Military Aviation Authority

Military Aviation Authority
Image depicts the official logo of the Military Aviation Authority. It consists of the words 'Military Aviation Authority' above, it's official acronym 'MAA' beneath, and below that, a schematic cross-section of an aerofoil.
MOD Abbey Wood in Filton, Bristol, location of the Military Aviation Authority
Aviation regulatory authority overview
Formed1 April 2010; 16 years ago (2010-04-01)
Preceding agencies
  • Defence Aviation Safety Centre
  • Directorate of Aviation Regulation & Safety
Typemilitary aircraft regulator
JurisdictionMonarch of the United Kingdom,
Government of the United Kingdom
Statusactive
Headquarters
Mottoa world class air safety regulator
Aviation regulatory authority executives
Parent aviation regulatory authority
Ministry of Defence and Defence Safety Authority
WebsiteMAA.MoD.uk

The Military Aviation Authority (MAA) is an organisation within the United Kingdom (UK) Ministry of Defence (MOD), and is the single regulatory authority responsible for regulating all aspects of air safety across all service branches of the British Armed Forces. The MAA has full oversight of all defence aviation activity within the United Kingdom, and overseas locations where British military aircraft and / or military unmanned air systems (UAS; unmanned aerial vehicle along with its ground-based controller system, collectively known as 'drones' in common parlance) are permanently based, or deployed on a temporary basis. The MAA is also responsible for the allocation and assignment of the United Kingdom military aircraft registration mark to all British military aircraft on the United Kingdom Military Aircraft Register (UK MAR). Its stated aim or 'vision' is to be "a world class air safety regulator".

Organisational structure

The Military Aviation Authority is part of the Ministry of Defence, but operates independently, via a Charter signed by the Secretary of State for Defence. The MAA is headed by its Director, currently Air Vice Marshal Peter J. M. Squires, OBE ADC RAF; assisted by its Technical director, Rear Admiral Thomas Manson.

History

The Military Aviation Authority was established on 1 April 2010; 16 years ago, in response to the recommendations made by Mr Justice Haddon-Cave in his Nimrod Review, which called for a radical overhaul of military airworthiness regulation.

The MAA incorporates the former Directorate of Aviation Regulation & Safety (DARS), previously known as the Defence Aviation Safety Centre (DASC) which had been located at RAF Bentley Priory in Greater London until the station closed in 2008 and the organisation subsequently moved to RAF Northolt. The MAA is currently located within the North building of MOD Abbey Wood at Filton in Bristol, south-west England.

On 1 April 2015, the MAA became part of the Defence Safety Authority (DSA).

Principal personnel

AVM Peter Squires, OBE ADC RAF, current MAA director since 2025.
AVM Alan Gillespie, former MAA director (2021–2025).

The Military Aviation Authority is led by:

Previous personnel

Director general

Director

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Air Vice-Marshal Peter Squires OBE MA BEng(Hons) – Director Military Aviation Authority". GOV.UK. Government of the United Kingdom. n.d. Retrieved 21 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Regulation - Regulatory Article (RA) 1161: military registration of aircraft operating within the defence air environment". GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence and Military Aviation Authority. 30 September 2024 [30 November 2020]. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "MAA01: Military Aviation Authority Regulatory Policy". GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence and Military Aviation Authority. 26 April 2024 [17 December 2014]. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  4. ↑ "Our management". GOV.UK. Military Aviation Authority. n.d. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  5. ↑ Haddon-Cave, Charles (28 October 2009). "Nimrod Review". GOV.UK. Government of the United Kingdom.
  6. ↑ Vogelaar, Rob (1 April 2010). "UK New Military Aviation Authority begins work". AviationNews.eu.
  7. ↑ Purton, Leon; Kourousis, Kyriakos (2014). "Military Airworthiness Management Frameworks: A Critical Review". Energy Procedia. 80: 545–564. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2014.09.111. hdl:10344/5288.
  8. ↑ "Interview with Group Captain Tony Mills, Gp Capt RAF Flight Safety" (PDF). Air Clues. Royal Air Force. October 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 October 2010. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
  9. ↑ "RAF Northolt". VSM Estates. 2012. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "MoD to move 1,400 workers from Bath to Bristol". BBC.co.uk. British Broadcasting Corporation. 7 July 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "New Defence Safety Authority launched today". GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence, Government of the United Kingdom. 1 April 2015.
  12. ↑ "Our management". GOV.UK. Military Aviation Authority. Retrieved 31 October 2019.