Ministry of Civil Aviation and successors: Air Services and International Relations...

BT 245

1938-1994

This series includes files of the divisions of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation and the Ministry of Aviation dealing with civil air services and international relations in this field.

The subject matter of the files includes:

• agreements and negotiations relating to international civil aviation services
• British involvement in international organisations and committees concerning civil aviation, including the International Civil Aviation Organisation
• emergency planning and civil defence, including the use of civil aircraft as troop transports
• aircraft testing and registration, including policy relating to the development of aircraft types such as the Comet and the Princess
• navigational aids
• United Kingdom airports and heliports
• the Berlin airlift
• policy relating to air accidents
• the carriage of goods by air
• the regulation of air transport companies, particularly the British Overseas Airways Corporation
• air traffic control arrangements
• club flying
• civil aviation legislation
• aircrews licensing
• the taxation of aircraft and aviation fuel
• correspondence with Civil Air Attachés and Advisors
• policy papers concerning the Air Transport Licensing Board

The series also includes the minutes of the Air Transport Advisory Council on Air Services, and the minutes of and evidence submitted to the Committee of Inquiry into the Civil Air Transport Industry (Edwards Committee).

The Air Services and International Relations Division used the AS, ASCH, ASR and CR file series, but some of these papers were re-registered in the EL and EM series. The Aviation Overseas Policy Division used the EB and ED series, of which the EB series includes some re-registered AS and ED files.

For registered files of the Aviation Overseas Policy Division and successors of the Ministry of Aviation and successors see AVIA 120

Other related registered files are in AVIA 106

Papers of the Air Transport Advisory Council are in BT 257

AS, EB, ED, EL and EM series

Public Record(s)

English

• Air Ministry, 1918-1964
• Department of Transport, 1976-1997
• Ministry of Civil Aviation, Air Services Division, 1945-1953
• Ministry of Civil Aviation, International Relations Division, 1947-1953
• Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, Air Services Division, 1953-1959
• Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, International Relations Division, 1953-1959

2092 file(s)

Open unless otherwise stated

From 1982 Department of Industry

Topics

Taxation

Transport management

Air Force

Air transport

Disasters and emergencies

Operations, battles and campaigns

Series is accruing

On the establishment of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Air Services Division was formed and was responsible for the encouragement and development of British civil aviation and relations with air service operators. An International Relations Division was established in 1947 to deal with the Department's international responsibilities, especially representation within the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

These divisions continued under the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, but on the formation of the Ministry of Aviation their functions were distributed among a number of new divisions, including the Aviation Overseas Policy Division, the Aviation Economic Planning Division and the Aviation General Policy Division.