Canadian Associates of Professional Skydivers

General News and Information

COPA  DEFENDS OUR RIGHT TO FLY!

Another milestone and precedent in preserving our freedom to fly!

Just before Christmas, Quebec Superior Court reversed a judgment from a municipal court in Lévis, QC.   The issue was once more an entity trying to do indirectly what it could not do directly: to decide the outcome and the fate of an aerodrome (i.e. aeronautics), when only the Federal Government can do so.  The airport has been there for something like fifty years and they recently started skydiving activities.  That’s when the city passed a bylaw prohibiting skydiving, building hangars without permits, and so on.  The municipal judge had concluded something to the effect that “recreational skydiving was not part of the core of aeronautics”, thus the city could levy fines and impose what it wanted.

Not yet translated into English, the judgement can be found here.

The conclusion of the Superior Court Judge is the following (my translation):

[165] The trial judge erred in law in concluding that the skydiving activities in issue were not at the core of federal aeronautical jurisdiction, and consequently, rejecting the doctrine of inter-jurisdictional immunity.

[166] It is also concluded that the by-laws of the City of Lévis prohibiting the conduct of skydiving activities, including facilities related to skydiver training activities (the Zoning Regulations and the Regulations on permits and Certificates) constitute an obstacle to the federal power over aeronautics. Consequently, these regulations must be declared inapplicable against the appellant.

COPA had been following closely for over a year. Among others, the COPA Supreme Court judgements (2010 SCC 39 and 2010 SCC 38) from 2010 were cited as a jurisprudence.

This was a totally independent initiative not covered or helped by our Freedom to Fly Fund.

COPA Fights Regulatory Proposal that Threatens Airports

The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) is mounting an all-out fight against a proposed change to the Canadian Aeronautics Act that threatens the viability of the national airport infrastructure in Canada.  The amendment which appeared buried deep in a separate budget bill would allow the Minister to “make an order prohibiting the development or expansion of a given aerodrome or any change to the operation of a given aerodrome, if, in the Minister’s opinion, the proposed development, expansion, or change is likely to adversely affect aviation safety or is not in the public interest.”

COPA is concerned about the manner in which the amendment was developed, without consultation, and how far the powers of the Minister would extend given the one-sided nature of imposing consultation requirements and prohibitions on aerodromes when no corresponding restrictions exist for local authorities.  According to COPA “if the amendment passes into law, the Minister will be able to avoid all consultation processes, such as would be the case when a regulatory change is made, and unilaterally issue an order to prohibit the establishment of any aerodrome, development of any aerodrome and any operational changes at any aerodrome whenever the Minister deems it to be necessary.”  “With no policy to protect and encourage most of aviation and with a flawed National Airports Policy that puts the future of smaller airports and aerodromes in the hands of local interests.”

Given the lack of transparency and the failure to consult with affected stakeholders, COPA is calling the proposed amendment to be withdrawn and the issue brought back to Transport Canada for further discussion and consultation with stakeholders.  For more information see COPA’s website at http://www.copanational.org/.

http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&DocId=6737565&File=101

Our Vancouver location is closed temporarily for renovations due to of a fire in the building. Our interim address is: 5112 Gladwin Road, Abbotsford, B.C. V4X 1X8