Historical Background
The Kingdom of Serbia was one of the first countries to establish a legal framework in the field of civil aviation by adopting the “Decree on Transport Devices in Air Travel” on 21 February 1913,. A few months later a similar regulation was adopted in the United States of America.
The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was one of the original ten signatories to the “International Convention for Regulating Aeronautics”, adopted in Paris, in October 1919.
In the course of the period between the two World Wars, the civil aviation authority in Serbia operated as within the framework of a separate department under the Military Aviation Headquarters.
Following the Second World War, in 1946, the Office for Civil Aeronautics was established thus becoming a part of the Ministry of Transport in January 1947. Somewhat later, under a different name – the Federal Office for Civil Aviation – the aviation authority began to function independently until 1978, when it was incorporated into the Federal Ministry of Transport and divided into three departments:
- Air Transport Department
- Federal Aviation Inspectorate
- Federal Air Traffic Control Administration
Following the creation of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro in 2003, a reorganisation of the aviation authority took place in view of its harmonisation with the standards of international aviation organisations standards and the European requirements. The emphasis was on creating a competent and effective aviation authority which would regulate civil aviation and preserve the safety and security of air services.
Basic characteristics of a modern aviation authority are the integration of state regulatory and supervisory functions into one specialized and financially independent authority as well as the disassociation of the air traffic service provider from the regulatory and supervisory authority.
The Governments of Serbia and Montenegro established the Civil Aviation Directorate of the State of Serbia and the State of Montenegro on 1 January 2004. Simultaneously, the Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services Agency Ltd was founded for providing air navigation services.
Following the dissolution of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, the Parliament of the Republic of Serbia adopted on 5 June 2006 the Resolution on the Legal Succession to the International Legal Subjectivity of Serbia and Montenegro. Based on this Resolution, the Republic of Serbia became legal successor of the founding rights of the Directorate.
Serbian Aviation Pioneers
Dr Vladimir Aleksic
Dr Vladimir Aleksic was the first Serbian aviator who managed to take off on 17 October 1909, with a flying machine he has designed by himself – a biplane glider catapulted by a rubber cord.
Ivan Saric (1876-1966)
Ivan Sarić was a Serbian aviation pioneer and a self-taught constructor who created and piloted his first aircraft, “Sarić 1”, in 1910. The aircraft was powered by a 24 HP three cylinder engine. Having been satisfied with the results he achieved, Ivan Sarić organised the first public flight event on 16 October 1910, attended by an audience of 7,000 people. In early 1911, Sarić finished the improved “Sarić 2” model.
First Air Transport LawDokument 1913
The Kingdom of Serbia was amongst the first European states to set a legal framework in the field of civil aviation, by promulgating the Regulation on Transport Devices Navigating by Air on 21 February 1913, a few months before a similar regulation was adopted in the USA.