1. Airport Liability towards passengers and airlines - French overview
11th annual McGill University / PEOPIL conference on
International Aviation & Liability Dublin October 2018

2. Passengers injury while in the airport area: Examples
Slipping and falling
Accident on board of shuttle bus
Falling of boarding stairs or jetways
Boarding bridge collapsed at Islamabad International Airport

3. The liability of the airport operator for passenger injury
No specific liability principles for airport operators
Application of general rules on liability
Airport considered as public utilities
Irrelevance of the legal nature of the airport operator
Application of public liability principles
Presumed fault = reversed burden of proof on the Defendant that there was no lack of maintenance of public utilities (CAA Versailles, 5 Feb. 2015, No14VE01553)
Proof of the damage by the Claimant
Proof of causal link by the Claimant

4. The liability of the airport operator for passenger injury
Since 1st Jan. 2017, preliminary claim for compensation to be made to the Defendant (airport operator)
no preliminary claim = inadmissibility of the application
Art CJA
If the Defendant does not respond to or rejects the preliminary claim, proceedings to be initiated before the administrative court within 2 months

5. The liability of the airport operator for damage to aircraft
No special provisions on liability
A damage to aircraft resulting from
Collision on the ground with airport vehicles
Wildlife strike
Wrongful surface operation
Lack of maintenance
Runway debris
Snow/ice on runways
Fire…

6. The liability of the airport operator for damage to aircraft
Defence and
exoneration / limitation of liability (except when the law of 1985 applies)
Appropriate maintenance of public utilities
(CE, 9 July 2014, No371853)
Contributory negligence of the victim
Force majeure

7. Some recent legal issues in case of Bird strike
Proof of a fault : lack of appropriate measures (CE, 2è & 7è ch., 7 March 2018, No )
Collision on the ground with airport vehicles
Specific application of road traffic accident provisions (Law of 5 July « loi Badinter ») by courts (CA Limoges, 22 Feb. 2018, No 16/01025)
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A320 damaged after being hit by a push-back tractor
at Kuwait International Airport in June 2017

8. Perspective
Are airports facing new challenges and liability vis-à-vis passengers and airlines?
Increase of safety and security issues:
Cyberattacks
Airspace and ground incursions: drones, etc.

9. Thank you for your attention