Ground handling organisations

Ground handling organisations

On 19 December 2024, the European Commission adopted two interlinked regulations supplementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council:

• Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/20 – lays down requirements for the safe provision of ground handling services and for the organisations providing those services (management system, safety management system, staff training and competence, ground support equipment maintenance programme).
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/23 – lays down the rules under which the competent authority oversees these organisations and processes their declarations.

Regulation (EU) 2025/20 entered into force on 27 March 2025. Its provisions will generally apply from 27 March 2028 (the information security requirements of point ORGH.MGM.201 of Annex I will apply only from 27 March 2031). Under the Aviation Act, the Estonian Transport Administration is the competent authority for aviation safety in Estonia and will, on the basis of Regulation (EU) 2025/23, receive declarations from ground handling organisations and oversee them.

Who Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/20 applies to

Under Article 3(1) of Regulation (EU) 2025/20, a ground handling organisation is one of the following:
a) a stand-alone ground handling organisation, or a ground handling organisation that is part of a single ground handling group;
b) an aerodrome operator providing ground handling services;
c) an aircraft operator providing ground handling services to itself or as part of a single airline group (self-handling).

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/20 applies in particular to the following services (Article 2):

• passenger handling, including passengers with reduced mobility;
• baggage handling (identification, sorting, transfer, reclaim);
• servicing of aircraft on the apron (operation of ground support equipment, refuelling, toilet servicing, potable water servicing, exterior cleaning, de-icing and anti-icing);
• aircraft turnaround activities (activities upon aircraft arrival, loading and unloading, activities upon aircraft departure, towing, pushback);
• and cargo and mail handling at an aerodrome.

The Regulation does not apply to certain ancillary activities, such as flight dispatch, load control, ground supervision, activities of certified maintenance organisations, or self-handling on non-commercial flights (Article 2(3)).

Submitting the declaration

A ground handling organisation that already provides such services must submit to the Estonian Transport Administration the declaration set out in point ORGH.DEC.100 of Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2025/20.

In general, declarations will be accepted from 27 March 2028. Under Article 5 of the Regulation, organisations that were already providing ground handling services on 27 March 2025 are subject to an exception – their declaration must be submitted earlier, according to a schedule agreed with the Estonian Transport Administration, from 27 March 2027.

For organisations within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2025/23, submitting the required declaration is a precondition for providing services – ground handling services may not be provided after Regulation (EU) 2025/23 becomes applicable without it.

Contact

If your organisation provides ground handling services (including self-handling), please assess whether your activities fall within the scope of the new regulation and, if necessary, start preparing the declaration in good time. If you have any questions, please contact the Estonian Transport Administration by email at [email protected].