Australian National Airlines Act 1961

After section thirty-seven of the Principal Act the following section is inserted:—

Insurance.

“37a.—(1.) In this section, ‘risks to which this section applies’ means the following risks, to the extent to which, in the case of privately-owned air transport undertakings, they are customarily covered by insurance:—

risk of loss of, or damage to, aircraft of the Commission and parts of, and equipment for, such aircraft;

risk of liability in respect of the death of, or injury to, passengers in aircraft of the Commission; and

risk of liability in respect of the death of, or injury to, persons on the surface, or damage to property on the surface, caused by an aircraft of the Commission in flight or by any person or thing falling from such an aircraft.

“(2.) So long as the Commission is not fully insured by policies of insurance against all risks to which this section applies, the Commission shall maintain an account (in this section referred to as ‘the prescribed account’) for the purpose of making provision against risks to which this section applies, so far as they are not covered by insurance.

“(3.) The Commission shall credit to the prescribed account—

any amount that, immediately before the date of commencement of this section, appeared in the accounts of the Commission as a provision in lieu of insurance against risks that, upon that date, became risks to which this section applies;

such sums as are approved by the Minister, with the concurrence of the Treasurer, as being equivalent to the current commercial premiums that would be payable by the Commission for insurance in respect of risks to which this section applies, so far as they are not covered by insurance;

interest received by the Commission upon securities representing moneys standing to the credit of the prescribed account, and any profits upon the realization of any such securities; and

the whole, or such part as the Minister approves as being appropriate, of any damages, compensation or other moneys received or recovered by the Commission in respect of a loss referred to in paragraph (a) of the next succeeding sub-section.

“(4.) The Commission shall debit to the prescribed account—

where the Commission suffers loss, not fully covered by insurance, by reason of a risk to which this section applies, such amount in respect of that loss as the Minister approves as being appropriate having regard to the provision made under this section in lieu of insurance against that risk;

payments to the Commonwealth of interest upon any loan made to the Commission in accordance with the next succeeding sub-section; and

any loss incurred by the Commission upon the realization of securities representing moneys standing to the credit of the prescribed account.

“(5.) If an amount that is, in accordance with paragraph (a) of the last preceding sub-section, required to be debited to the prescribed account exceeds, by more than Fifty thousand pounds, the value of the securities of the Commonwealth held by the Commission that represent moneys standing to the credit of the prescribed account, the Treasurer shall, under section thirty-one of this Act and notwithstanding sub-section (5.) of that section, make a loan to the Commission of an amount equal to the excess.

“(6.) Subject to this section, the Commission shall keep invested in securities of the Commonwealth the whole of the amount from time to time standing to the credit of the prescribed account.

“(7.) Up to and including the thirtieth day of June, One thousand nine hundred and sixty-four, the amount required to be kept invested in accordance with the last preceding sub-section is reduced by an amount equal to so much of the amount referred to in paragraph (a) of sub-section (3.) of this section as was not, immediately before the date of commencement of this section, represented by securities of the Commonwealth, but the Commission shall endeavour to reduce progressively the extent to which the amount standing to the credit of the prescribed account is not represented by securities of the Commonwealth.

“(8.) The Commission shall not be taken to have failed to carry out its obligations under sub-section (6.) of this section by reason only of the lapse of a reasonable interval between the crediting of an amount to the prescribed account and the investment of an equivalent amount in securities of the Commonwealth or between the realization of any securities and the re-investment of the proceeds of the realization.

“(9.) All securities of the Commonwealth that, immediately before the date of commencement of this section, represented any part of the amount referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (3.) of this section shall, upon the establishment of the prescribed account, be deemed to represent a corresponding amount standing to the credit of the prescribed account.”.