Procedures for the Allocation, Supervision of Use and Revocation of Limited Air Traffic Rights

Issued pursuant to
Section 78, Paragraph four of the Law On Aviation

I. General Provisions

1. This Regulation prescribes the procedures for the allocation, supervision of use and revocation of limited air traffic rights in cases where the right to operate carriage of passengers, baggage, cargo and mail by air is restricted by international bilateral air traffic agreements entered into by the Republic of Latvia. The purpose of this Regulation is to implement the State duty referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 847/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the negotiation and implementation of air service agreements between Member States and third countries (hereinafter - Council Regulation No 847/2004), specifying limited air traffic rights (hereinafter - air traffic rights) for carriage from the Republic of Latvia to a state, which is not a European Union Member State (hereinafter - third country).

2. This Regulation shall be applied in cases where a bilateral agreement regarding air traffic or other arrangements between the Republic of Latvia and a third country determine:

2.1. the number of such scheduled and non-scheduled air services which does not satisfy the requests of all interested air carriers; and

2.2. a limited number of air carriers from the Republic of Latvia, which may be designated for the operation of scheduled and non-scheduled air services on a specific route, and this number is less than the number of the interested air carriers.

II. Publication of Information and Application of Air Carriers

3. In order to ensure a possibility for the interested air carriers to apply for the receipt of limited air traffic rights in accordance with this Regulation, the Ministry of Transport shall publish the following information on the Internet homepage (www.sam.gov.lv) thereof (regularly updating it):

3.1. a list of the available air traffic rights (which derive from international bilateral air traffic agreements or conditions of other international arrangements) for scheduled and non-scheduled services between the Republic of Latvia and third countries;

3.2. information regarding the planned negotiations of the Republic of Latvia with the third countries regarding air traffic;

3.3. a notification regarding commencement of the procedure for allocation of air traffic rights in conformity with this Regulation;

3.4. the applications received and the essential correspondence related thereto (observing the requirements of the regulatory enactments relating to commercial secrets);

3.5. draft decisions, which have been prepared, performing the procedure for allocation of air traffic rights;

3.6. decisions, which have been taken, performing the procedure for allocation of air traffic rights; and

3.7. decisions, which have been taken after the appeal of the decisions referred to in Sub-paragraph 3.6 of this Regulation.

4. If air carriers wish to operate air services on routes between the Republic of Latvia and third countries, with which the Republic of Latvia has not entered into an air services agreement or other international arrangements, they shall inform the Ministry of Transport in writing. The Ministry of Transport shall assess the referred to information and, if it deems it essential, take it into account, upon preparing for negotiations regarding air traffic with these third countries.

III. Procedure for Allocation of Air Traffic Rights

5. The Ministry of Transport shall notify regarding the decision to commence the procedure for allocation of air traffic rights (Sub-paragraph 3.3 of this Regulation). This procedure may be commenced, if unused air traffic rights are available, including if it is requested by an air carrier of the European Union (within the meaning of Article 2(11) of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community).

6. A notification regarding the commencement of the procedure for allocation of air traffic rights shall be additionally sent to each air carrier, which has expressed a wish to operate air services on the relevant routes.

7. An air carrier, which wishes to acquire the available air traffic rights, shall, within four weeks time after publication of the notification referred to in Paragraph 6 of this Regulation, submit a relevant application to the Ministry of Transport. All applications received shall be published on the Internet homepage of the Ministry of Transport, excluding the documents appended thereto, which, upon the request of the applicant, as well as observing the regulatory enactments regarding protection of classified information, have been assigned a limited access status.

8. Any air traffic carrier, which performs entrepreneurial activity in the Republic of Latvia (within the meaning of Article 49 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union), may be an applicant. The applicant shall append the following to the application:

8.1. a copy of the operating licence of the air carrier, if the referred to licence has been issued to the air carrier in another Member State of the European Union, not in the Republic of Latvia;

8.2. a plan of the carrier for activities on the market, in which the requested air traffic rights will be allocated, - information regarding routes, services, capacity, frequency, flight days, the type, configuration, registration sign of the aircraft, the pricing policy for the route, including tariffs and taxes (by season and category), air carrier forecasts, as well as potential agreements with other air carriers on the market;

8.3. information regarding the provision of access to air services and assistance for clients (for example, ticket sales network, services available on the Internet);

8.4. information regarding the technical and financial means of the air carrier to ensure the planned air services and to guarantee the continuation thereof; and

8.5. any other information, which is substantial in relation to the licence, plan or information referred to in Sub-paragraphs 8.1, 8.2, 8.3 and 8.4 of this Regulation.

9. If an applicant has not submitted all the information referred to in Paragraph 8 of this Regulation, the Ministry of Transport shall without delay request it to submit additional information within five working days after receipt of the relevant application in the Ministry of Transport.

