International agreements state that it is the country in which an aircraft is registered that has legal jurisdiction over events on board the aircraft. This means that when an aircraft lands in another country the incident is outside the jurisdiction of the police there. This puts many offenders effectively beyond the reach of the law. Only four governments (the United Kingdom, the USA, Canada and Australia) have so far changed their laws to close this loophole.

In 1998 the ITF helped with the setting up of a Study Group that will help other governments make changes in their laws. The Study Group was set up by ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) which is the world governing body regulating civil air transport. The ITF is also calling on ICAO to draw up an international treaty to ensure that all governments follow uniform standards and procedures in enforcing the law against offenders.

The ITF launches an international campaign day >>