Proposed Part 21 amendments including restricted category certification of foreign non-civil aircraft (CD 2514MS)

Closes 25 Nov 2025

Change 2 - Additional prescribed airworthiness standards for European light aircraft

Policy proposal

CASA has received enquiries regarding the eligibility of aircraft that have been type certified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency under the Certification Specification for Light Sport Aeroplanes (CS-LSA). As this standard is not identified in existing legislation, CASA is unable to accept an application for a type acceptance certificate for these aircraft.

Regulation 21.017 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR) provides for the designation of applicable airworthiness standards and sets the criteria for what standards are prescribed by CASA for the purposes of issuing a type certificate and type acceptance certificate. The regulation further allows for prescribed airworthiness standards to be identified in the Part 21 Manual of Standards (MOS).

The proposed change will add CS-LSA as a prescribed airworthiness standard to the Part 21 MOS in addition to CS-VLR - the Certification Specification for Very Light Rotorcraft.

Policy aim

The aim of this policy is to provide operator flexibility and increase choice for aircraft that are designed and manufactured to an acceptable standard. It will allow Australian operators the potential to access alternative aircraft types that are currently inaccessible due to regulatory constraints.

Question – Is the policy aim appropriate and do the proposed additions for the prescribed airworthiness standards achieve the aim?