10. The Ministry of Transport shall assess the plans referred to in Sub-paragraph 8.2 of this Regulation, on the basis of the principles of transparency and prohibition of discrimination (within the meaning of Article 5 of Council Regulation No 847/2004). During the assessment the following criteria shall be taken into account (fulfilment of criteria for each particular case shall be assessed in relation to the others, without giving one of them greater significance):

10.1. the quality of the services offered, which is related to the properties of the route, the nature of the service, the frequency of flights, the type and configuration of the aircraft, the type of service (scheduled or non-scheduled; passengers, cargo, mixed or other type of services; services with a personal or leased aircraft or according to the principle of code sharing; direct or indirect services), the duration and continuity of the service, connections and integration in the route network of the air carrier (if any);

10.2. the opportunities for clients to access air services and use services (for example, ticket sales network, services available on the Internet);

10.3. economic issues (for example, the anticipated demand for air services, contracts entered into, co-operation with the agents of air carriers);

10.4. the duration of the air services offered and the date of commencement thereof;

10.5. the level of improvement of inter-regional traffic; and

10.6. other criteria which are significant for the operation of the relevant air services.

11. The Ministry of Transport, when assessing the information referred to in Paragraph 8 of this Regulation, shall give preference to those applicants, the activity of which comply with the following criteria (fulfilment of criteria for each particular case shall be assessed in relation to the others, without giving one of them greater significance):

11.1. satisfy the demand of the public for air services or promote the market development, providing access to new routes;

11.2. offer the lowest price for services of the relevant level;

11.3. are economically viable, allowing the best use of the air traffic rights;

11.4. promote competition between air carriers, including new arrivals to the air service market;

11.5. ensure high standards of flight security and aviation security;

11.6. contribute to environmental protection;

11.7. promote stable development of air traffic, trade and tourism of the European Union; and

11.8. promote regional development.

12. The Ministry of Transport shall take a decision regarding the allocation of the available air traffic rights or rejection of the applicant's application no later than within one month from the day when the procedure was commenced.

13. If, due to objective reasons, it is not possible to take a decision within one month from the day when the procedure was commenced, the Ministry of Transport shall extend the term for taking a decision for a time period not longer than three months from the day when the procedure was commenced, and shall inform all applicants thereof, as well as publish on the Internet homepage of the Ministry of Transport.

14. The decision taken regarding the allocation of the relevant air traffic rights and the air service authorisation issued on the basis of this decision shall be sent to the applicant, as well as taking of this decision shall be notified to all submitters of applications, indicating the justification of the decision, the institution in which the decision may be appealed, as well as the time period for appeal. The decision referred to, the air service authorisation issued on the basis of this decision, as well as the decisions taken after the appeal of this decision, shall be published on the Internet homepage of the Ministry of Transport.

IV. Time Period for the Use of the Air Traffic Rights Allocated and the Supervision of Use Thereof

15. The time period for the use of the air traffic rights shall be specified in the decision referred to in Paragraph 5 of this Regulation and the air service authorisation issued on the basis of this decision, assessing all the significant circumstances of the particular air service route and taking into account that the time period for the use of the air traffic rights shall not exceed six years.

16. The Ministry of Transport has the right to request the necessary information from the relevant air carrier in order to be able to supervise if the air traffic rights allocated are being used in their entirety in compliance with this Regulation, or they are being used in accordance with the conditions of the air service authorisation, the conditions included in the air carrier design and the requirements of the legal acts referred to in Sub-paragraph 18.4 of this Regulation.

V. Revocation of Air Traffic Rights and Allocation Thereof to Another Air Carrier

17. If the air carrier which has been allocated an air carrier authorisation does not fully use the air traffic rights allocated to it or does not observe the conditions of the referred to authorisation, the Ministry of Transport shall demand such air carrier to submit appropriate explanations.

18. The Ministry of Transport shall revoke an air service authorisation in the following cases:

18.1. the air carrier which has received the air traffic rights does not commence the operation of air services until the end of the flight season following the flight season during which the air service authorisation was issued. The Ministry of Transport shall not revoke the air service authorisation if the relevant air carrier proves that the delay has occurred due to reasons beyond its control, which could not be foreseen;

18.2. the air traffic rights have not been used or have not been used in their entirety for six subsequent months. The Ministry of Transport shall not revoke the air service authorisation if the relevant air carrier proves that the delay has occurred due to reasons beyond its control, which could not be foreseen;

18.3. the air carrier which has received the air traffic rights does not operate services in accordance with the conditions of the authorisation allocated;

18.4. the requirements specified in the regulatory enactments regulating the operation of air services or the liabilities arising from international bilateral air services agreements, other contracts or other international legal acts have been violated;

18.5. the conditions referred to in the plan submitted by the air carrier have been violated, the violation of which would have significantly influenced the decision taken in the initial procedure for the allocation of air traffic rights in favour of another air carrier;

18.6. the air carrier notifies the Ministry of Transport that it does not wish to continue the operation of air services, for the provision of which it has received an authorisation; or

18.7. the operating licence of the air carrier is no longer in force.

19. After revocation of the air service authorisation, the Ministry of Transport shall, within one month, commence a new procedure for the allocation of air traffic rights in accordance with this Regulation.

Prime Minister V. Dombrovskis

Minister for Transport U Augulis

Translation © 2011 Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre)