The first legislative act in the field of the Russian air law signed

17 January 1921

On January 17, 1921 was signed a decree of the People’s Commissars Council of the RSFSR “On air travel”. On the 1st of March it took effect. This was the first legislative act regulating the order of the air service over the Russian territory and its territorial waters. Before the revolution there were only instructions of 1912-1914 regarding the restricted areas and the prohibition to cross the borders.

Under the decree it was now obligatory to register all the take-off grounds in the General Department of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Airfreight of the Republic. All the pilots and planes were also obliged to be registered or attached to one of the airdromes. The pilots were obliged to have a certificate allowing them to fly planes and obey to all the instructions related to the areas restricted for landing and flights and fulfill the requirements of services managing flights. With a view to ensure the security of the state, it was prohibited to “have on the planes photographic, radiotelegraph and radiotelephone apparatus, homing pigeons, high explosives and arms without a special authorization” provide by the General Department of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Airfreight of the Republic. The foreign planes could cross the border of the RSFSR and make flights over its territory only upon the authorization issued by the People’s Commissariat of the Foreign Affairs.

The issue of a special standard act on the flights’ regulation was needed due to the plans of the civil aviation development in the Soviet Russia. A few days after the decree “On air travels” publication, under the directions of V.I. Lenin was created a commission for the aircraft construction program development. For its realization the government allocated 3 million rubles in gold. On October 19, 1923 the Council of Labour and Defense approved the 3-year plan of the air lines development which made a good start for the routine construction and operation of airdrome network. On October 28, 1923 it adopted the enactment “On allocation of the ground area for airdromes and landing grounds arrangement”. All of this became a basis for creating in the country a full-fledged airfreight.

Later, the 1921 decree provisions underlay the first Air Code of the USSR approved on April 27, 1932.

 

Lit.: Грабарь В. Э. История воздушного права // Вопросы воздушного права. Вып. 1. М., 1927; Нормативные документы, регулирующие деятельность гражданской авиации в Российской Федерации [Электронный ресурс] // Российская авиация. 2000–2013. URL: http://www.svavia.ru/info/docs/docp.html; О воздушных передвижениях (Декрет Совета Народных Комиссаров от 17.01.1921) // Сборник законов и распоряжений по гражданской авиации. М., 1926.