Many Government departments, agencies and organisations have responsibilities across the aviation industry.
We outline who does what and how we work together to keep you safe every time you fly.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority
We are the safety authority and regulator. We have responsibility for flights in Australia and the operation of Australian aircraft overseas.
We develop the rules and regulations that keep you safe, while also checking and making sure people follow them.
We are responsible for licensing pilots, registering aircraft, certifying and approving airports and operators, as well as safety promotion and education.
We are also responsible for airspace regulation as well as drone regulation. We also take action when we become aware of operators, pilots or other licence holders acting illegally or in a way that is unsafe.
You can find out more about what we do under the ‘About us’ section of our website.
Airservices Australia
Airservices provides air traffic control and aviation rescue and firefighting services at airports. They are also responsible for installing and maintaining technology used for navigation and tracking aircraft.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is the transport safety investigator. When things go wrong in aviation or other modes of transport, they investigate to find out what happened and what can be learnt from the incident.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) is responsible for search and rescue coordination for any aviation incident.
The Bureau of Meteorology
The Bureau is Australia’s national weather agency. They provide aviation users with meteorological information necessary for safe and efficient operations, including weather observations, forecasts, warnings and advisories.
The Department of Defence
Defence is responsible for military aviation operations and air traffic control at miliary and joint-user airports like Darwin or Newcastle/Williamtown.
The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts
The Department oversees government legislation and policy relating to airports and aviation, including curfews, noise insulation programs and aircraft noise regulations.