Commentary Part 1 – Airports Interpretation Section 70: Joint operators of areas
205.Subsection (1) of this section defines joint operators in relation to airport areas. There are joint operators where two or more persons jointly have overall responsibility for the management of all of the area. This mirrors the provision made by subsection (1) of section 9 in relation to sole operators.
206.One example of joint operators would be where the ownership structure of an airport area is a partnership. Partnership is defined by section 1 of the Partnership Act 1890 as “the relation which subsists between persons carrying on a business in common with a view of profit”.
207.Subsection (2) clarifies that the power of the Secretary of State to make regulations under section 9 about when a person is or is not to be treated as having overall responsibility for the management of an airport area includes power to make provision about when two or more persons are to be treated as jointly having overall responsibility for the management of an airport area.
208.Subsection (3) clarifies that the CAA’s powers in section 10 to make operator determinations include the making of a determination that there are joint operators.
209.Subsection (4) empowers the Secretary of State to make regulations modifying the provisions of Chapters 1 and 3 of the Act in respect of joint operators. This is required because aspects of Chapters 1 and 3 may need to be modified in order to apply in the intended way where there are joint operators.