This chapter shall not apply to aircraft operated exclusively by an air carrier or a foreign air carrier, as defined in subdivisions (2) and (19) of Section 1 of Chapter 601 of the Statutes of the Seventy-fifth United States Congress, Second Session (1938), engaged in air transportation as defined in subdivision (10) of the same section while there is in force a certificate by, or a foreign air carrier permit of, the Civil Aeronautics Board of the United States, or its successor, authorizing such air carrier to engage in such transportation.
§ 1208.70.Inapplicability to Aircraft Operated By Air Carrier Or Foreign Aircraft
Title 4. Of the Enforcement of Liens · Chapter 5. Liens on Aircraft · Enacted 1953 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1208.70 exempts aircraft operated exclusively by an air carrier or foreign air carrier, as those terms were defined in 1938 federal aviation legislation, from this chapter's lien provisions while that carrier holds a valid federal certificate or permit authorizing air transportation.
Full Text of § 1208.70
Plain-English Summary
This chapter's possessory lien scheme was built with smaller aircraft and independent operators in mind, not commercial air carriers regulated at the federal level. This closing section carves those carriers out entirely: the chapter doesn't apply to aircraft operated exclusively by an air carrier or a foreign air carrier, using the definitions from the 1938 federal aviation statute referenced in the section.
The exemption lasts only while the carrier holds a valid certificate, or a foreign air carrier permit, from the Civil Aeronautics Board or its successor, authorizing that air transportation. Once that authorization is in place and the aircraft is used exclusively in that regulated air-carrier service, this chapter's repair and service liens don't reach it at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this chapter's aircraft lien apply to commercial airline aircraft?
No, not to aircraft operated exclusively by an air carrier or foreign air carrier as defined in the referenced 1938 federal aviation statute, so long as the carrier holds a valid certificate or permit for that air transportation.
Who originally regulated the certificates and permits this exemption refers to?
The Civil Aeronautics Board, or its successor agency, under the federal statute the section cites.
Does this exemption cover an aircraft used only occasionally for scheduled air-carrier service?
No -- the exemption is limited to aircraft operated exclusively by the air carrier in that air transportation while the carrier holds the required federal authorization.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1953, Ch. 52.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: aircraft lien exemption air carrier california