Overview

Establishment

Governance

Management

Oversight

The Result

Funding

Our Strategic Objectives:

Vision

To be a credible and dynamic world class civil aviation regulator

Mission

§         To promote and maintain a safe, secure and sustainable civil aviation environment while adhering to international standards

§         To regulate and oversee the functioning and development of the industry in an efficient, cost effective, and customer friendly manner

§         To promote an enabling environment for transformation and development

SACAA mandate

The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) is an agency of the Department of Transport (DoT) and as a result, its activities are governed by a performance agreement signed between the Board of Directors and the Minister of Transport. Its mandate, defined more fully in the South African Civil Aviation Authority Act No. 40 of 1998, can be summarised as follows:

 

Regulating the civil aviation industry to ensure security and safety by complying with International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and taking into consideration the local context.

Establishment of the Civil Aviation Authority

The South African Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) was established on 1 October 1998 following the enactment of the South African Civil Aviation Authority Act, No.40, in September of the same year. The Act provided for the establishment of a stand-alone authority charged with promoting, regulating and enforcing civil aviation safety and security.

The creation of the CAA reflected the Government's then priorities of policy development, economic restructuring, addressing social inequalities and reducing the burden on the general taxpayer by expanding the application of the "user-pays" system.

A further motivation in setting up a stand-alone civil aviation regulatory authority was done in line with international trends in the aviation world where more and more states implemented this option.

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Corporate Governance

The Authority is governed by a Board of Directors appointed by the Minister of Transport and is representative of aviation industry, management and business expertise. Through a Performance Agreement with the Minister, the Board is accountable for the performance of the Authority in carrying out its statutory functions and achieving objectives. The NDOT will monitor the activities of the Authority.

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Management

The management of the CAA has been structured along three core responsibility levels; the Strategic Management level which constitutes the Executive Management, Project Management level which together with the Executive Management constitutes Senior Management and the Operational level which is organised according to technical departments.

The key role for the Executive is the strategic leadership of the organization and the co-ordination of policy formulation. The Executive’s function is to develop and maintain positive links with the industry and to co-ordinate the CAA’s international relations with s such as SADC, ICAO, AFCAC, and other CAAs.

The Project Management level co-ordinates the technical activities of the key areas of oversight – Aircraft, Airports, Airspace and Personnel. Oversight of Operations is co-ordinated by Personnel and Aircraft respectively.

Technical departments report to the areas of oversight relevant to their specific activities. This means that depending on the activity, a technical department may report to a different oversight area. Within each area of oversight, the key responsibilities are to set, monitor and enforce standards, as well as to promote safety.

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Areas of Oversight

The roles and responsibilities of the CAA revolve around the following nine areas of oversight:

Airport oversight involves the certification of airports and heli-ports and monitoring civil and electrical engineering matters in relation to infrastructure on and around airports such as, lighting, navigational aids, their repair and maintenance.

Airworthiness oversight is concerned with ensuring that all aircraft that fly in our airspace are airworthy to conduct such flights (fit for flight).

Certification oversight deals with all certification activities in relation to aircraft products and parts. This includes the granting of permission for new aviation products to be imported into the country.

Personnel oversight involves examining, licensing and training of aviation personnel. All relevant s and services are monitored to ensure that personnel and standards meet international standards.

Oversight of Operations is carried out in terms of monitoring information contained in the operations manuals of every operator to ensure compliance with relevant legislation.

Airspace oversight ensures the effective management and provision of air traffic services through the allocation of airspace by the statutory consultative body, the National Airspace Committee (NASCOM).

Accidents and incidents investigation, while technically not an area of oversight, is a key activity of the CAA carried out on behalf of Government. Investigations are conducted to determine the cause of aircraft accidents, and to recommend measures to prevent recurrence. Other key functions also include monitoring of trends regarding aircraft accidents and incidents, identification of potential problem areas, possible safety deficiencies and proposing safety recommendations to the CAA.

The Flight Inspection division does not fall under a specific area of oversight. The function of this division is to calibrate the radio navigational aids used by aircrafts to ensure accuracy and reliability. Many of these tests are performed on the ground, but to ensure that the radio signals are interpreted accurately by aircraft receivers, it is also necessary to perform airborne tests on the ground equipment.

The Information Services division provides aeronautical information to the industry and also meets the information needs of the organization.

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The Result

The establishment of a stand-alone authority has resulted in the CAA widening its oversight functions and becoming more visible in the industry. Entering the corporate sphere accelerated the introduction of professionalism, accountability and integrity in the inspectorate and indeed the whole organization.

When it was still part of the Department of Transport, the CAA fell within the huge government bureaucracy. However, the setting up of a self-funding authority has resulted in the authority becoming more accessible and accountable to its stakeholders.

Since attaining our democracy, the CAA has rightfully claimed its position as a regional leader in the aviation regulatory sector in our region, the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The CAA has hosted dozens of regional meetings and conferences since 1994 and is in the driving seat of regional efforts to harmonize aviation regulations in the region, and improving the level of aviation surveillance in member states. 

Also, in 2003, South Africa was elected to be a member of the International Civil Aviation  (ICAO) council, a move that sees the country participating at the highest forum with regards to aviation matters.

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Funding and Cost-recovery

The CAA is funded by a combination of direct and indirect fees and Government funding of the investigation of aircraft accidents.

The industry is charged for direct services as per regulated fees.  Indirect charges are imposed on all scheduled departing passengers from any airport in the country at R6 per passenger.  A fuel levy is charged to general aviation at 0.015 cents per litre..

 

SACAA Strategic Plan 2009 - 2012