Deficiencies of China's general aviation law and its improvement

General aviation is an integral part of civil aviation and involves the widest range of aviation segments except commercial aviation. Featured with different operational procedures and practices to satisfy the economic needs and safety requirements of a sovereign state, general aviation tends to be regulated by an individual state. The last three decades have seen exponential growth of commercial air transport in China, but its general aviation sector has remained disproportionally underdeveloped. With the deepening of the reform of low-altitude airspace, the sector is poised for a radical change and rapid growth. However, legislation governing general aviation activities in China is distorted causing inconsistency and confusions in their application and implementation. This paper aims to analyse China's prevailing legislation regulating general aviation activities. It first discusses the various definitions adopted by ICAO and its member states and reviews the development of general aviation in the US, EU, Australia and China. It then examines the sources of China's general aviation laws, e.g. Chicago Convention and its annexes, and Chinese domestic legislature which covers legislation, laws, directives, rules and procedures. The paper continues to analyse and establish the deficiencies of its prevailing legal framework by pointing out the following: variation of definitions in different regulations, inconsistency of principles in existing laws and regulations, legal vacuum concerning government subsidy, environment protection, safety and security, and other operational areas such as aerial club, sightseeing, and search and rescue. In this process, the paper argues that a coherent, consistent and systematic legal framework is required in order to ensure fair competition and safety for a healthy, progressive and sustainable general aviation growth. Suggestions for rectification and improvement are proposed.