Article 9

Aviation safety

1 — Each Party may request consultations at any time concerning safety standards in any area relating to air crew, aircraft or their operation adopted by the other Party. Such consultations shall take place within thirty (30) days of that request.

2 — If, following such consultations, one Party finds that the other Party does not effectively maintain and administer safety standards in any area that are at least equal to the minimum stan-dards established at that time pursuant to the Convention, the first Party shall notify the other Party of those findings and the steps considered necessary to conform with those minimum standards, and that other Party shall take appropriate corrective action. Failure by the other Party to take appropriate action within fifteen (15) days or such longer period as may be agreed, shall be a ground for the application of Article 5 (“Refusal, revocation, suspension and limitation of rights”) of this Agreement.

3 — Notwithstanding the obligations mentioned in Article 33 of the Convention, it is agreed that any aircraft operated by a designated airline of one Party on services to or from the territory of the other Party may, while within the territory of the other Party, be made the subject of an examination by the authorized representatives of the other Party, on board and around the aircraft to check both the validity of the aircraft documents and those of its crew and the apparent condition of the aircraft and its equipment (ramp inspection), provided this does not lead to unreasonable delay.

4 — If any such ramp inspection or series of ramp inspections gives rise to:

a) Serious concerns that an aircraft or the operation of an aircraft does not comply with the minimum standards established at that time pursuant to the Convention; or

b) Serious concerns that there is lack of effective maintenance and administration of safety standards established at that time pursuant to the Convention,

the Party carrying out the inspection shall, for the purposes of Article 33 of the Convention, be free to conclude that the requirements under which the certificates or licenses in respect of that aircraft or in respect of the crew of that aircraft had been issued or rendered valid, or that the requirements under which that aircraft is operated, are not equal to or above the minimum standards established pursuant to the Convention.

5 — In the event that access for the purpose of undertaking a ramp inspection of an aircraft operated by a designated airline of one Party in accordance with paragraph 3 is denied, by the representative of that designated airline, the other Party shall be free to infer that serious con-cerns of the type referred to in paragraph 4 arise and draw the conclusions referred to in that paragraph.

6 — Each Party reserves the right to immediately suspend or vary the authorization to conduct international air transportation of an airline of the other Party in the event that the first Party conclu-des, whether as a result of a ramp inspection, a series of ramp inspections, a denial of access for ramp inspection, consultation or otherwise, that immediate action is essential to ensure the safety of an airline operation.

7 — Any action by one Party in accordance with paragraph 1, 2 or 6 above shall be discontinued once the basis for the taking of that action ceases to exist.

8 — Where the Portuguese Republic has designated an airline whose regulatory control is exercised and maintained by another European Union Member State, the rights of the other Party under this Article shall apply equally in respect of the adoption, exercise or maintenance of safety standards by that other European Union Member State and in respect of the operating authorization of that airline.

16 DE OUTUBRO DE 2020______________________________________________________________________________________________________

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