Alexander A. Batalov

Despite big number of Russian and foreign publications on the issues of responsibility in international air law and international law, in general, these issues continue to be important and require further research, especially, in view of present-day complexity of relations governed by international air law. Based on the analysis of the Convention on International Civil Aviation of 1944, as well as dispute-settlement practice and documents of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) it is concluded that self-contained regime of State responsibility fully excluding rules of general international law on international responsibility will hardly develop in international air law in the foreseeable future. However, within the framework of international air law fully fledged lex specialis on international responsibility, allowing application of general rules on international responsibility to the extent not covered by such lex specialis, can develop. Lack of these lex specialis on international responsibility in international air law, will lead to unlimited application of general rules on international responsibility, including, in particular, rules on compensation for damages, and such application will result in claiming damages caused, for instance, by aviation accident, from a State in addition to rather big compensations received by aviation accident victims through private liability mechanisms actively used in aviation. Moreover, in view of lack of lex specialis on State responsibility in international air law regional and private mechanisms of State responsibility and compensation for damages will be more frequently used.

This article examines the fundamentals of legal regulation of air transport within the framework of Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as well as problems of legal regulation of flight safety and air traffic management within EAEU. It is noted that taking into account long experience of economic integration in other regions of the world at certain stage of such integration the States are confronted with issues of coordination of their policies in the field of transport, including air transport, and the establishment of its legal regime at the regional level, since successful implementation of single regional market of goods, services, capital and labor is hardly possible without development of transport networks and relevant infrastructure. Despite the fact that EAEU law sets good basis for liberalization of air transport and creation of common market of air transport services within EAEU, successful achievement of these goals depends upon resolving, as soon as possible, the following problems: (a) defining the legal form for liberalization of legal regulation of air services within EAEU; (b) setting the stages of liberalization of legal regulation of air services within EAEU, including stages of expansion of market access and elimination of other restrictions for commercial activities of airlines; (c) resolving the issues of possible change of ownership and control conditions in respect of EAEU air carriers for the purpose of application of "common interest" concept allowing market access for air carries "substantially owned and effectively controlled" by any EAEU Member State, its citizens or legal entities; (d) defining the extent, to which the legal regulation of flight safety and air traffic management are legally regulated within EAEU, as well as the forms of cooperation between EAEU and Interstate Aviation Committee.