Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) This section applies if a person or property on, in or under land or water suffers personal injury, loss of life, material loss, damage or destruction caused by:
(a) an impact with an aircraft that is in flight, or that was in flight immediately before the impact happened; or
(b) an impact with part of an aircraft that was damaged or destroyed while in flight; or
(c) an impact with a person, animal or thing that dropped or fell from an aircraft in flight; or
(d) something that is a result of an impact of a kind mentioned in paragraph ( a), (b) or (c).
(1A) However, this section does not apply in relation to a person who suffers mental injury caused by a thing covered by paragraph ( 1)(a), (b), (c) or (d) unless the person, or property owned by the person, suffers other personal injury, material loss, damage or destruction caused by such a thing.
(2) If this section applies, the following people are jointly and severally liable in respect of the injury, loss, damage or destruction:
(a) the operator of the aircraft immediately before the impact happened;
(b) the owner of the aircraft immediately before the impact happened;
(c) if the operator of the aircraft immediately before the impact happened was authorised to use the aircraft but did not have the exclusive right to use it for a period of more than 14 consecutive days--the person who so authorised the use of the aircraft;
(d) if the operator of the aircraft immediately before the impact happened was using the aircraft without the authority of the person entitled to control its navigation--the person entitled to control the navigation of the aircraft.
(2A) Subsection ( 2) does not apply to a person if, immediately before the impact happened:
(a) the person was the owner of the aircraft; and
(b) the person did not have an active role in the operation of the aircraft; and
(c) either:
( i ) there was a lease or other arrangement in force (whether or not with the owner) under which another person had the exclusive right to use the aircraft; or
(ii) another person had the exclusive right to use the aircraft and there was an agreement in force under which the owner provided financial accommodation in connection with the aircraft.
(3) Paragraph ( 2)(d) does not apply if the person entitled to control the navigation of the aircraft had taken all reasonable steps to prevent the unauthorised use of the aircraft.
(4) If:
(a) an injury, loss, damage or destruction of the kind mentioned in subsection ( 1) is a result of a collision or interference between 2 or more aircraft in flight; or
(b) 2 or more aircraft jointly cause any such injury, loss, damage or destruction;
this section applies in relation to each of the aircraft.