EU/China Agreement: civil aviation safety

The European Parliament adopted by 645 votes to 13, with 30 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the draft Council decision on the conclusion of the Agreement on civil aviation safety between the European Union and the Government of the People's Republic of China.

In line with the recommendation made by the Committee on Transport and Tourism, the European Parliament gave its consent to the conclusion of the Agreement.

The Agreement was signed on 20 May 2019, subject to its subsequent conclusion. It aims to strengthen cooperation in the field of certification and surveillance of aeronautical products, parts and appliances, as well as in the environmental control and certification of production. It shall therefore improve civil aviation safety and facilitate trade and investment in aeronautical products.

Based on mutual trust in each other’s systems and on the comparison of regulatory differences, the Agreement:

- entails obligations and methods of cooperation between the authorities and technical agents so that the latter can issue their own certificates for the aeronautical product, part or appliance without duplicating all the assessments done by the other Authority;

- stipulates that each Party shall accept findings of compliance made by the Competent Authority of the other Party;

- provides for a system of continual cooperation and consultation involving enhanced cooperation in the framework of audits, inspections, timely notifications and consultations;

- establishes a Joint Committee empowered to adopt amendments to the Annexes to the Agreement.

The Commission shall be empowered to approve, on behalf of the Union, any amendments that may be submitted, insofar as such amendments are consistent with the relevant Union legal acts and subject to the conditions set out in the Council Decision on the conclusion of the Agreement.