Part of the Ministry of Defence (MOD), the MAA is an independent and autonomous organisation responsible for the regulation, surveillance, inspection and assurance of the Defence Air operating and technical domains. It ensures the safe design and use of military air systems.
As the single regulatory authority responsible for regulating all aspects of Air Safety across Defence, the MAA has full oversight of all Defence aviation activity. Through independent audit and continuous surveillance of military aviation, the MAA aims to provide the Secretary of State for Defence (SofS), through the 2nd Permanent Under Secretary of State for Defence (2nd PUS), the necessary assurance that appropriate standards of Air Safety are maintained in delivering operational capability.
The MAA draws the authority to discharge its regulatory role from a Charter signed by SofS. The Charter also specifies the MAA's high level governance arrangements and broad responsibilities.
The MAA is led by a 3* Director General (DG) who operates out of MOD Main Building. He is supported by the Director Technical Group, based at MOD Abbey Wood, and the Director Operations Group, who is based at the MAA's interim headquarters at MOD Ensleigh; the site is also the base for the MAA Chief of Staff and Secretariat and Business Management functions.
The MAA consists of three linked pillars:
- The Operations Group (Op Gp) regulates and assures flight operations, flight test and air traffic management functions; it is headed by Rear Admiral Simon Charlier
- The Technical Group (Tech Gp) regulates and assures industry and the technical support to flight operations, including the issue of organisational approvals, surveillance and due course, the certification of equipment; this group is headed by Air Vice-Marshal Charles Ness
- Finally, a single Military Air Accident Investigation Branch (MAAIB) was established on 1 Apr 11 to undertake military air accident investigations in support of Service Inquiries convened by the DG MAA
The organisation has a small interim headquarters based in Bath, Somerset, and is currently represented at several other sites throughout the UK.
The MAA was established in response to the recommendations made by Mr Charles Haddon-Cave QC in his Nimrod Review, which called for a radical overhaul of military airworthiness regulation.
