When you look for an aeronautical text (regulation, AMC/GM, CS, decisions, etc.), you quickly come across two complementary “entry doors”:
- EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency): very practical for operational documentation (Easy Access Rules, AMC/GM, CS, ED Decisions…).
- EUR-Lex: the official source for European Union legal texts (regulations, directives, decisions) and access to language versions (including French).
1) EASA: what it is, and why it is useful
EASA’s role, in one sentence
EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency) is the EU agency that steers civil aviation safety at European level: it prepares and maintains a large part of the technical regulatory framework and publishes associated means of compliance and guidance.
Concretely, EASA is used to:
- propose/shape technical and operational requirements,
- publish AMC/GM (Acceptable Means of Compliance / Guidance Material),
- publish CS (Certification Specifications),
- publish ED Decisions (Executive Director decisions) that update AMC/GM, CS, etc.,
- provide easy-to-read compilations (notably the Easy Access Rules).
Tip: when you cannot find a French version on EASA, it does not necessarily mean it does not exist “in law”; it is often because EASA publishes its working documents in English (Easy Access, compiled AMC/GM). The official French version of EU regulations is on EUR-Lex.
2) EUR-Lex: the official source, and how to find all language versions
What is EUR-Lex?
EUR-Lex is the official European Union portal that gives access to:
- the Official Journal of the EU (official publication),
- regulations / directives / decisions and their consolidated versions,
- translations in all official EU languages (including French),
- metadata (dates, history, links to amending acts…).
If you need to cite a text, check an exact version, or find the French version, EUR-Lex is the reference.
How to find an aeronautical regulation on EUR-Lex (simple method)
If you know the reference (e.g. “Regulation (EU) 20xx/xxx”):
- Go to EUR-Lex and paste the reference into search.
- Open the document page.
- Find the “Languages, formats and download link” section (or equivalent).
- Choose FR for the French version, or another language.
Important point: “consolidated version” vs “published version”
- Version published in the Official Journal: the “source” reference at a given date.
- Consolidated version: a “merged” version that incorporates amendments. Great for reading, but always check:
- the consolidation date,
- the latest amending acts if you are on a very recent topic.
3) How to avoid juggling multiple sources
In practice, you often have to “assemble the puzzle”:
- The official legal text and its French versions are on EUR-Lex — and it is also on EUR-Lex that you find the acts that amend regulations (those that modify them over time).
- More “operational” content (Easy Access Rules, AMC/GM, CS, ED Decisions) is more on the EASA side.
Result: you easily switch from one source to another, and consolidated versions are not always immediately up to date.
To avoid this recomposition work, a solution like ComplyAir centralises these documents (including in French) and lets you more easily find regulations, their amendments, and the associated AMC/GM in one place.
