SANTER V WUCHER HELICOPTER GMBH AND ANOTHER

Case C-6/14, Court of Justice of the European Union, 26 February 2015

Aviation law - Air carriers and aircraft operators - Insurance - Requirements - Definitions of "passenger" and "member of the crew" - Helicopter - Carriage of an expert in the blasting of avalanches using explosives - Injury suffered during a work flight - Compensation - Regulation (EC) No 785/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on insurance requirements for air carriers and aircraft operators - Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air, concluded in Montreal on 28 May 1999, signed by the European Community on 9 December 1999 on the basis of article 300(2) EC, approved on behalf of the EC by Council Decision 2001/539/EC of 5 April 2001

This was a request for a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union submitted by the Oberster Gerichtshof (Austria) in the proceedings between the claimant, an expert in the blasting of avalanches using explosives, and the defendants, the helicopter company that had carried him when he suffered injury, and its insurers. Mr Santer's injury was suffered during the flight when the door of the helicopter flew open while he was holding the door loop. Mr Santer was opening the door so that the person behind him could throw out the explosives to blast the avalanche. His claim had been successful at first instance but not upon appeal because it was held that he was not a "passenger" as he was not to be taken from A to B but brought around the area for the purpose of blasting avalanches under a contract between the helicopter company and his employer.