LIA is necessary or appropriate in this case.

 

Making and commencement

The exemption has been made by a delegate of CASA, under regulation 11.260 of CASR 1998.

 

The exemption commences on 1 December 2015 and expires at the end of November 2018, as if it had been repealed by another instrument.

 

[Instrument number CASA EX186/15]

 

Attachment 1

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Exemption — side-facing seats on aircraft not occupied for take-off or landing

This legislative instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the legislative instrument

This legislative instrument exempts registered operators of aircraft from the requirement for any side-facing seats on the aircraft to be equipped with an approved lap belt and an energy‑absorbing rest that would support the arms, shoulders, head and spine of the occupant during an emergency landing, or an approved safety harness that would prevent the occupant’s head being injured by striking an object during an emergency landing.

 

The instrument is subject to conditions in the interests of aviation safety, including that the registered operator requires side-facing seats to be unoccupied during take‑off and landing, and seats must have prominent placards prohibiting occupancy during take-off and landing.

Human rights implications

This legislative instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Conclusion

This legislative instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

Civil Aviation Safety Authority

 

 

Overview

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) were modified by the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 Exemption — Side-facing Seats on Aircraft Not Occupied for Take-off or Landing, enacted in 2015. This legislation was introduced to address an oversight in the CASR 1998, which applied stringent safety standards to side-facing seats that were intended only for temporary occupancy during cruising flight, such as lounge seats or observer seats on search and rescue aircraft. These seats, which are vacated before take-off and landing, were subject to unnecessary strict requirements that were originally intended for seats that would be occupied during critical phases of flight. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) was empowered by the Civil Aviation Act 1988 to make regulations for aviation safety, and subsequently used its powers under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 to issue this exemption. The exemption exempts registered operators of relevant aircraft from the stringent safety standards for side-facing seats that are not to be occupied during take-off or landing, provided that the seats are clearly placarded to prohibit occupancy during these phases of flight. The instrument was deemed compatible with human rights under the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011, as it does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Scope and Application

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) contain regulations concerning the safety standards for side-facing seats on aircraft, particularly those that are to be occupied during take-off or landing. Regulation 90.120 of CASR 1998 applies to aircraft registered under Subpart 90.B, which excludes certain types of aircraft such as balloons, airships, sailplanes, and aircraft with special certificates of airworthiness. The regulation requires side-facing seats to be equipped with an approved lap belt and an energy-absorbing rest, or an approved safety harness to protect occupants during emergency landings. However, this regulation unintentionally applies stringent safety standards to side-facing seats that are only intended for use during cruising flight and are vacated during take-off and landing. To address this oversight, an exemption has been granted under subregulation 11.160 of CASR 1998, allowing registered operators of affected aircraft to be exempt from the requirements of regulation 90.120 if the side-facing seats are required to be unoccupied during take-off and landing and are marked with a prominent placard prohibiting such occupancy. This exemption is subject to conditions that ensure aviation safety and is applicable to a class of persons and aircraft, thus falling under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003. The exemption was made by a delegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) under regulation 11.260 of CASR 1998, effective from 1 December 2015 until the end of November 2018. The instrument also includes a Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights, affirming its compatibility with human rights as it does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Key Provisions

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR 1998) (section 90.120) specify safety standards for side-facing seats on aircraft, requiring these seats to be equipped with an approved lap belt and an energy-absorbing rest, or an approved safety harness, to ensure occupant safety during emergency landings. However, this requirement was deemed unnecessarily stringent for side-facing seats that are not occupied during take-off or landing, such as lounge seats or observer seats on search and rescue aircraft. To address this unintended scope, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has issued an exemption under subregulation 11.160(1) of the CASR 1998. This exemption applies to registered operators of aircraft, excluding those with certain types of certificates, and exempts side-facing seats from the safety standards if they are not occupied during take-off and landing and are clearly marked with placards prohibiting such occupancy. The obligations imposed on registered operators by this exemption are twofold. Firstly, they must ensure that any side-facing seats on their aircraft are not occupied during take-off and landing. This involves maintaining clear and visible placards on the seats to inform occupants of the restriction. Secondly, they must comply with any conditions imposed by CASA to ensure that the exemption does not compromise aviation safety. These obligations aim to balance the need for safety with the practical realities of aircraft operations where certain seats are not intended for use during critical phases of flight. Breach of the original regulation 90.120 of the CASR 1998 constitutes a strict liability offence, meaning that the registered operator could be held liable even if the breach was unintentional. The penalty for such an offence is not explicitly stated in the provided text, but typically, strict liability offences under aviation regulations can attract significant fines. The exemption itself does not introduce new offences but operates within the existing legal framework, ensuring that any non-compliance with the conditions of the exemption could still result in penalties under the original regulation. The precise penalties for non-compliance with the conditions of the exemption are not detailed but would likely mirror those applicable to the original regulation, emphasizing CASA’s commitment to maintaining high safety standards. In summary, the exemption provided under the CASR 1998 seeks to alleviate the stringent safety requirements for side-facing seats that are not intended to be occupied during critical flight phases. It imposes clear conditions on registered operators to ensure that such seats are not used during take-off and landing and are appropriately marked. While the exemption does not introduce new offences, non-compliance with its conditions or the original regulation could result in significant penalties, underscoring the importance of adhering to the stipulated safety measures.

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.