Study On Civil Liability Of Aviation Code-sharing Carriers

Code-sharing is a practice of two or more than two airlines sign an agreement which one of airlines(be called contracting carrier) allows other airlines(be called code-sharing partner) to use its designated code in the segment not carried by contracting carrier. Air code-sharing usually involves two kinds of carriers, that is contracting carrier and actual carrier, and tripartite legal relationship, that is between contracting carrier and actual carrier, between contracting carrier and passenger or shipper and between actual carrier and passenger or shipper. Given the situation code-sharing liability has not been explicitly stipulated not only in international civil aviation conventions, but also in our domestic aviation law, it may be an effective solution to utilize relating theory of Contact Law to analyze and define air code-sharing carriers' right and liability.Air code-sharing includes many subjects of legal relation, and means the use of private right for the partner airlines and one kind of alternative transportation way for passenger or shipper. Contracting carrier is the only contracting party and actual carrier is the performing assistant of contracting carrier.Contracting carrier bears two contracts: air transportation contract which is signed with passenger or shipper and code-sharing agreement which is signed with actual carrier. Air transportation contract, because of the code-sharing partnership, turns into one contract to be performed by a third party, the third party is actual carrier. As a result, contracting carrier shoulders disclosing obligation during contracting process, or relative contracting fault liability will produce. And the original transportation obligation of contracting carrier changes to guarantee actual carrier to transport according to request of air transportation contract.Actual carrier has no direct contractual relationship with passenger or shipper, and just shoulders one contract which connects through code-sharing agreement with contracting carrier. In a sense, for actual carrier, code-sharing agreement becomes one contract to be performed towards a third party. Actual carrier should burden the liability for breach of contract if he violates the promissory obligation in the code-sharing agreement. However, actual carrier usually assumes the tort liability towards passenger or shipper.