Article 129 of the Saudi Civil Aviation Law
المادة 129 من نظام الطيران المدني · الباب التاسع: البحث والإنقاذ
The operator of the assisted aircraft must pay the search and rescue expenses, compensation and rewards due under the Law, even if the aircraft belongs to the person who provided the assistance.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
يلتزم مشغل الطائرة المعانة بدفع نفقات معونة البحث والإنقاذ والتعويضات والمكافآت المستحقة بمقتضى هذا النظام، حتى ولو كانت الطائرة ملكًا لمن قدم المعونة.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 129 explained in plain English
This article identifies the party obliged to pay what results from search and rescue operations.
Who must pay: The operator of the assisted aircraft, that is, the aircraft to which assistance was provided.
What they must pay:
- the expenses of the search and rescue assistance;
- compensation; and
- rewards due under this Law.
A special case: The operator remains obliged even if the aircraft belongs to the person who provided the assistance. So if the owner of the aircraft is the one who rescued it, and the operator is someone else (such as a lessee), the operator must pay the owner who carried out the rescue.
Why the operator? Because the operator is the one who uses the aircraft and benefits from operating it, and so bears the consequences of its rescue.
Relation to neighboring articles: This article follows Article 128, which prevents expenses and compensation from exceeding the value of the aircraft immediately before the accident, and precedes Article 130, under which the Board of Directors sets the rules governing the payment of rewards for search and for rescuing persons, the aircraft and property. The article does not specify claim procedures. Anyone claiming or facing a claim for rescue expenses may consult a lawyer specializing in compensation and civil aviation cases.
Practical example
A company leased an aircraft from another company. The aircraft then made an emergency landing in a remote area, and the owning company sent a team to rescue it. The lessee company, as the operator, must pay the assistance expenses and compensation due, even though the aircraft is owned by the party that provided the assistance.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 129 of the Saudi Civil Aviation Law
Who pays the costs of searching for and rescuing an aircraft?
The operator of the assisted aircraft must pay the search and rescue expenses, compensation and rewards due.
What if the rescuer is the owner of the aircraft itself?
The operator remains obliged to pay even if the aircraft belongs to the person who provided the assistance.
More articles on Aviation Accidents and Search and Rescue
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The National Transport Safety Center investigates accidents and incidents of civil aircraft in the Kingdom and of Saudi aircraft, and sets the investigation regulations, forms its committees, prepares reports and publishes the results.
1- يتولى المركز التحقيق في الحوادث والوقائع التي تقع للطائرات المدنية في إقليم المملكة وللطائرات السعودية وللطائرات التي يشغلها أشخاص يحملون الجنسية السعودية فو
- Article 108
Local authorities, crew members and pilots who see an accident must report aviation accidents in the Kingdom to the Authority, and the owner or operator must notify of accidents to Saudi aircraft abroad.
1- عند وقوع حادث طيران في إقليم المملكة فإن على السلطات المحلية عند علمها بوقوع الحادث في منطقة اختصاصها وعلى عضو طاقم الطائرة التي وقع لها الحادث إذا سمحت حالت
- Article 109
On learning of an accident to a foreign aircraft in the Kingdom's territory, the Center must notify the State of registry, the State of the operator, the State of design and of manufacture, any State affected, and the International Civil Aviation Organization.
مع مراعاة أحكام الملحق (13) لمعاهدة شيكاغو بشأن التحقيق في حوادث الطائرات ؛ يقوم المركز بعد علمه بوقوع حادث لطائرة أجنبية في إقليم المملكة بالإبلاغ عنه في أقرب
- Article 110
On an aviation accident, local authorities must keep the aircraft from flying, preserve it and its wreckage, and not move it except for specified reasons until the investigation committee arrives.
على السلطات المحلية عند وقوع حادث طيران في منطقة اختصاصها أن تمنع الطائرة عن الطيران وأن تحافظ عليها وعلى أجزائها وجميع موجوداتها أو حطامها، وعدم تحريكها من موض
- Article 111
The board of directors decides whether to conduct an investigation into aviation accidents in the Kingdom or over the high seas involving a Saudi aircraft, or a foreign one operated by a Saudi, or not to proceed with it; the Regulations set the committees' powers.
يقرر مجلس الإدارة عند وقوع حادث طيران في إقليم المملكة أو فوق أعالي البحار أو فوق الأراضي غير المملوكة لإحدى الدول لطائرة سعودية أو لطائرة أجنبية يشغلها سعودي؛
- Article 112
The article allows the Center to ask States and bodies set by the Regulations for representatives to take part as observers in investigating accidents of Saudi aircraft, and gives the States concerned a right of representation for foreign aircraft accidents.
1- عند وقوع حادث لطائرة سعودية أو لطائرة أجنبية يشغلها سعودي في إقليم المملكة أو فوق أعالي البحار أو فوق أراض غير مملوكة لدولة ما؛ يجوز للمركز أن يطلب من الدول
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.