Civil Aviation Regulations relied upon as particulars of negligence in a common law claim do not impose strict liability; the obligation is to exercise reasonable care to comply, and the statutory defences (stress of weather, unavoidable cause) qualify the standard. When implying a term into a bailment contract requiring compliance with aviation regulations, the term must be expressed as an obligation of reasonable care to comply, incorporating the defences available under the regulations themselves. The risk of harm under s 5B CLA must be accurately identified — where the actual harm was caused by an unmarked, invisible obstruction, the risk should not be recharacterised as the risk of being in a particular location.
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