Canada. Air Transport Board : The first legislative recognition of aviation in Canada was the Air Board Act (9-10 Geo. V, c. 11) known as the Aeronautics Act from 1922 on. This brought civil aviation and air transport under an Air Board appointed by the federal government. The Board was made responsible for safety standards and regulations in the field of aviation. When this Board was abolished in 1922, its responsibilities were transferred to the Department of National Defence and again in 1936 to the newly-created Department of Transport. That same year, the Transport Act was passed and called for the Board of Transport Commissioners for Canada to be charged with the licencing and regulation of air carriers engaged in commercial airline transportation.
In 1944, the Aeronautics Act was amended (8-9 Geo. VI, c. 28) to provide for the establishment of an Air Transport Board which took over the air transport activities entrusted to the Board of Transport Commissioners in 1936, i.e., the issuance of permits and the regulation of commercial airline services. It was also responsible for advising the Minister of Transport on the expeditious and soundly planned development of the air transport industry in Canada. All other aspects of civil aviation, particularly safety, were to remain with the Department of Transport. The new organization consisted of a Chairman and two Commissioners who oversaw four branches, consisting of the Administrative, Legal, Licencing, Examiners, Economics, Audit, Traffic and Research and Aeronautical Engineering Branches, which were required to provide technical information in their fields.
Over the years, the Board underwent several reorganizations, which saw the number of branches range from four to ten. Some functions were combined or took on new importance depending on air transport requirements. In 1967, the International Relations Division was raised to the status of a branch.
In 1967, the Air Transport Board was merged with the Canadian Transport Commission which had just been created with the passage of the new National Transportation Act.
