{"id":"F2005B00536","name":"CASA EX40/2002 - Exemption from subregulation 251 (1)","slug":"casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":31962,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2005B00536-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"CASA EX40/2002 - Exemption from subregulation 251 (1)","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\nmeta-generator: Aspose.Words for .NET 20.2\ntitle: \"EXEMPTION NUMBER : CASA EX\"\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nEXEMPTION NUMBER:  CASA EX40/2002\n\n \n\nCIVIL AVIATION ACT 1988\n\n \n\nCIVIL AVIATION REGULATIONS 1988\n\n \n\nEXEMPTION FROM SUBREGULATION 251 (1)\n\n \n\nI, MICHAEL ROBERT TOLLER, Director of Aviation Safety, on behalf of CASA, under subregulation 308 (1) of the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 (CAR 1988), having taken into account all relevant considerations relating to the interests of safety, exempt operators of aircraft included in the category of aircraft identified in Schedule 1 from compliance with the requirement to wear seat belts under subregulation 251 (1) of CAR 1988.\n\n \n\nUnder subregulation 308 (3) of CAR 1988, the exemption is issued subject to compliance with the conditions specified in Schedule 2.\n\n \n\n \n\n#### SCHEDULE 1\n\n \n\nAircraft engaged in emergency medical services operations.\n\n \n\n \n\n#### SCHEDULE 2\n\n \n\n1. This exemption is limited to:\n\n (a) the carriage of an infant unrestrained inside an incubator, humidicrib, or other neonatal transport unit;  or\n\n (b) the unrestrained carriage of an infant or young child in the arms of a restrained adult, when the medical or nursing authority responsible for conducting the transport considers that restraint would be detrimental to the child’s medical condition or the general situation inside the aircraft.\n\n \n\n2. The pilot in command retains the right to require all persons on board to be restrained when he or she considers it necessary in the interests of safety.\n\n \n\n \n\n[Signed M. Toller]\n\n \n\n \n\nMick Toller\n\nDirector of Aviation Safety\n\n \n\n28 November 2002\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This exemption remains tightly scoped to its original purpose. It addresses a specific operational need (medical transport of infants) without expanding into broader aviation categories or creating precedent for other seat belt exemptions."},"complexity_factors":["Very short document (approximately 250 words)","Only 2 defined categories (Schedule 1 and Schedule 2)","No cross-references to other legislation beyond the enabling regulation (CAR 1988, subregulation 308(1))","Simple conditional structure: exemption applies IF aircraft is medical services AND IF specific infant/child transport conditions are met","Single exception to the exemption (pilot override power in Schedule 2, condition 2)","Plain language drafting with minimal technical aviation terminology"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a **safety exemption** issued by Australia's aviation safety regulator (CASA) that allows certain medical aircraft to break the normal rule requiring passengers to wear seat belts.\n\n**What it does:**\nNormally, everyone on an Australian aircraft must wear a seat belt during takeoff, landing, and turbulent conditions (this is what \"subregulation 251(1)\" requires). This exemption creates a limited exception for **emergency medical services aircraft**.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Air ambulance and medical rescue helicopter operators\n- Medical staff transporting critically ill infants and young children\n\n**The specific exceptions allowed:**\n- **Incubator transport:** Infants can travel unrestrained inside medical incubators or humidicribs (special medical beds for premature babies)\n- **Arms of adult:** A small child can be held unrestrained by a restrained adult when a doctor or nurse decides that strapping the child in would actually harm their medical condition or interfere with urgent medical care\n\n**Important safeguard:**\nThe pilot always keeps the final say. Even with this exemption, the pilot can order everyone buckled up if they judge it necessary for safety.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis exemption recognises that in life-saving medical emergencies, rigid safety rules could do more harm than good. A premature baby needing intensive care during flight, or a child in critical condition requiring constant medical attention, may be safer unrestrained with medical staff than strapped into a standard seat. The exemption balances aviation safety with medical necessity."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The instrument removes the application of subregulation 251(1) for specified emergency medical service flights and circumstances (see Schedule 1 and Schedule 2), thereby narrowing the seat-belt rule's coverage for those flights and creating a conditional carve-out tied to medical judgment and pilot discretion."},"complexity_factors":["Cross-references to the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 (subregulations 308(1), 308(3), and 251(1)) require consulting external legislation to understand legal effect.","Condition-based exemption depends on a medical or nursing authority's judgment that restraint would be detrimental (Schedule 2, para 1(b)), creating subjective medical discretion.","Operational discretion vested in the pilot in command to require restraints when necessary for safety (Schedule 2, para 2) introduces on-the-spot decision-making.","Key terms—'infant', 'young child', 'detrimental', and 'neonatal transport unit'—are not defined in the instrument (Schedule 2), which may create interpretive uncertainty.","Scope is tightly limited to aircraft engaged in emergency medical services (Schedule 1), concentrating the exemption's effects on a narrow operator group.","The exemption is issued subject to conditions (subreg 308(3) and Schedule 2), implying an implementation and compliance burden on operators to follow and document the permitted practices."],"plain_english_summary":"This exemption allows operators of aircraft used for emergency medical services to depart from the general seat-belt rule in narrowly defined medical situations. It permits infants to be carried unrestrained inside neonatal transport units or held by a restrained adult when medical staff consider restraint harmful, while leaving the pilot in command able to require restraints for safety."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1","history":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1/history","analysis":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/casa-ex40-2002-exemption-from-subregulation-251-1/documents"}}