Our understanding of airworthiness as the fitness of the aircraft in all respects to encounter the ordinary perils of the air that could be expected on her journey, and deliver the goods safely to their destination is a confirmation of the fact that the responsibility is heavy for the air carrier upon reception, carriage and delivery of the goods. The traditional liability regime in airfreight is contained in the Warsaw System of Conventions and the Montreal Convention 1999. The coexistence[i] of these laws creates challenges in obtaining a uniform liability scheme for the loss, damage and delay of goods on transit[ii]. The question, however, is how useful could the Chicago Convention 1944 be in determining the air carrier’s liability? This is more so because the following Warsaw[iii] and Montreal Conventions have to be differentiated from the Chicago convention of 1944, as Chicago deals with public international law looking at technical standards, licensing, freedom of air, accident investigation or security issues. This article therefore introduces the major aspects of the Chicago Convention and subsequently its nexus with the air carrier’s duty of airworthiness.
[i] See p.4 of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNCTAD Report on its eleventh session, Sao Paolo consensus para 59, www.unctad.org
[ii] The air carrier is liable under the convention for delay and for the loss of or damage to the goods, provided that the occurrence that caused the prejudice took place during the carriage by air.
[iii] The Warsaw Convention is the informal title for Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to International Transportation by Air, concluded at Warsaw, Poland, opened for signature October 12, 1929, 49 Stat. 3000, T.S. No. 876, 137 L.N.T.S. 11, reprinted in 49 U.S.C.A. app. at 430 (West Supp. 1976) (adhered to by the United States June 27, 1934).
